AIBU to expect trades people (usually) men to...

The conclusion I've come to is that we need more plumbers, electricians, plasterers, patio layers, general gardeners, decorators, window cleaners, general handy people etc.

As well as nurses, policemen and women, truck drivers etc.

They need qualifications but not necessarily a degree.

Had excellent painters and decorators who cleaned and tidied every day, washed tiled floors and even emptied ashtrays used outside.
Had outside tiler who left all rubbish including his broken tools, empty bags of grouting piled high ...I thought he was going to clear it all away, but no, did it myself .....but the tiling was excellent and worth waiting for.
I think we also have to be prepared for them and set the rules. I should have prepared a big bin/ box for tiler and asked him to pop it sll in at the end of the day ...you live and learn.

My partner is a trades person. He turns up when he said he would. He’s professional he cleans up after himself. He also does a very good job. He also goes out of his way to do what the customer wants with the remit of the quote. Customers on the other hand, try to beat him down in price after the job is done. They even write cheques out for less expecting him to accept it. How many people go to work each day and negotiate their wages. Change their minds more than they change their pants and wonder why the price goes up. Asks him to change his working hours to a shorter day because the baby needs to sleep. Make sure you finish the job on time or earlier though. Some Customers are just as I bad as some work men. Don’t tar them all with the same brush

Don’t tar them all with the same brush

I'm not tarring them all with the same brush minxie; just the ones that don't turn up at all/late/sporadically. Or the ones who take careful note of what you want/need doing and then start to do something completely random that has never been discussed. Or the ones that promise to get back to you but never do. Or the ones that do actually turn up, dump the materials and then go off to pick up their partner/more materials but don't come back for 3 weeks.

There are too many incidents, on this thread alone, all saying the same thing, for it to always be awkward customers being to blame.

minxie

My partner is a trades person. He turns up when he said he would. He’s professional he cleans up after himself. He also does a very good job. He also goes out of his way to do what the customer wants with the remit of the quote. Customers on the other hand, try to beat him down in price after the job is done. They even write cheques out for less expecting him to accept it. How many people go to work each day and negotiate their wages. Change their minds more than they change their pants and wonder why the price goes up. Asks him to change his working hours to a shorter day because the baby needs to sleep. Make sure you finish the job on time or earlier though. Some Customers are just as I bad as some work men. Don’t tar them all with the same brush

I don't suppose you're in Bedfordshire, are you? minxie

Don’t tar them all with the same brush

We're not.
But I think we all know that many tradespeople juggle their jobs.

minxie - where does your son work and what does he do? I think he could have a queue of interested Gransnetters ?

I must admit my partner is quite handy in the DIY department but we have been thwarted often during covid as materials are just not available at all or have doubled in price because of shortages. The most recent one is wood which is in short supply everywhere. We priced our new decking left it a couple of weeks until bathroom work was finished. It is now twice the price!

MoorlandMooner

We have recently had quite a bit of electrical and plumbing work done.

The tradesmen were reliable, did a fantastic job, tidied up after themselves and were great to have around. Whilst they were here I cooked them breakfast and lunch and we all sat around eating together. I loved every minute.

Interestingly they were all retired gents (one well into his 70s) who were working for 'a bit of pocket money'. They were worth their weight in gold.

Oldies are goldies!!

You fed them three meals a day?!

Two recent examples of tradesmen:-

Firstly, one chap we found on a trusted builder website, conned us out of £250 ‘for materials for the job’. Too late the website found he had done this to the tune of thousands of pounds, to others and belatedly delisted him.

The second one where we phoned an older chap who has done our plumbing for years to ask if he could look at a dodgy tap. He came the next morning, took the tap apart (when others would have just fitted a new set), found the problem and fixed it. We saved the price of a new set of taps and his labour charges were very reasonable.

A good tradesman is worth his weight in gold.

My daughter is having the house she bought completely refurbished. Family and friends did the preparation work, taking the walls back to bare brick, ripping out the kitchen and doors, removing old carpets, curtains and blinds etc.
The builders then moved in. In spite of juggling around a dozen jobs they have been wonderful. The boss moves his teams of tradesmen from job to job, as required, and the work is coming along very well. He has even managed to get hold of the two sets of French doors in half the time he warned us that it would take. I am amazed at his efficiency. He is in constant contact with my daughter, checking that she is happy, or updating her on progress. Sadly, he has also had major problems with prices of materials going up. Once he has committed to a price, he said, he won’t increase it. He has to take the loss himself.
I have had my share of unreliable tradesmen, but Ray is a paragon among builders! My sympathies to those of you who haven’t been so lucky.

There is actually a shortage of wood, plasterboard etc whether due to Brexit delays or the pandemic or another factor. My neighbour works for the council (gardening/outdoor - he is the "gaffer") and has recently moved in with plans for fences, decking and all that goes with it. He and the council are finding difficulty with supplies as many go to new builds or are delayed in coming. However I share everyone's exasperation as nothing ever goes to plan and you are left in limbo - do you pay?, do you cancel?, do you get someone else? DD2 has had 2 minor problems via FB. One to get broken TV uplifted for disposal - TV carried outside by me and her - 2 different people failed to take it - DS and I eventually took it to council recycling. 2 different people failed to turn up to fit outside tap. Their loss! But why? These are minor things but frustrating nevertheless.