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Help wanted...Badly!

6K views 26 replies 14 participants last post by  Zendik 
#1 ·
For the past year I have hired twenty men to operate either collectivley or in teams at various periods. Of the twenty I have retained to date ten. That means that I have a fifty percent tunover rate for a year. Firstly is that about right? How have you fellows done. I employ a three man paint crew, two single operating B class spackle mechanics. A finish guy (doors and trim and decent tile work) and three general hands.

Of the twenty all have been hired on recommendation or referral. All have been honest all are payed well but not fantastically so. I need to find some A guys. But short of raiding the crews of my friends and competition, I am stumped as I have depleted the refferal pool at my disposal.

Please help.
 
#3 ·
Glasshousebltr said:
50%...... I think that's pretty good. Normally I get pissed and run my help off on pretty regular interval.

Bob


You would work by yourself alot over here. It hard enough getting 2 guys to answer a ad out of the paper.



Yaz

That is a reasonable turn over rate I would strive for.
 
#4 ·
Sounds about right, everybody I talk to agrees that if anybody was worth their weight, they'd be on their own competeing with you instead of working for you. So it's tough to find that "really good one" that actually has COMMON SENSE and cares about their work, if you find one, treat them well. Most will not work as fastly as we do since 1. they are typically hourly waged and 2. weather the project takes 1 day as "we would expect" or a week, most could really care less as time lines mean nothing to them nor equipment care.

I've only found 1 guy in all my years I wish I could afford to hire that happens to be my brother in law, but he has a great normal job with excellent pay/benefits. I look forward everyyear to his employeer shutting down for a week since he comes and gives me a hand....built a complete garage in 2 days from scratch stick built from ground up (slab/block already done) all the other idiots I've had it takes 1 week no matter how I try to motivate them, talking and frequent smoke breaks seem to be the expected norm from most idiots. I've also found over the years many what I call "Posers" when you talk with them they can do it all and are very good at it....but first time on a jobsite you'd like to kick their azz since they dont know which end of a hammer to hold onto. :eek: Seems as though everybody can do the job verbally and expects to get a great wage, but they cant perform in the feild.
 
#11 ·
You can get all politically correct, I could care less. On the jobsites, I treat all the guys with respect and dignity and over the yars have tried different motivation techniques, but for the most part, and those of us with people on payroll will attest, idiots are idiots and there is no helping them by the time they are old enough to buy beer legally, basically they are what they are and will not change hence the term idiot.

Yes, you get what you pay for, but when with "all the experience" I see on an app. and get vocally when talking to them I start them out at a base wage of $10/hr to get a feel for them. There have been a few that were worth every penny, but if you broke it down staticially it's be 1 out of every 10-12 guys you'll find one with a clue.

My biggest thing, I'd rather have a greenhorn than a seasoned veteran, this way I can mold them into what I want and to do what I expect, not some hard head stubborn sumbeeotch like most of us would be if we worked for a guy after being on our own for years. I look for initiative above everything else, and common sense secondly. It's amazing how many people in the world get by with absolutely no common sense-scarey actually. But when these idiots are told a job to do, and that is ALL they do is what they're told.....TAKE A LOOK IN MY SIG, I love that phrase and it explains everything in our trade.
 
#13 · (Edited)
When I was coming up in construction I was so job scared you saw nothing but assholes and elbows out of me. I worked my tail off.

Well...surprise, surprise...while I was bustin ass I never noticed the slackers and I've come to a bitter conclusion. Fact is that mankind wants the most for the least effort.

Since being in management I've decided that if you can't inspire, fire.

The good people who show enthusiasm are a joy to be with, even if they become your competition. More power to them. The crap-asses who are clueless about the hard business of contracting, and have no appreciation for their employers, can go F themselves with ground glass and sand in their vaseline.

You don't need a job, you need money. So how much do you want, and how hard are you willing to work to earn it?

And to those who say an employer should pay the maximum and expect reciprocation, you are nuts. Yeah, sure, let me work on your car. You pay me an exorbitant fee, guaranteeing my ability to perform. I'll fix your car reel gud!

Dump the trash, invest in the good. Sometimes the trash comes back with a new attitude, and sometimes the good ones who leave come back with new tools. A hard nosed yet fair and decent employer will always be respected.
 
