Employed in property? Your help

silvercar

Well done Lynz, hope this is the start of a good year for you!

prudryden

Lynz
Excellent news!!! We all (tenants and landlords) need a champion with precise knowledge on the housing forums. I think you might be it!!!

Curious_Moose

If the government is so keen to bring in cheap foreign labour, couldn't they find a Pole to replace the deputy prime minister? I'm sure he'd be a lot cheaper but still make the masssive contribution to the running of the UK that John Prescott does.

terrierlady

well done im sure that you will be an asset to the agents, and enjoy the job.

clutton_2

Curious - a lapdancing Pole would do just as good a job as Two S*hags !

ds1980

scorpio_princess wrote:

Excellent post Alan (BTW congrats Lynz- you'll be fab EA i'm sure!)

My industry is suffering because of this too (transport and haulage) - how can we compete with people willing to work for a lot less money? I'm the same as you - I have no problem with immigration on the whole, but there needs to be some kind of order because the way its going at the moment, a lot of people will lose their jobs and the economy will be damaged. But, like you say, the nimbys don't see this - they don't have to witness being undercut on a daily basis. Free market? Not when the indigenous Brits are suffering because of government policy. We can't save the whole world, we also can't give the whole world a job and a better standard of living. As a relatively rich country with a strong economy, we can afford to do our bit, but there needs to be more restrictions than there are now.

Thing is, if you don't buy into this whole 'immigration is great for the economy' mantra, you're called a heartless Daily Mail reading racist bigot - which if you knew me couldn't be further from the truth!

Why don't you employ the poles?? The ones i have in my houses are anything from butchers to lawyers i make sure taht there money is decalred and have close contacts witht there employers as I really do believe that people like the both of you should be looked after first and foremost. Thanks for the posting

Alan_M_2

ds1980 wrote:

Why don't you employ the poles?? The ones i have in my houses are anything from butchers to lawyers i make sure taht there money is decalred and have close contacts witht there employers as I really do believe that people like the both of you should be looked after first and foremost. Thanks for the posting

Firstly, how do you know their money is declared?

In my business, anyone skill full enough to be a fully qualified stone fitter would command the same wage no matter what nationality, as of yet not one has approached me that had the required skill an knowledge to work to British Standards Specifications and within Building Regulations.


I have to be careful to comply with both of these as many of my clients are commercial. That means the building standard and requirements are far higher than for domestic properties.

Actually that isn't strictly true, for domestic installations British Standards are largely overlooked or ignored so the standard can be lower - therefore cheaper. This is where immigrant workforces come into their own.

As for the Haulage industry, the playing field is even more out of whack, due to purchase and running costs (mainly fuel, a Polish hauler can do delivery runs around the UK for lest than cost price of a UK based Hauler) - this is mainly due to restrictions on free trade in Hydrocarbons etc...

i.e we're free to trade with Europe except on items where our tax levy is far higher than mainland Europe, in which case we're not free to trade.

So the foregin haulers can fill up with cheap fuel, but the Uk haulers can't. Don't ya just love free trade in the EU....

clutton_2

Alan M - how grossly unfair .......

Alan_M_2

It's a shame, there are a lot of misconceptions about how and where we can trade and how we can run our businesses.

And what seems like a good deal (employing a foreign workforce) can come back and bite you on the backside without you realising - in your taxes paying for thier benefits, healthcare etc, in the damage is does to the economy, but mostly the misconception the British companies are somehow trying to screw people in this country, when all most of them want to do is run a business, employ decent people and make a profit.

Profit is a four letter word in the UK, sooner or later people will realise this instead of falling over themselves to get a bargain without questioning quality.

clutton_2

whenever i get requests from ad-hoc workmen for cash only jobs i will insist on a receipt once the work is done, and before i will pay them - it annoys me that someone who is clearly trying to avoid tax, is also trying to screw me as well - as without a receipt i cannot claim my rightful tax allowances. Why should i lose out twice because someone else is cheating ? I have rarely employed such a person twice.