Do you have trouble hiring tradesman?

martinthebandit

The only way to find good tradesman is word of mouth, websites like the OP mentioned are worse than useless unless your very lucky.

Oh and good tradesmen don't work for bad customers, they don't need the hassle.

.....and finally they don't come cheap.

onomatopoeia99

C_Mababejive wrote: »

The other thing of course is that they are getting rarer. Why? Because so many younger people want a life driving a desk /bashing a laptop and think other such work is beneath them.

Freinds' teenage children don't think like that, only people I've heard saying stuff like that about younger people tend to be at least fifty years past being a younger person.

Doozergirl

onomatopoeia99 wrote: »

Freinds' teenage children don't think like that, only people I've heard saying stuff like that about younger people tend to be at least fifty years past being a younger person.

Not true. I'm a young mother, not near your demographic, and I'm also a school governor. My 17, nearly 18 year old, son is keen to work for us. He's a very physical, strong boy and loves banter on site but he also likes getting paid more than his peers for hard work over the summer. He wants to run a business and he can see that his parents are respectful and respected people and he sees where that labour leads. He's in a pretty unique position. The trades aren't valued but the irony is that the les value placed on trades by the younfer generation, the more expensive the experienced people get.

There's no one else knocking at the door to work for us. The labourers we are offered generally are not of any quality and it's a job to even get an NI number from them. It makes me sad because our older guys aren't keen to take on apprentices of low calibre that slow them down. Maybe our son will show them that there are keen and genuine apprentices out there, but that is not what current curriculum traches children. Value is placed on academia and everyone else can find their own way.

jk0

Doozergirl wrote: »

It makes me sad because our older guys aren't keen to take on apprentices of low calibre that slow them down.

Ha ha. You struck a chord with me. Last year I employed a friend's 16 year old son as an apprentice handy-man for my property business. I picked him up on Saturdays at noon, to take him to work with me.


The first week, he was not dressed when I arrived, and it took him half an hour to get ready. The next week, I could not rouse him at all. The third week, he was not dressed again at 11.50. I left at 12 and he had to walk to work.


The fourth week, he filled up my hoover with water, spilled paint on the carpet and did not tell me or bother clearing up. I told him not to bother himself in future.

Robby1988

Biggest problem I have with tradesmen is being in for them to come and quote. If you work Mon-Fri, unless you work shifts or work locally with the flexibility to get back in working hours, it can be a real barrier to being as choosy as you might want to be if a job needs doing.

I have taken mornings off work for tradesmen, only for them not to show up, or they come right on the minutes so your rushing it. When you finally do manage to see somebody, if they seem decent enough at first impression and the quote looks ok, I can totally appreciate why busy people might just go for it.

I can also totally appreciate why so many people can't be bothered with the whole process & reach for the DIY botchit manual instead.

onomatopoeia99

Doozergirl wrote: »

Not true. I'm a young mother, not near your demographic, and I'm also a school governor. My 17, nearly 18 year old, son is keen to work for us. He's a very physical, strong boy and loves banter on site but he also likes getting paid more than his peers for hard work over the summer. He wants to run a business and he can see that his parents are respectful and respected people and he sees where that labour leads. He's in a pretty unique position. The trades aren't valued but the irony is that the les value placed on trades by the younfer generation, the more expensive the experienced people get.

There's no one else knocking at the door to work for us. The labourers we are offered generally are not of any quality and it's a job to even get an NI number from them. It makes me sad because our older guys aren't keen to take on apprentices of low calibre that slow them down. Maybe our son will show them that there are keen and genuine apprentices out there, but that is not what current curriculum traches children. Value is placed on academia and everyone else can find their own way.

I'm getting close to 50, so my friends tend to have teenage children / step-children. One has a child that dropped out of A levels to start an apprenticeship and is much happier as a consequence, his dad is a research scientist with a PhD, and over a decade in academia once post-doc research time is included befor ehe went into industry, but he certainly did not seek to disuade his son from leaving school at 16 for an apprenticeship. Another friend has two stepchildren doing trade apprenticeships (the sort where you have some day release at college and some working on jobs).



