Windshield Time

[MasterBlaster]

That sucks!

 

[woodworkingboy]

Law enforcement won't cut parking slack to people doing tree work and need to park at a job? That is just mean. Have you tried explaining the situation when they want to write you up? I'm naive I guess.

 

[Stumper]

Meeting place and back to his vehicle(some times we meet at a job so whether there is travel time varies). The exception has been when the help gets sick or has scheduled to take off early. He marks his own time and has been considerate enough to not add travel when I am interrupting the work to get him back to his vehicle.

 

[NickfromWI]

Law enforcement won't cut parking slack ... Have you tried explaining the situation....

Sometimes they will, sometimes they won't. But we have to plan for the worse. No sense eating. $65 ticket on a $300 pruning job.

Explaining the situation has never helped. They can see what's going on. I haven't found the magic word combination that eases their desires. But I always try.

And no- there isn't a permit you can get.


love
nick

 

[Steve Mack]

It can be a problem here as well. New bus lanes everywhere, you can't stop and nowhere else to park. I've had to let a couple of jobs go.

You can get a permit for other places and Traffic Management, but it costs heaps. Too much worry for me.



Shop to shop.

 

[squisher]

We never leave the job site for lunch. Ever. Seems like that would eat a lot of time. I'd rather get home earlier. I have a brown bag lunch everyday. Stop for maybe 10min to eat.

 

[squisher]

As for parking. Not a problem here. I hoard and hit the flashers/strobe. I'll hire traffic control if we're going to really be in the way. It's readily available and quite reasonable here.

 

[NickfromWI]

Some of you guys give the impression that a little extra effort for the benefit of the company, without being paid for it, is an unthinkable thing.

I agree 100%. I view the employer as buying time from the employee. If they are doing ANYTHING for me, they should get paid for it.

However, I think what you're talking about is different....If someone goes above and beyond and does something extra- like say an employee bought a new gas can for us to keep saw fuel....that's awesome. Thanks for going above and beyond. Woohoo free gas can! Or maybe they put their neighbor in touch with us because he mentioned he needed work done....woohoo free client! That is awesome.

But if I tell that person to go to the store and buy me a gas can, he should get paid for that time and he better be using my money to buy the can. If I tell him to show up to my shop (aka house!) at a certain time, then he gets paid for that agreed upon time.

 

[vharrison]

I agree 100%.

However, I think what you're talking about is different....If someone goes above and beyond and does something extra- like say an employee bought a new gas can for us to keep saw fuel....that's awesome. Thanks for going above and beyond. Woohoo free gas can!
But if I tell that person to go to the store and buy me a gas can, he should get paid for that time and he better be using my money to buy the can. If I tell him to show up to my shop (aka house!) at a certain time, then he gets paid for that agreed upon time.

I don't agree with that. If you need a new gas can and don't know it... someone should tell you. Then you can provide the money for that person to get one on company time. Your employees should not be buying your equipment.

Bottom line is, if they are on your time, pay them. It is the law in America.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Nick, I guess I was wanting to be non specific about helping out the company. I've kind of gotten used to the old ways here, and though it is changing now, employment often meant for life with a particular company, like the one that you started out with. Over that period there would be a number of dependencies that developed. If you want to buy a home, the company would lend you the money, or at least be the co-signer. It might also be the same for when funds are needed for a child's education. Illness and you can't perform the duties, the company will wait for your return and help out. It creates a somewhat different situation compared to a relationship pretty much solely based on wages. I think a pretty much different situation that goes on in the west. but to what extent the connection can be about more than just money, I do find appealing. Trust extends to the belief in a future relationship too. Obviously you might have to downsize the extra curricular benefits in a smaller company. You picking up the tab for lunch sounds real good.

I do recall Jerry mentioning in his book about the high turnover rate in the tree work industry. It is too bad.

 

[NickfromWI]

If you need a new gas can and don't know it... /QUOTE]

You misunderstood. I agree. If you need a new can, get one. But what if an employee bought a better one. He went above and beyond for the heck of it. That's what I was saying. It a good example- and one of my guys actually did this:

We recently invested in the stihl battery powered blower and chainsaw. We love it. We charge it mostly at client's homes.

