Is it just me?

[donsgal]

Lately it seems impossible to find anybody in the "service industry" who wants to do anything!

We have been trying for two months to find someone to move our mobile home from it's current location in NW Arkansas to our homestead 30 miles away. We have had TWO different transport guys say they "would" do it and then poop out on us as the last minute.

Today a guy was supposed to come around from an "air conditioning service company" and disconnect the central air conditioner. He was supposed to be there at 1 pm and we left at 3 pm having not seen hide 'nor hair of him. He finally called after 4 pm asking us.. "where are you guys?" grrrrrrrr

I recall a while back that I was talking with a realtor acquaintance and she mentioned that many houses are not being built on schedule because the cannot find reliable workers. Some contractors actually start a house and have to leave it unfinished because they cannot find the RELIABLE people to work. THIS IS CRAZY. Anyone with construction experience in this town can write their own ticket!

We have a friend who has a lawn service business and he has had to turn down thousands of dollars in jobs because he cannot find good people who want to work.

Soon we will have to have well drilled and some carpet installed (assuming, of course, that someday we actually do find someone to move it), and I am dreading that.

Is it just around here SW MO? Or is it just as hard to find good reliable folks other places too? Gosh this is awful.

donsgal

[seedspreader]

Anyone who wants to work and has half a mind about them has more work than they know what to do with.

Little story:

I was loading up the trailer with some scrap today, long story short, I blew a hydraulic hose on my left lift cylinder on the Massey.

I took it to a local tractor repair shop and they looked at it and tried to put together a replacement hose. Of course the guy said, "this is off of some sort of dinsoaur isn't it?". I said, yeah, a 1965 MF. He sent me to napa because the connector on these older tractor used an o ring in the line and was a different size than the standard stuff.

He sent us to NAPA and they had to order the adapter (it will be in later this morning) but he said, "no problem". That's why our NAPA won't be put out of business by the much cheaper autozone and parts places like that, because even though they cost more, they give services that I am sure don't return a TON of profit, but keep people like me coming back.

In general, most places have horrible service but still deceive themselves to think that they have "great customer service". To me, great customer service means that even when the computer or book says that this or that won't work, you still try to find something that will.

[Quint]

Originally Posted by donsgal

I recall a while back that I was talking with a realtor acquaintance and she mentioned that many houses are not being built on schedule because the cannot find reliable workers. Some contractors actually start a house and have to leave it unfinished because they cannot find the RELIABLE people to work.

I was talking with some construction crew guys about this very thing earlier his spring and it wasn't that contractors COULDN'T find reliable people to work. It was that contractors couldn't find people reliable people to work at low wages. They hired drunks and partiers (or illegals of course if they can find them) and then bitch if they don't show up. They have no interest in paying a decent wage to men with families to support who would show up everyday.

One of the guys was from Arizona and he moved east and north because he simply couldn't live trying to compete against illegals hanging out in front of home depot and on the street corners. They would work for a fraction of what he and other construction guys would. Made it impossible to make a living.

So it may not be a question of finding reliable workers. It may be a question of getting what you pay for. Or more to the point, not wanting to pay for quality help.

[Alice In TX/MO]

It's not just you. Hubby's a petroleum engineer, working as a field supervisor, and it's downright dangerous out there due to the worker issue.

[Hoop]

I don't for a second believe its hard to find good help if the workers are treated fairly and paid a living wage. Undoubtedly, it is VERY hard to find good help at low wages.

Lets face it, everyone wants to live in adequate housing, drive a reliable vehicle, and be able to set aside at least something for their kids education/their own retirement/etc. Being paid a "just get by" wage with no benefits insures that the employer will likely never find good help.

By the way, I also think many contractors in the service industry prefer not to get involved in the lower end of the market. They only want to work at McMansions. People in mobile homes won't even get a callback.

[gilberte]

Quint hit it right on the head. These businesses want to charge an arm and a leg for the work, hire cheap labor to do the work, and reap the "rewards". A lot of them are finding out that most of the folks willing to work for those low wages aren't very skilled or reliable. The skilled and reliable people are doing something else.

