Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My husband got a job offer from a company called Western Petroleum. The job is in the Tioga area but apparently they operate in several other parts of the Bakken as well. We are excited about the offer but hesitant to accept it as I can find virutally no information about this company online. They do have a website, and a few jobs are listed under their name with the ND job service. There is also an article somewhere about them being bought out by another company recently. Other than that, there are no discussions related to working for this company, which I find very strange. I have googled endlessly, searched all the various trucker's forums, and the City Data forum both in North Dakota and Utah, where they are based. If anyone could enlighten me on any additional information about this company, I would be grateful. Thanks!
Western is based out of Utah, I think. In ND they mainly haul fuel to the fracs. I know a few guys who have worked for them. Only complaint is that they are based near Tioga along HWY 2 and workers have to drive to that area to work for them. it might have changed now, but I know that was a problem for a few of the guys I know that worked there. Good company to work for but location can be a problem.
has anyone ever heard of missouri basin well service?
and its company housing up in ross ,nd?
got a job offer but not sure if i will accept.
alot of housing issues,no housing....
From what I've heard Missouri Basin is one of the best places to work for. They are pretty selective in who they hire, they were having job fairs all over the country. They just had one here in Wisconsin and my husband applied for that as well but did not get hired. They have decent housing and its free for 6 months, profit-sharing, a lot of benefits I can't remember now but at the time we were really hoping he would get it. It is a reputable company, its awesome you got an offer there.
also heard the same. everyone speaks highly of them.also after 6 months its like 300 a month too rent not bad . what didn't your husband get hired ?? from what i have been hearing there all pretty desperate to hire drivers
Just Google Mason Duncan and western petroleum. The public records on the Scott Pederson lawsuit speaks for itself. Nothing has changed. They'll fire you on a dime.
Western Petroleum is headquartered in Vernal, Utah. It's a Mormon family-business owned by Darryl, Samuel and Perry Taylor. I worked for the company for over a year in Tioga and left on good terms.
What you can expect:
Equipment: Worn-out, illegal tanker trucks that shouldn't be on the road, with "meatball" maintenance by mostly unqualified mechanics. Good mechanics move on the first chance they get. The trucks are worn out, it's true what they say about no AC or heater. You get stranded in the middle of nowhere a lot with no emergency winter survival kit.
Housing is a cramped trailer housing with 10 men each, all working different-shift hours. You won't sleep too good. You'll be sharing one bathroom, inadequate heat/AC, frequent power outages, water shortages, and no privacy, that you have to pay $450 a month for. Tempers flare up, we had two fights in our trailer while I was there. The trailers won't pass a housing inspection, they're over-occupied, dirty, no batteries in the fire alarms, water blows in, soaking your stuff, and they leak like a sieve. You provide your own meals, and food is always "disappearing". Satellite TV is provided, no phone or internet service. Laundry isn't easy, sometimes I had to wear the same diesel-soaked coveralls for a week because the one washer and dryer available was either being used or just broken. Winters in North Dakota are hard, last winter there was no power in the man-camp for days, and there's no back-up generator, so we had no way to warm up or make meals. We had to sleep on cardboard on the floor in the quansett mechanic shop with one little space heater, and the single shoddy portable toilet provided was overflowing and unemptied for days. We had to go to the fields in a blizzard while management enjoyed their nice toasty on-site farmhouse equipped with all the amenities, including a generator. They talked a lot about a shiny new man-camp, never saw it.
Training and Uniforms: Training's good, you're ready when you go out on the fracs. You have to travel about a 100 miles round-trip for a week on your own dime for the contracted classroom training in Williston.
You'll get one set of uniform coveralls, hardhat, safety glasses and gloves, that's it. No steel-toe allowance. You'll get a company cell phone. You provide everything else, and there's a lot to buy.
Management: Not good, they're yes-men who appear to be Sam and Perry Taylor's eyes and ears to protect their profits. Inexperience, maturity, integrity and alcoholism are problems. They're usually not even around, but when they are, it's all about intimidation or swapping favors to get the profit numbers the home office wants. Some dispatchers take bribes for the best assignments. Employees who complain are blackballed with no work: one of the drivers got less than 10 hours last week when they found out he'd applied at another company. Payroll is spotty, there's constant hassles with the Utah office about overtime pay shaved off by the company. There's no benefits, except for government-required insurance, which has a $1000 deductible. You'll get a week-vacation after a year, but only a handful have ever stayed around long enough to get it.
Hours: They're putting drivers on a 12 hour-on, 12 hour-off schedule, so I couldn't afford to keep working there: In a good week you'd have 48 hours, maybe a little more. Don't know how that's working out, but it's what the Taylors and their company man Mason Duncan want. They'll get it sooner or later. The big hours we used to get made up for the BS. No more.
Co-workers: there are some good tuff men up there, you won't find no better. There are also plenty of guys who aren't hire-worthy anywhere else. Mormon employees can do no wrong. Lots of babysitting and doing the work of others: The company's started recruiting third-country green-card nationals from Africa, which is why I left: they were getting the easy assignments and all the big hours.
Overall, when I was there you could make a little money. I'm not bitter or "disgruntled". Beautiful country up there. Met some good men. I wouldn't do it again. The old equipment, living conditions and treatment just aren't worth it. You could lose your life in those rustbucket rattletrap trucks. You can do a lot better up there with another outfit.
That's my two-cents worth.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Western Petroleum
