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8th January 2007, 02:27 PM
'What about the midlands firm who leaves all the recording to the supervisors and the digging to the...er...diggers.'
Absolutely right trenchhead - back when I was working within units this was a real bugbear with me - does it still exist ? I always considered this to be a complete failure of management to understand CPD and on-the-job training.
I once took over supervising on a very large and significant site where the utterly useless predecessor had insisted on doing all of the recording single-handed and was only approximately 1700 context sheets behind the actual digging. At tea-break on my first morning I suggested that all diggers should now record their own work, including photographs and drawings. This was greeted with complete silence and I assumed that I had stunned the team with my wisdom, only to discover that it was due to the fact that no-one was actually allowed to talk during tea-break as the supervisor was trying to concentrate on filling in context sheets and did not want to be disturbed by idle chit-chat.
Beamo
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8th January 2007, 02:34 PM
Then archaeologists are being used as labourers.Not only that, said "supervisors" are not capable of recording something they have`nt excavated. Seen this before guys and simply.....it allows crud units to make it up as they go along.Don`t work for them.Expose them.
If an archaeologist destroys archaeology by excavation, they alone are responsible for recording it.An archaeologist is just that-responsible for ALL of their own recording/surveying/sampling/photography etc. Do NOT allow some muppet to record your work for you.Ever.No talking during lunchbreaks? Oh yes.Now I want to play.Please forward details of said crud unit to me offline guys.....got some news for them
..knowledge without action is insanity and action without knowledge is vanity..(imam ghazali,ayyuhal-walad)
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9th January 2007, 02:08 PM
Troll
The incident that I related earlier was a on-off - I worked for that unit on and off for more than ten years and never again experienced either the silent tea-breaks or the idea that supervisors did all of the recording. This was all down to one particular individual whose contract was not renewed (perhaps linked to a ranting report that I sent to senior management) and who is no longer within the profession.
I am still interested to hear from anyone who has recent experience of sites where all of the recording is undertaken by supervisors or other specialists, including the photography and surveying.
Beamo
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9th January 2007, 03:13 PM
One unit in the SE of England springs to mind - some of our staff used to work for them and never did any paperwork, just digging (all be it on some nice archaeology). I think that either the supervisor or a group of 'experienced' assistants do all the recording. Dosen't seem to do the confidence of the excavation staff much good as they seem to assume that they don't know enough to interperate anything despite some having over 3 years excavation experience!
Mind you the unit still seems to manage to excavate some large and interesting sites - somebody must enjoy working for them!!
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18th January 2007, 02:39 PM
Cotswold are advertising for trainees again - can a quick check be done to make sure that they are paid at the min for a digger and not at trainee - back to the old argument am afraid, lower wages for new starters. Cotswold have a policy whereby trainee is less than 6months
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19th January 2007, 11:05 AM
If this unit are advertising for trainees again, has anybody ask the question as to "what happened to the last batch of trainees" are they working for the unit as fully paid site assitants or is this the way to cheap labour, high staff turn over, keeps the costs down?
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19th January 2007, 01:00 PM
Indeed someone is...
All I want to know (and this was after discussion with Peter Hinton) is what the training environment consists of, what the outcomes are (ie⦠what are the criteria for completion of training, what are they using to measure training.. that sort of thing)
I am all for training, as are the IFA, as long as it actually is training⦠and not the old chestnut⦠âer⦠training on the jobâ¦â
Should have a reply today
"No job worth doing was ever done on time or under budget.."
Khufu
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20th January 2007, 08:29 PM
Beamo said:
"I'm not asure that I have any real opinion on whether or not a pipeline is a suitable place to train - I have always regarded pipelines as being like any other sort of development site"
Good point. However, they are massive. You could easily spend your first six months in commercial archaeology doing things like digging test pits or being driven around the spread in a Land Rover digging tree throws that have been spraymarked by someone else during a watching brief. No need to even use the level. Don't get me wrong, there is good archaeology on pipelines, but not everyone necessarily gets to dig it.