One day my coworker brought a power inverter from home. I didn't ask for it or even consider something like that as an option. He just gave it to me saying "I never use it any more. Now we can charge things off the chipper battery."

That's a better example. Above and beyond. He didn't get compensated for it. I didn't ask for it.

But yeah- if he is doing something needed for work, he better get paid!






love
nick

 

[bonner1040]

Sometimes they will, sometimes they won't. But we have to plan for the worse. No sense eating. $65 ticket on a $300 pruning job.

Explaining the situation has never helped. They can see what's going on. I haven't found the magic word combination that eases their desires. But I always try.

And no- there isn't a permit you can get.


love
nick

When i worked downtown I kept a valet cone in my trunk. Never got a ticket with valet cone by my car. Never ever.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I have a couple traffic cones, always.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Don't they have flashing yellow lights for maintenance vehicles? Stick one on the top of your car when you park at the sight, no need to turn it on. Maybe the cop will back off, you being also in the flashing light club.

 

[NickfromWI]

Don't they have flashing yellow lights for maintenance vehicles? Stick one on the top of your car when you park at the sight, no need to turn it on. Maybe the cop will back off, you being also in the flashing light club.

We usually have 6 cones going around the truck and the area behind the chipper where we stack brush before it gets chipped. Cones are not the problem.

We almost got 2 tickets for 3 trucks -one for parking on street sweeping day and one for not getting a permit to park trucks over 3/4 ton on city streets (permit required in west Hollywood). It woulda been 6 tickets for about $900. That time I was able to talk the lady down to 1 ticket on just one of the trucks. But I just happened to walk out while she was writing that first ticket.

That woulda been a $900 surprise had I walked out 3 minutes later.

It's enough of a situation that I charge $25-$50 extra for every job just to cover parking costs.

love
nick

 

[woodworkingboy]

Parking tickets is one bad thing, but getting towed is another. Happened to me in San Francisco once, doing some business with the St. Francis hotel, my Chevy S10 with commercial plates, parked in a commercial zone.....came outside to nothingness. I wasn't parked there long, maybe 30 minutes. I mean you don't know if your vehicle has been stolen, or what? What if you had children to pick up, and it was late in the day, they could be left standing in the dark. Some elderly people could be left waiting on you. I can picture a number of very bad scenarios that could arise by being left stranded, it really doesn't take wild imagination. I could never figure how the powers that be could mandate towing, unless the vehicle was interfering, or like a car was left for two days or something. It's a potentially dangerous system both to the driver and to others. Later I saw the two guys doing the towing, they seemed to have permanent smirks on their faces. A couple big chumps if there ever were ones. Almost be worth shooting them in the head and going to the gas chamber.

 

[bonner1040]

We usually have 6 cones going around the truck and the area behind the chipper where we stack brush before it gets chipped. Cones are not the problem.

We almost got 2 tickets for 3 trucks -one for parking on street sweeping day and one for not getting a permit to park trucks over 3/4 ton on city streets (permit required in west Hollywood). It woulda been 6 tickets for about $900. That time I was able to talk the lady down to 1 ticket on just one of the trucks. But I just happened to walk out while she was writing that first ticket.

That woulda been a $900 surprise had I walked out 3 minutes later.

It's enough of a situation that I charge $25-$50 extra for every job just to cover parking costs.

love
nick

VALET cone.

 

[MasterBlaster]

It's a most errie, most shitty feeling you have when you go back where you parked your vehicle, and your vehicle's not there anymore.

 

[bonner1040]

Another tactic is getting truck plates for your car. Truck plates never get tickets either. Its easy, if you tell them you work fora bar and make liquor deliveries they will give em to you no problem. Its like 50% more than normal plates.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Yep. I still remember that feeling after getting towed, being dumbfounded and perplexed.

 

[stig]

Another trick is to leave your dog on the truck bed.

NOBODY put a ticket under my wiper when Sam is on duty.