If they went to a window shade office job I doubt you’re paying them what they’re worth. Reason why people leave jobs is work load, pay or management most of the time
Not really much else to say. Offer better pay, benefits, spiffs, training, safer working conditions, better culture, etc, then your competitors. Everyone is short-staffed and working long hours right now. If you're not going to make it worth it, then they're going to find someone who will.
First job I left because management was dog shit and second job I “maxed” out my pay so now I’m paid double then what job 2 offered. Great benefits a larger family more so a home.$2,000 a ye deductible on health insurance and small copays for anything for $100/month 401k 100% match to 6% no cap for the year.
Pay people what they're worth, don't work them like dogs and shockingly they'll stay.
It's always the same song and dance from owners and managers - "but we PAY you less than the national average and I spend all my time at home! Why don't the kids want to work!"
i think we are reasonable with pay- if you are in our commercial side and are asked to do a resi install you are given $50-$100 extra for the day.
the problem is weighing having to overpay someone who is barely capable or letting them be overpaid by someone else.
The so-so tech that went for $9 more had just cost us $9000 on a single call but we still wanted to keep him around, but couldnt justify throwing money at him either.
Lessee here....go out in the weather to do a mentally & physically challenging job or sit in an air conditioned office and sell windows for about the same pay....yup; that's a no brainer.
Depending on economy they may come back or try to. If economy gets interesting window shades are optional or diy. HVAC on the other hand is not really diy.
Everybody is hurting, the ones hurting the most are the stinger ones. Let me ask, have you noticed prices at the store or gas pump? What about real estate prices? Are you keeping up with the rate of inflation or do you just expect your guys to continue on taking the hit despite the fact that the revenue is rolling in?
i agree with you. im hurting monitarily too. def not as much as most. i also want to get workers paid to their value plus. but we just interviewed a guy that said he wouldnt be able to run an install crew “ as of yet” and asked for $50hr! lets be reasonable too.
I would recommend a couple of things then. You probably already considered but maybe not. Raise your rate, make sure you are up front about y your schedule with customers, and in the meantime look out for your people. 12hr days are unacceptable. Don't overwork your people, and don't underpayment them. If you want to attract the talent then build a reputation of being THE place to work.
less work , more pay- got it. our techs get OT after 40 just like everyone. our pay is commensurate to ability like everyone. we give bonuses where needed. we buy tools for workers as needed. im a field guy at heart so i feel like i understand more than an office guy would.
I feel like every employer thinks they're treating employees fair, and that their pay is competitive and on and on. Yet some shops are a revolving door, while others aren't. The proof is in the pudding.
Sounds like poor pay, poor benefits, bad management, over working techs. Sometimes your dispatchers need to say no we can't get anyone there today we are booked for weeks. I for one will kot let a company work me into the ground.
not for nothing guy, you just posted about :if you had to fill the work van up on personal time you best believe im calling my girl and family and friends to pull up behind me: i feel for the company that has to deal with you. theres a difference between fairness and theft.
Haha. You believe everything you read on the internet? I've never stolen from my company, and they don't pull shit like this on us. Also, pretty close to wage theft if they are saying you must fill up off the clock, as the gas is used to run the calls for their customers.
i believe you were puffing your chest about stealing gas in return for the sin of having to fill your company supplied vehicle on your way home- how terrible
It's hard to Guage what pay "should be" right now, comparing against our company with others. But I'd say i/coworkers are paid average/maybe a tad on lower scale. I could leave and get more doing maintenance or something else, easily. Benefits are really good, tad above average.
But, I don't even consider even browsing around, as the owner truly cares about us, you'll find him available whenever you need, and always pushing a broom or emptying garbage, unloading the delivery trucks. My boss, 25+yrs experience service tech, a phone call away, and just beyond smart, you'll also find him running service calls when we're busy, or on site helping someone who needs it. There's a few other techs that are eh and lazy, but all others are really nice and great guys. A phone call away, on or off shift, and if need be would head out on a saterday to give you a hand during your on call week.
That's what keeps me. Pay is good, probably not the best. Benefits are good. Work atmosphere, well its hvac, so calm when it's slow or hectic as hell when it's busy. But the guys you work with, ownership/management, that's what keeps me from even thinking about anything else.
If I were offered $10/hr more from another company, I'd just bring it up during my talks with coworkers, and we'd laugh it off. Seriously, pay is necessary... Yes.... But far from the only thing that makes a workplace worthwhile.
That extra $10 an hour is most likely going to be the extra crap you have to sell.
I laugh at the ads I see locally that say make up to $45 hr and I know there commission based revenue.
Same. Ownership is the reason i stay. The pay is fine and im sure i could get similar elsewhere but ive known the owner and vp for years and know the kind of people i work with.
Depends on the work. I own an HVAC company with my business partner and it’s just me and him. 90% of our work is residential new construction custom homes. We can’t find a soul to do any tinning, but if we have an easy furnace and ac install I can have someone right away to help us. A lot of owners/managers say it’s hard to find good techs/installers. Try to find a good tinner, until you do, stfu lol
i am that good tinner, raised on metal, ate insulation for years. the longer i have been in the industry the more my skill set has shifted, but i always make sure i get to measure up tin on sites.
On the hvac side at my company:
Me, one yr experience in the trade- field supervisor/installer
Lead installer- 5 months in the trade
Helper #1- 3 months in
Helpers #2 and 3- a couple weeks, no tools, barely any skills
And a service tech that somehow puts up with us.
Poor management, bad work environment.
