C48

2s [SPEAKER_03]
What do you do in the refinery?

10s What I do is pipe fitting, but I'm a journeyman welder, and I weld pipe, all the difficult alloys that we do, and yeah, we make this plant run with the pipe.

23s Do you like your job?

23s I love my job, actually.

25s Yeah, my job is very exciting, very intense, and I feel that my job is...

32s much needed in the field, especially welding and pipefitting, a real critical pass that we get ourselves into and we come out safe, you know.

41s [SPEAKER_02]
Say again, I love my job.

43s [SPEAKER_03]
I love my job.

46s I do.

46s I really do actually.

52s What have you heard about the future of California refineries?

55s I have not heard much about them, but I

58s I have heard there's a lot of regulations coming up for the refineries and it's a lot of political things going on.

66s So I'm not sure much about them, but I know that

69s I think the refiners need to be run by the hands and local unions out here that are very well trained, actually.

75s I believe the hands behind the scenes really are the ones keeping these refineries running.

82s And without us, they won't work.

86s And we have to prove to them that we as a hands or trades could keep these refiners here in California.

93s That's how I feel.

94s Keep doing the good work.

97s [SPEAKER_00]
Do you think we should be refining fuel?

99s [SPEAKER_03]
Yes, a hundred percent, a hundred percent, because the state is big enough to carry this so much load.

107s We could open more refineries if we can, if they let us, but also with all the laws and regulations they put on it, it's pretty hard to keep moving forward.

118s I believe refineries are good here in California, especially in the Old Bay side, north and south of LA County.

129s [SPEAKER_02]
Do you know anybody that's been laid off from one of these refineries?

134s [SPEAKER_03]
The layoff process, I do know a lot of people that get laid off, but it's not because they don't do a good job.

141s It's because we do turnarounds and short calls that we come and man the jobs that they need us to do here in Chevron, and also we do for the short term.

151s and then we move on.

152s But there's always maintenance that we carry on here to do little small jobs and move forward.

156s Again, keep moving forward and doing good jobs.

158s And when they have big turnarounds, then they call the halls for all the trades, like the electricians and the boilermakers and all the pipefitters, to finish a good job within a month or two, maybe two months.

170s So it's an on and off.

172s That's what we signed up for, right?

173s To finish a job with good quality and then move on to the next one.

181s [SPEAKER_01]
So do you think refineries create good jobs?

184s [SPEAKER_00]
Yeah, hang on.

185s I think this guy's waiting for us.

193s [SPEAKER_03]
What was the question?

194s [SPEAKER_00]
Do you think refineries create good jobs?

196s [SPEAKER_03]
Oh, yeah, they do.

197s Actually, they create great jobs.

198s It's a good living.

199s Well, it's a difficult living because obviously we do move around

206s away from our families and friends for many hours that we do this for the short term.

211s It is hard, but it's something we have to do to keep moving forward for people.

216s I call them civilians, right?

218s The ones out there to do the things that they don't know what's going on behind the doors that we have here.

224s But yes, I think so.

229s [SPEAKER_00]
You think what you do here in refineries helps everyone in California?

230s [SPEAKER_03]
Oh, a hundred percent.

231s I'm a welder.

232s We always need those welders to weld that pipe

235s , without the welder, or even pipe fitter, the process of the oil, the crude oil coming through the tankers out there in the wharf, it needs to go through the pipe.

245s So yes, they do need, our jobs are very important.

247s Again, we don't talk about it in the streets because they don't understand our line of work, but they do, we are very important in this trade.

261s it does and it doesn't i can't say too much about it i'm not very educated in that part but uh

276s It is, because one, it does create more jobs for us, right?

279s It keeps the jobs here in California.

282s But the more regulating laws that bring in, it gets more expensive.

287s So, yes, I'd rather keep the laws here, or the jobs here, I'm sorry.

303s It's okay.

309s Yeah.

312s [SPEAKER_02]
Yeah.

318s [SPEAKER_03]
Oh, well, many jobs are lost because a lot, actually, the Richmond community here, I don't live here, but I know a lot of workers that live in Richmond, yeah, they would hurt for a good quality of life, especially on this side with the cost of living being so high.

333s And if these refineries shut down, it would hit an impact in the community, I believe so.

339s It will definitely, a lot of the layoffs, right?

343s A lot of jobs that are lost and then...

347s , I think it's not good.

351s [SPEAKER_01]
Well, if he gets laid off,

367s [SPEAKER_03]
well hope you saved a lot of money because all these turnarounds we make a lot of good money but it would impact the families it will hurt the families because the quality of life that we give them the lifestyle I guess we could say it's a good lifestyle it's a good

385s What do you want to say to the politicians that don't think we should

415s What do I want to say to the politicians?

421s You know, I think they need a better understanding of what we actually do.

429s Because you could be in a desk behind a desk and see these things happening here and they probably see more negative than positive.

436s , you know, is there an impact to the to the earth?

439s Probably.

440s But they know.

441s But they don't they don't get scared when they sign that check and deposit it in their bank account.

445s So if they come out here personally and they actually see what we do and how it does impact the city of Richmond or how it impacts actually the whole state of California, really, and across the nation, because it's not just California that we're only holding back on our oil.

462s It's the whole nation.

463s So

464s , if politicians have a better understanding of our trades, the skilled labor operators that you just saw passing by, he wouldn't have a job.

473s I wouldn't have a job.

474s My BA wouldn't have a job.

476s It was just a lot of things will trickle down and the politician will not see us, but nothing but a piece of diamond in the ground, you know, never pick us up.

484s See, there's reasons why they're still up there and we're down here, but they're up there because we're here.

490s And that's how I feel about the politicians.

497s [SPEAKER_02]
We keep your commute affordable.

505s [SPEAKER_03]
I'm sorry?

505s [SPEAKER_02]
We keep your commute affordable.

512s [SPEAKER_03]
in California yes it is affordable because again the trade wages that we have it's a cost of living wages that we live around the area so it's affordable to still live but not work you know how they say work to live live to work so what we do we

536s I do believe that the unions do have a higher wage, but it's a cost of living wage where we could still live our lives without feeling like we're slaved to this refinery or to the California wages.

548s I do believe that we do live good.

555s Oh, many things.

557s Really comes down to family, right?

559s Trips, memories, sports to my children, college, you know.

566s It's funny because our trade is like me, like a father.

571s I think we put more hours to build the money, but the money really goes to the wife.

577s I have both a wife and a girlfriend.

578s No, I have an ex-wife.

580s Because you just said it on camera, man.

583s That was a bad idea.

586s Sorry.

588s Sorry, ex-wife.

590s I meant like overall.

591s I'm sorry.

593s I'm kidding you.

593s Ex-wife and girlfriend I have.

597s [SPEAKER_02]
No, that was your way, guys.

598s Yeah.

600s Okay, now I'm going to say some things and just repeat it back to me, okay?

603s [SPEAKER_03]
Okay.

604s [SPEAKER_02]
We should make it in California.

605s [SPEAKER_03]
We should make it in California Made in California by Californians We make it better and cleaner in California Keep our jobs in California I power California