#14 ·
Life never changes......it has been over 24 years for me. I have had up to 30 guys working for me, I have had as little as two. You will have anarcy on the job if you don't have a super. Whether it be yourself or your most trusted employee. Someone needs to be in charge. I have hired people that tell me how wonderful they are and how impressed I'll be (idiots). I have taught the novice only to see him on a crew for the compititor after he has learned enough to gain more wages. Family and job plays third string to all else in America for most people. The amount paid in wages wil mean nothing to the average worker. They will be able to afford a day off without it effecting the pocketbook. I'm all for legal immigration (wish I could find some). American boys no longer want to bang their nuckles, crawl on their knees, get dirt on their reeboks, sewage under their fingernails, or break a sweat unless it's in an air conditioned gym. Sad to say.......but if this country ever goes into a recession like Carter had in the 70's.....maybe we would see some hard work again.
 
#15 ·
Sadly that something for nothing is just becoming common place in all aspects. With all the new inventions being created to make life easier, mommy's and daddy's not able to spank the kids and teach them valves like we were, I'm honestly nervious of what the world will be like in another 30yrs with all these lazy, spoiled, "I'm not doing that" generation comes to charge.

I started out grass roots with a hammer and nail building things and luckily hve that instilled in me as I'm sure most of us on here have, so we'll never forget where we came from and the ingenuity often needed to overcome common problems, but it goes back to the no common sense which I believe is going to pot from evolution. Mommy and daddy have to work 2 jobs to put food on the table so they're not around as much as our parents, or grandparents were and we're leaving it upto schools to rasie these kids, then the free time parents get is not spent doing things themselves, it's hiring it done so they can go on vacation and it does'nt tech the kids anything. No common sense can be taught, everybody just expects somebody else to have the answer for everything without investing some actual personal brain time into the problem, just think about your last trip to the auto parts store....if it's not in the computer, it dont exist-try getting parts for your race car LMAO!! that' about a joke but it's the same principal.

Maybe we're breeding out own problems in the big picture since 90% of folks want the world for free or $19.95. I remember reading on here of a guy that had an extremely high base wage, his reasoning is if the workers are worrying about how much they'll make that week to pay the bills, they're not focusing on their work. I relate to that, but for most of us layman small biz owners, those kind of wages are not possible to pay due to the work in our region and work that we perform. We've done more bath remodles this year than all years past combined, in doing so I've found the most I can sell a bathroom for is $6K for a run of the mill (BASIC) update, anything more the sale is a no go. Some of you have been around long enough to pick and choose, but I'm still in the building customer base phase, so I either take the job for less profit to put food on the table, or go hungry. Given those circumstances there is no way I can pay out $40-60/hr total wages without going broke and in the hole. I have paid $15 to a fella I could count on in every sense that did'nt need babysitting for anything, but eventually he went on his own too. Here we have about 2 construction/handyman companies for every 1 home owner...talk about saturation...and hence goes the wages. We had an article in out local paper, our population in this area is just under 300K, average wage-$11/hr. Now figure in what they take out of peoples checks for taxes/insurance/401K, fuel to get to work, and standard house bills, it's no wonder everybody thinks my stnadard estimates are out of reach....I've recently bid 2 siding jobs, nothing special and only bid labor @$60/sq-mainly for an experiment in pricing...ya know what, I was told that was out of line:eek: Material and labor came upto $210/sq for a standard siding job and I'm outta line LMAO!!!!! Literally dont know how it's getting done cheaper, but if it is, cant imagine those guys are going to last very long.



Seems there is a bigger picture going on that plays into all this jobsite stuff:)
 
#16 · (Edited)
Around here finding some one to work is hard. Hell I have been hired and never came back because the guy running the show was a asshat. I don't need thier chit because there is always a job to be filled.

The last cat I call out of the paper was a real asshat he couldn't even build to code and always talking crap about this other crew. His two lackeys that I a pretty sure I made more money than them but they were always saying Ed doesn't do it that way. I was like what ever I thought we were trying to build a complete house. It got to the piont I wouldn't even want to come in but I knew I needed the paystubs to get financed on a house. The day my house closed I got a walking slip. :censored: :censored: (fk'n fgt)
Funny thing was while standing waiting for a check I make a call and have a fence job for a week. :jester:

You know I don't know too many guys that make a call and land jobs for the following monday or get whole plats handed to them. :no: Been doing it my way since start.