[Alice In TX/MO]

Oilfield wages are not low. The quality of entry level workers is low.

Another issue is that high school dropouts, as well as high school graduates, think they should be able to work when they want, if they want. The work ethic has suffered, whether you want to believe it or not.

Then there are those who have grown up with a joystick in their hand and can't tell the difference between a crescent wrench and vise grips.

[TxCloverAngel]

Oh my can I relate!

My home was damaged pretty badly by hurricane Rita.
I have been fighting w/ FEMA etc,...
I need to send them more estimates before They will consider repair funds.
I have called EVERY contractor in the book at LEAST 4 times!!

I have had one roofing guy
ONE house leveling company
even bother to return my call, little lone actually come out to give me an estimate.
I still need a general contractor, mold removal company, electrician, & another roofing company!! Grrrr

I finally asked one what the problem was. He said.. You called for an estimate for ins or Fema..
We know that means you just want them to pay you and we wont end up getting the job in the end..
so you are last on the list.

Ummmm If ANY of them would bother to come out they WOULD get the job! grrrrr


My hubby is Pipe superintendent at a chemical plant..
You know, the ones that go BOOM and KILL people when someone doesn't do their job correctly??
He has this same problem...
finding good workers is hard to do.
Finding one who understands English well is also a problem.
And you want the workers you do find to come to work 5 days a week????? But.. But.. Its Hot outside!!!
That's crazy!!
but boy oh boy is there an outcry when they go BOOM!
something has got to change.

It just seems that many less people are willing to get their hands dirty doing a thing called work these days.

I used to work w/ teens.
There are so many w/ such a sense of entitlement.
They expect to have everything their parents have NOW the day they get out of school.
There just aren't many who understand EARNING what you have.

Skilled tradesmen are a dying breed. In days past, people were proud of the work they did by the sweat of their brow, and good ole hard work. Now it seems being called blue collar worker is something to be ashamed of.

its truly a shame.
But nothing will change until the younger generations are Taught HOW to EARN things, instead of getting everything their little hearts desire for no effort.

Boy, its a good thing we make our boys work....
We have to many to spoil & pamper THAT much lol

ok wil get off my box now.

[Pony]

I think a lot of this depends on where you live. I read an article in the Chicago Trib recently about a landscaping business in CA that is willing to pay $30/hour for people who are willing to get dirty and work hard and yes, sweat.

A friend in TN was unable to get the brick on the front of her new house done for over a year because people there did not want to work. I know that this friend was willing to pay a very decent wage, and better than the going rate, in order to get the job done.

I know that there are unscrupulous contractors who will hire people for a mere pittance, and that is absolutely wrong. I wonder if it's possible to inquire of a contractor exactly how much s/he intends to pay employees?

As for kids being entitled -- oh, yeah. I see it all the time. Too many kids with that high school degree in hand expect to be pulling down $40k to start, without paying their dues. But like the lady said, "You gotta pay your dues before you pay the rent!"

Now I have to go work my part-time job, where I do make a very fair (some would say "generous") wage ($10.50/hour) to work hard, be more than pleasant to customers who can be more than difficult, and to sweat in the greenhouse.

Pony!

[gccrook]

Originally Posted by Hoop

I don't for a second believe its hard to find good help if the workers are treated fairly and paid a living wage. Undoubtedly, it is VERY hard to find good help at low wages.

Lets face it, everyone wants to live in adequate housing, drive a reliable vehicle, and be able to set aside at least something for their kids education/their own retirement/etc. Being paid a "just get by" wage with no benefits insures that the employer will likely never find good help.

By the way, I also think many contractors in the service industry prefer not to get involved in the lower end of the market. They only want to work at McMansions. People in mobile homes won't even get a callback.

My brother had his own framing company for several years. He started his own, because the one he was a partner in would not pay decently. He paid his help well, allowed them some paid sick days, and even gave them some bonuses. He finally got out of the business, because it is very difficult to find decent help. Having to fire guys for not working or not showing up, and trying to replace them just got too difficult and stressful for him. He had 2 guys that were really good employees, and one of them was about to retire. It reall is hard to find good workers in the construction industry.