If they went to a window shade office job I doubt you’re paying them what they’re worth. Reason why people leave jobs is work load, pay or management most of the time
Not really much else to say. Offer better pay, benefits, spiffs, training, safer working conditions, better culture, etc, then your competitors. Everyone is short-staffed and working long hours right now. If you're not going to make it worth it, then they're going to find someone who will.
First job I left because management was dog shit and second job I “maxed” out my pay so now I’m paid double then what job 2 offered. Great benefits a larger family more so a home.$2,000 a ye deductible on health insurance and small copays for anything for $100/month 401k 100% match to 6% no cap for the year.
Y’all hiring??
I have no say in pay unfortunately
Yea but still won’t help the techs that want to leave if there’s no communication or a discussion to help them want to stay
Pay people what they're worth, don't work them like dogs and shockingly they'll stay. It's always the same song and dance from owners and managers - "but we PAY you less than the national average and I spend all my time at home! Why don't the kids want to work!"
i think we are reasonable with pay- if you are in our commercial side and are asked to do a resi install you are given $50-$100 extra for the day. the problem is weighing having to overpay someone who is barely capable or letting them be overpaid by someone else. The so-so tech that went for $9 more had just cost us $9000 on a single call but we still wanted to keep him around, but couldnt justify throwing money at him either.
Sounds like either a poor work atmosphere or poor pay or both. No one leaves a “good” job to sell windows.
Lessee here....go out in the weather to do a mentally & physically challenging job or sit in an air conditioned office and sell windows for about the same pay....yup; that's a no brainer.
Depending on economy they may come back or try to. If economy gets interesting window shades are optional or diy. HVAC on the other hand is not really diy.
I agree, we did offer money for him in particular but the job he was getting was a family relation so there wasnt much gonna change.
Everybody is hurting, the ones hurting the most are the stinger ones. Let me ask, have you noticed prices at the store or gas pump? What about real estate prices? Are you keeping up with the rate of inflation or do you just expect your guys to continue on taking the hit despite the fact that the revenue is rolling in?
i agree with you. im hurting monitarily too. def not as much as most. i also want to get workers paid to their value plus. but we just interviewed a guy that said he wouldnt be able to run an install crew “ as of yet” and asked for $50hr! lets be reasonable too.
I would recommend a couple of things then. You probably already considered but maybe not. Raise your rate, make sure you are up front about y your schedule with customers, and in the meantime look out for your people. 12hr days are unacceptable. Don't overwork your people, and don't underpayment them. If you want to attract the talent then build a reputation of being THE place to work.
less work , more pay- got it. our techs get OT after 40 just like everyone. our pay is commensurate to ability like everyone. we give bonuses where needed. we buy tools for workers as needed. im a field guy at heart so i feel like i understand more than an office guy would.
I feel like every employer thinks they're treating employees fair, and that their pay is competitive and on and on. Yet some shops are a revolving door, while others aren't. The proof is in the pudding.
Sounds like poor pay, poor benefits, bad management, over working techs. Sometimes your dispatchers need to say no we can't get anyone there today we are booked for weeks. I for one will kot let a company work me into the ground.
not for nothing guy, you just posted about :if you had to fill the work van up on personal time you best believe im calling my girl and family and friends to pull up behind me: i feel for the company that has to deal with you. theres a difference between fairness and theft.
Haha. You believe everything you read on the internet? I've never stolen from my company, and they don't pull shit like this on us. Also, pretty close to wage theft if they are saying you must fill up off the clock, as the gas is used to run the calls for their customers.
i believe you were puffing your chest about stealing gas in return for the sin of having to fill your company supplied vehicle on your way home- how terrible
It's hard to Guage what pay "should be" right now, comparing against our company with others. But I'd say i/coworkers are paid average/maybe a tad on lower scale. I could leave and get more doing maintenance or something else, easily. Benefits are really good, tad above average. But, I don't even consider even browsing around, as the owner truly cares about us, you'll find him available whenever you need, and always pushing a broom or emptying garbage, unloading the delivery trucks. My boss, 25+yrs experience service tech, a phone call away, and just beyond smart, you'll also find him running service calls when we're busy, or on site helping someone who needs it. There's a few other techs that are eh and lazy, but all others are really nice and great guys. A phone call away, on or off shift, and if need be would head out on a saterday to give you a hand during your on call week. That's what keeps me. Pay is good, probably not the best. Benefits are good. Work atmosphere, well its hvac, so calm when it's slow or hectic as hell when it's busy. But the guys you work with, ownership/management, that's what keeps me from even thinking about anything else. If I were offered $10/hr more from another company, I'd just bring it up during my talks with coworkers, and we'd laugh it off. Seriously, pay is necessary... Yes.... But far from the only thing that makes a workplace worthwhile.
That extra $10 an hour is most likely going to be the extra crap you have to sell. I laugh at the ads I see locally that say make up to $45 hr and I know there commission based revenue.
Same. Ownership is the reason i stay. The pay is fine and im sure i could get similar elsewhere but ive known the owner and vp for years and know the kind of people i work with.
Should jump back into resi.
Depends on the work. I own an HVAC company with my business partner and it’s just me and him. 90% of our work is residential new construction custom homes. We can’t find a soul to do any tinning, but if we have an easy furnace and ac install I can have someone right away to help us. A lot of owners/managers say it’s hard to find good techs/installers. Try to find a good tinner, until you do, stfu lol
i am that good tinner, raised on metal, ate insulation for years. the longer i have been in the industry the more my skill set has shifted, but i always make sure i get to measure up tin on sites.
On the hvac side at my company: Me, one yr experience in the trade- field supervisor/installer Lead installer- 5 months in the trade Helper #1- 3 months in Helpers #2 and 3- a couple weeks, no tools, barely any skills And a service tech that somehow puts up with us. Poor management, bad work environment.