I suppose what I'm trying to say is that in my personal experience I don't know people that see trades as not being of value. I respect anyone that takes pride in their work and does a good job, no matter what field they work in, and certainly would not suggest a trade is a lesser path. Different things are suitable for different people, not everyone is cut out to work in an office, just as not everyone is cut out for academic study and not everyone is cut out to work with their hands. Those working in the education system should assist teenagers to find the right path for them, not try to mould them into some preconceived notion of what kids should turn into, whether it is the right thing for the child or not. (sorry if that got a bit ranty)

C_Mababejive

If "trades" are so good why are so many young people cramming the Universities? It seems like an automatic right of passage. School, FE,Uni, degree type "career" rather than a "job".

Id say to youngsters, in general, dont buy the hype., Work hard, get to uni, get a decent degree in a quality subject...

How many rich parents do you see shuffling their kids into trades ? Very few i suspect. Its not all Pimlico Plumbers and wads of cash.

Doozergirl

C_Mababejive wrote: »

If "trades" are so good why are so many young people cramming the Universities? It seems like an automatic right of passage. School, FE,Uni, degree type "career" rather than a "job".

Id say to youngsters, in general, dont buy the hype., Work hard, get to uni, get a decent degree in a quality subject...

How many rich parents do you see shuffling their kids into trades ? Very few i suspect. Its not all Pimlico Plumbers and wads of cash.

Because most people were encouraged by the Blair government to take your views. It was absolutely admirable that university should be more acessible, but now you're absolutely right, it's seen as a 'rite of passage' kids seem to need a degree (many of which carry no logical job prospects and may not be the right one for them down the line) and £40k of debt just to prove that they're employable at all.

Many people really do just want to get on and work. There's more than one way to "work hard" and learn.

Proper vocational training would lead to a more professional workforce overall with no room for cowboy builders and less room for cowboy clients. I know some very wealthy people and whilst they perhaps aren't putting their children to the trades, virtually all of them have made their money in construction. There is definitely career progression in construction, there are vocational courses right up to degree level and beyond.

There is no need for the shortsightedness of just seeing someone as doing one thing for their whole lives if they move to trades. Not that it's a bad thing.

There is money and satisfaction in running your own business, as well as having flexibility to run your life on your own terms. There's value knowing how things are made from the bottom up. Bright people are needed in the trades, in managing and employing others, in having some business acumen, the confidence to read through a contract, understand VAT etc. There's a lot of fear of paperwork on the domestic side of things. Good people train good people. If people are taught that trades are inferior then eventually you get a shortage, then there aren't enough people at the top to teach, and then the quality drops overall.

bris

Doozergirl wrote: »

That guy wasn't an expert at all. If he'd have known, he'd have just told you.

Why are you trying to get him to come back!

Not true, I can from first hand experience tell you that the amount of times I have turned up to quote for a boiler repair only to realise I was actually just giving out free advice on the fault that the "I can do that" homeowner was always going to fix himself is uncountable.


As a result I had to decide between a callout charge or just giving a price to fix it without telling them the problem. I went with the latter.

Doozergirl

bris wrote: »

Not true, I can from first hand experience tell you that the amount of times I have turned up to quote for a boiler repair only to realise I was actually just giving out free advice on the fault that the "I can do that" homeowner was always going to fix himself is uncountable.


As a result I had to decide between a callout charge or just giving a price to fix it without telling them the problem. I went with the latter.

Understood. I don't have the same sort of business where people can DIY and learn in one meeting, so we give lots of knowledge for free, but I understand what you describe from a friend in a different industry.

Problem for that guy is that the OP was genuine and he missed a job just for the OP to understand what was required.

...that said, you do just want clients to trust you and not watch over. You have to take each meeting with a potential prospect on its on merit.