[ninajoan]

My husband and I have a small plumbing company. We used to have a problem finding help when we did new construction. Now we do mostly service and the illegals are not forcing us out of the new construction industry. Our guys are paid decently, drug and background checked and throughly TRAINED. We don't do jack leg work. Our clients are pleased to have someone decent show up on time, do the work right then, clean up and leave them with an honored warrantly. We may go through 25 guys to find one decent worker.

[tsdave]

Its probably most likely that the people who do good quality jobs on time are as busy as the care to be, charging twice or more what the other guys do. You are probably not calling the oldest most established businesses, whos prices and quality are probably higher. Just my guess.

[Obser]

Originally Posted by ninajoan

Our guys are paid decently, drug and background checked and thoroughly TRAINED.

We may go through 25 guys to find one decent worker.

I agree with 1 in 25 or perhaps as good as 1 in 15 as being satisfactory employees (those who show up when and where they should and who do the work required).

Wages can be a factor in finding and keeping quality employees, but I would agree with the idea presented above that the common lack of a work ethic (regardless of wage rate) is a much larger factor. Very few are willing to give an honest day's work for an honest day's pay, reliably, consistently. The others are just there for the handout on payday.

I say this as a former partner in a small production shop that employed about fifteen people at any one time. Over three years or so in business we must have employed a total of at least 100 different people -- at wages well above minimum.

Most of the people who worked for us were not worth their wage. There were only a few that I would hire again. When I was in the shop (instead of dealing with suppliers or customers), I consistently produced more than any three of our employees combined and did so for days on end – and I actually showed up every day.

One might be tempted to say that I did so because I was making lots of money. One would be making a mistake with that assumption. There were weeks and months that I took no money at all from the business because payroll and suppliers had to be paid first. Eventually I sold my interest in the business to my partner (didn’t get rich by a long shot) and moved on to other things.

[danb98577]

I had a kid (17) help frame my cabin as payback for fixing his truck. It was painful to watch-I sent him on his way when I realized he couldn't even read a tape measure. "86 and three big lines." ????WHA??? A few years ago I was helping a friend get his shingle sawing business off the ground-blocks of cedar had to be cut to 16" length. Same deal-kid just out of high school couldn't read a tape measure. Gave up and cut a stick 16' long and painted it dayglo orange. He lost the stick. Couldn' work.
Both of these kids had taken shop in school. This is the same school that wants several million dollars to build a new facility. Gee, I don't think so.....

[MELOC]

some of the problem is the school's need for money. if they had more space, maybe they could afford to hold kids back and not pass them through. maybe they do need that new school.

there is a lack of work ethic these days. i will support that statement but i will disagree with some of the rest.

"above minimum wage" could be anything. it sounds less than $10 per hour which is what i feel is basement level pay for shop work.

of course the folks are there just for the handout on payday. why else would they be, a sincere desire to make someone else rich? free callouses?

some employers run credit checks?!? i guess people who need to work should not have bills over-due?!?

some folks are just too picky in the hiring process. i am unemployed. i have applications out but the reason for termination makes me seem undesirable. i would bust my hump flipping burgers, roofing or building pcs if given a chance. i was fired for attendence. i got disgusted after ten years of factory third shift and a brick wall for promotion. i could not survive the additional three year waiting period for a chance at second shift so i gave up. looking at the big picture, i worked for a solid ten years on third shift, the last three were just for the milestone of ten years of service. i would say that shows a level of dedication and perserverance. i set a goal and i acheived it. i could probably explain these things in person but getting a callback is impossible.

i have also kept to myself and the personal references required made me list people i have not talked to since my last job hunt 11 years ago. (it kinda sucks hunting work after an 11 break from it.

then there are the employers who hire for the tax breaks. food lion had an entire web page (online application) concerning welfare etc. they want to make a little extra money by pulling folks from the dole. my ten year job hired me while i was on welfare for 6 weeks. maybe that is the only reason i got that job.

maybe people just need to give other people a chance.

