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Mick Stockbridge
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This street runs both ways me thinks...

 

I've been wokring for my pocket money since before I left primary school, have worked for some very good people from whom I learned a lot, and some absolute *&@%#! from whom I also learned a lot, about how not to do things.

 

At the age of 26 I was in a situation where I made the choice to start my own firm. A few years down the line I'm the worst boss I ever had, regularaly up to 100 hours a week, crap pay, but doing work I'm proud of and having the time of my life.

 

As an employer I wouldn't expect every lump who walked through the door to be a natural. If you think you were at 16 then I think you're wearing rose tints. Eager maybe, but spot on from the get go?

 

Have a look back through the people you knew growing up, how many of them actually graft for a living now? It's a simptom of the non-productive society we've become, which is a product of capitalism, and is the reason countries like India and China will have us all by the curlies in a few years time, but lets not get on to ideologies :lol:

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This street runs both ways me thinks...

 

I've been wokring for my pocket money since before I left primary school, have worked for some very good people from whom I learned a lot, and some absolute *&@%#! from whom I also learned a lot, about how not to do things.

 

At the age of 26 I was in a situation where I made the choice to start my own firm. A few years down the line I'm the worst boss I ever had, regularaly up to 100 hours a week, crap pay, but doing work I'm proud of and having the time of my life.

 

As an employer I wouldn't expect every lump who walked through the door to be a natural. If you think you were at 16 then I think you're wearing rose tints. Eager maybe, but spot on from the get go?

 

Have a look back through the people you knew growing up, how many of them actually graft for a living now? It's a simptom of the non-productive society we've become, which is a product of capitalism, and is the reason countries like India and China will have us all by the curlies in a few years time, but lets not get on to ideologies :lol:

 

Well said that man.

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back to the smoking thing, i write the cheque so i decide on the rules, simples. i dont want to be around smoke, i dont want anyone smoking on my sites, and i dont pay wages so guys can wonder off every hour for a fag. And roll up smokers are worse, 5 mins to roll it, 10 mins to relight it and puff away.

 

But i also wouldnt employ lads that are in the pub every night or drink every night at home, it all has an effect on their work, you cant give 100% if you are hung over, not fit or coughing your lungs up everytime you have to drag a branch up a hill.

 

Think you're being a bit hard on us smokers mate. Bad habit, and I am only too aware of the badness. But I smoke on the job, but have it down so that I know when I can do it without it interfereing with my work. And I'm careful to keep it out of the faces of those who don't smoke. Also, I surf and swim regularly, and have been climbing trees for about 8 years so I'm a LOT fitter than a lot of people I know who don't smoke. Certainly I don't cough my lungs up everytime I drag a branch up a hill or a bunch of branches big enough to make grown men cry for that matter :001_tt2: In fact, I'm confident to say that I'm a credit to anyone I've ever worked for (except the first guy. He had me during the dropping branches on fences, putting unbreakable knots in ropes etc. stage. But even for him I came good in the end), and if I ever worked for you that you be glad to have me.:biggrin:

 

Agree with you about the booze though, hangovers and tree work are dodgy to say the least. On the very rare occasion I think it's acceptable though. We are all human let's not forget. Love nothing more than making the guy with the hangover miserable for the day:sneaky2:

 

Back on topic, When I started as I said above, the guy I worked for was at his wits end sometimes with me blunting chains, dropping branches in fences, generally like a one man wrecking crew but age experience and developing the motto "less haste, more speed" ethic I came good. In fact the reason I think he didn't sack me off the bat was that every time I came to him with a cut saw strop or broken rake I was literally p***ing sweat. Granted we had a good few lazy gits come and go during my time there. But there were definitely a few foreign lads who weren't up to scratch as well.

 

Think the reason there are proportionally fewer of them is that the ones who travel for work would want to be pretty sure they're going to hack it before they invest time and money in to moving, and some of them have family back home relying on them to earn money to justify the pain of them not being home.

 

For you employers on here, I think the fairest course of action is to keep giving the lads a start, but send em packing by lunch time if they ain't up to it. Can be a pain I'm sure as you wouldn't be taking on staff if you didn't need someone that day, but I'm sure you'll cope. And when you do find a goon un, you'll have a good un.

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I can understand Stevies perspective to a certain extent re: smoking. I went to a company the other day (garage) and the guys stopped for a fagbreak in between tea breaks. 4 of them stopped for about 10mins each, thats 40mins, if another 2 stop, thats an hour at 50 quid per hour. It looks bad to clients, I said to the manager that i wasnt going to pay for their fag breaks, and he admitted its a problem, but does nothing. Now I like a smoke, if I'm busy I dont tend to stop, if I want a fag I quickly roll one during a re-fill, light up on the way back to the tree, and probably it will go out and get discarded. I probably rarely smoke a whole one during working hours. I now carry a portable ashtray so the butts arent on the floor, but in my pocket too.

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