To end the note there is asshats on both sides of the fence.
 
#18 ·
We all know that nobodies perfect, even us;)
BUT....we're the "idiots" that are in charge with OUR names on the line so we're "afforded" the right to stand a step taller and look down-so to speak. Cuz if we were all eual on a jobsite, nothing would get done, that's what separates the workers from the owners-mentality...cuz you got's to be a wee bit different to take chances at being on your own.:cool: :thumbup:
 
#19 ·
If you are an employee of a business and don't appreciate where the money comes from on your signed check, you are an idiot.

Let me say that again, you ungrateful mendicant, "YOU ARE AN IDIOT!"

Get screwed if you think somebody owes you anything! Go straight to hell.

You sorry-ass Americans, I'm ashamed of you. Do a shoulder check, check your six, the footsteps you hear coming up on you are Hispanics who appreciate the value of sweat.

Faggyass Americans, I'm ashamed of you.
 
#21 ·
To me 50% would not be acceptable, there is something wrong with management to have such a turnover rate, no offense.
First of all not everyone is going to know everything about there trade or be as hard a worker as one may like to see. These people are not idiots they are just misplaced with unrealistic expectations set upon their abilities. If one answers an ad, shows up to place an application for work and shows up then they are motivated to do the job what happens next is totally on management. You have to know your workers, their mental and physical abilities in order to place them where they will shine.
Regardless of how "We" were brought up the past is the past and people now are not up for taking much hardcore supervisory techniques, cracking the whip will leave you doing the job yourself.
People want a sense of achievement and responsibility along with good pay without these basic needs who will stay or work as hard as we may need? You can get more positive motivation with a pat on the back than a kick in the ass.
 
#22 ·
Very interesting thread, I've been in business myself now for 6 yrs, I must have went thru 25 guys & gals in that time. I've had up to 9 or 10 working at a time, my best help only works 3 days a week for me, has a steady gig Thur-Sun with good pay & benefits, but I swear I get more out of him in three days than I do out of the other three I currently have in 5 days.

As many have mentioned here, many have looked great on paper and talked like they were the answer to my dreams, knew all phases of remodeling & construction. But once they were in the field, they turned out to be full of crap! I had one guy for a while that really did know his stuff, elec, plumbing, construction, but the worst people skills in the world. I had a couple of clients that flat out told me he made them nervous or uncomfortable and they would appreciate if I would not have him work at their residence alone.

Finding good help that will earn their wages to me is definitely the hardest part of running your own show in my book.
 
#23 ·
It never ceases to amaze me how people in the construction industry think they can change over to management without any training. One can be in the trade for 100 years and know everything there is to know about construction but have no training in management-supervision.
I don't know if anyone here has known about the Association of General Contractors of America, they have a great Supervisory Training Program (STP) course you can find it here http://www.agc.org/page.ww?section=Supervisory+Training&name=About+STP
It's most valuable in training supervisors.
One thing that the course does teach is that all responsibility in retaining personal falls solely on management.
The course has nine classes and each class runs around $100.00 but it is money well spent. In my case I run 99% retention of personal and this is because of the STP courses.
 
#25 ·
Zendik, I have close to the same retention but use only the basic principals.

Do unto others as ...........Bible

....,That all men are created equal.......... Declaration of Indpendence

Hire the best, F the rest and do whatever you have to do to retain them....Me.
 
#26 ·
Teetorbilt said:
Zendik, I have close to the same retention but use only the basic principals.

Do unto others as ...........Bible

....,That all men are created equal.......... Declaration of Indpendence

Hire the best, F the rest and do whatever you have to do to retain them....Me.
Great principals!!! My hats off to you! I love the "Do unto others as ...........Bible". One of the best things to practice.
All men are created equal....... Maybe not so much as we know some are talented in certain construction tasks more than others which leads me to the "Know You Crew" speech.
I had a guy that wasn't the fastest drywall hanger but did a great job checking the work of others (doing the punch etc.). When I shifted him around and found he was good at this task I adjusted him into that position while keeping him on the hanging crew. This elevated his self-esteem and motivated him into trying harder in the hanging dept.. Now he's quicker than most!!!
Everyone has a place, if they don't work out in one field then try them in another and another, management has a duty to find a persons niche if they show up on time and give 100% effort.
 
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