[TxCloverAngel]

I agree meloc..
Our huge high school here has EVERYTHING.
golf team, swim team all sports
FFA AG etc etc etc..
But no wood shop?
& no ROTC
the 2 things my boys want!

[Wayne02]

Originally Posted by danb98577

I had a kid (17) help frame my cabin as payback for fixing his truck. It was painful to watch-I sent him on his way when I realized he couldn't even read a tape measure. "86 and three big lines." ????WHA??? ...

I've seen that a number times now, "52 and two little marks past the big center mark".

Tape measures now come with the fractions printed on the scale.

[greenbean]

Its been my personal experience that service is very bad in the city, but better in the country. Maybe the city people dont have to do good service, because they can afford to lose customers.

But there is more to it than that. One that stands out was a broken house window. When I lived in the city (Northern Virginia) , I took the frame to the big glass service. It took me 3 days to get it back and there was goop all over it.

Then I homesteaded right outside a small New Mexico town. I was new in town. Broken house window again. It was a Friday. I dropped it off. They told me to come back before closing at 5pm. Well, I was late getting back to the shop.. about 20 past 5. I didn't call in or anything. When I arrived, not only was the window finished, but it was done perfectly. The shop was closed, but the man was still there. He said he was waiting for me. Said he didn't want me to have an open house window all weekend!

I'll tell you folks, It almost brought tears to my eyes. In the 20 years I lived in the city, never did anything like that happen to me.

[Topaz Farm]

I had a kid (17) help frame my cabin as payback for fixing his truck. It was painful to watch-I sent him on his way when I realized he couldn't even read a tape measure. "86 and three big lines."

My GS can't read a tape measure. But, it is because he has a learning disability with numbers. I can't remember the name.

[DrippingSprings]

Originally Posted by ZealYouthGuy

Anyone who wants to work and has half a mind about them has more work than they know what to do with.

Little story:

I was loading up the trailer with some scrap today, long story short, I blew a hydraulic hose on my left lift cylinder on the Massey.

I took it to a local tractor repair shop and they looked at it and tried to put together a replacement hose. Of course the guy said, "this is off of some sort of dinsoaur isn't it?". I said, yeah, a 1965 MF. He sent me to napa because the connector on these older tractor used an o ring in the line and was a different size than the standard stuff.

He sent us to NAPA and they had to order the adapter (it will be in later this morning) but he said, "no problem". That's why our NAPA won't be put out of business by the much cheaper autozone and parts places like that, because even though they cost more, they give services that I am sure don't return a TON of profit, but keep people like me coming back.

In general, most places have horrible service but still deceive themselves to think that they have "great customer service". To me, great customer service means that even when the computer or book says that this or that won't work, you still try to find something that will.

Auto Zone and Advance etc are more auto related for sure. BUT if you ask the right person there is absolutely ZERO that you can get at NAPA and not get at Advance or Autozone. Well the only thing I guess is SOME of the NAPAs actually make hydraulic lines from scratch other wise they can get the same and do and from the same sources.

Less than 25 percent of available items are in the computers at any of the above mentioned stores including NAPA. The rest is located in the 25 ft long shelf behind the counter in the catalogs and parts books(how often do they tell you NO without using these books? often Im sure)

First thing to do is enter and find the youngest looking employees and avoid them like the plague. These are retail workers and not parts people. They are there for basic things like stocking registers etc.
Ask for one of the following
1 parts pro
2 commercial sales
3 ase certified parts person.
Now simply ask them and explain you know that under the counter on their side is a twenty five ft shelf with every conceivable parts book info etc you could ever want and tell them what your after.

I sell tractor atv motorcyle etc parts regular and I work for one of the above mentioned chain stores. I know what Im doing and how to find it. Every store is required to have an ase parts pro. Seek them out and youll never have to look elsewhere


david
former NAPA owner
former District Manager of both AZ and Ad
current ASE certified Commercial Specialist with 15 years experience

BTW at places like AZ and Ad the commercial man is in the office out of view of the general public.

Now the part you needed is right at 3 dollars at Az and Ad and can be had the next morning if ordering before 11 am.