what am i doing wrong? work finding problems suggestions pls

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sherbie

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hi
Hope you can help! I have been working as a carpenter for nine years, altho i have no formal qulification in carpentry i have good references and everything you would expect like transit van, ladders, tools, insurances etc i carry out all aspects of carpentry inc roofing, 1st and 2ndfix and i can turn my hand to most things like tiling painting and small plumbing work. however the last builder i worked for has just retired to spain and im having difficulty finding any work either self employed or paye. I have been asking for £125 for a 8-5 day(this is alot less than other guys i have spoken to)but i feel that its a fair price for what i can do

my question is how did you find larger ammounts of work? or if you go looking for someone where do you go and/or what do you look for.

I have tryed advertising in local papers, sending letters to local builders and asking around everyone i have had contact with recently and checking job websites and papers but so far no luck

Do you think its because i have no formal qulification or my age (26) another guy was put off because he only liked to pay £80 a day these have been the only things that people have hinted at recently. or is it the area that im in (sevenoaks in kent) perhaps its flooded with labour altho there are still alot of sites around so work is still going on

thanks Simon
 
no deffinative idea. but if your enquiry is as you have told us i wouldnt employ you either.

i would expect a chippy to "do chippy things" not to paint and plumb.

perhaps you could try some more but only mention the chippy side of it.
 
breezer said:
no deffinative idea. but if your enquiry is as you have told us i wouldnt employ you either.

i would expect a chippy to "do chippy things" not to paint and plumb.

perhaps you could try some more but only mention the chippy side of it.
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ah this is the sort of info i need i thought that mentioning this would be a advantage i will have to give it a go! its just that with the last couple of guys if the job was running tight or over or there were other problems we were all expected to multiskill as it were but that was with a small family run thing.

and i agree with the other comment, its about who you know but this is probably true with most things!
 
i would agree with breezer, dont mention all your other skills because a joinery company are probably only after joiners.
If your gonna be calling on site it might be worth looking into getting a cscs card http://www.cscs.uk.com/RunScript.asp?p=ASP\Pg0.asp
you might have to take a drop in wages just to get your foot in the door or until something better comes up.
 
well if its anything like in the northwest, its because the game is on its arse, jobs are hard to come by even if you have contacts
 
credit now harder to obtain, buy to letters thing is over. Anyone dealing in property woud love to sell at todays prices and buy back when it increases perhaps 5 years, but they can't because when prices don't rise nobody buys.

WE the building trade workforce are now in trouble.

I have tightened my belt specialised and taken work away from my lovely wife and darling children at great emotional and personal cost. But it is working for me, I feel I made the shift just in time. I wish I had sold my property a year ago, easy to be wise with hindsight, now it's hang tough.
 
Bahco said:
I think the old adage applies......... Its not what you know but WHO you know. :D
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It's more: not what you know, but what who you know knows what you know.

How's that for a tongue breaker? But true.
 
Thanks for the info regarding the cscs card probably have to do that soon.

i have been thinking about taking a smaller wage for the time being and hopefully showcasing myself to get a better wage a bit later

Im not to sure about the work slowing down too much there seems to be alot of activity around where i live but i suppose the ball was rolling on most of them before the current situation had started it would be interesting to see what happens in the future

any thoughts on me just driving around to sites and other jobs i see and have a talk to foremen etc or would this put you off even more?

cheers guys
 
I have called on site loads of time and got a start, call on and have a word with the agent and get the joinery contractors number off him. Make sure youve got boots,viz and helmet on or you wont get a sniff. Dont take much notice of any of the joiners that "theres no work" most of the blokes on site will tell you that (you might end up replacing them). Dont bother callin on if they are just doing the footings unless your a brickie, wait till you see the windows and roof are on. most agents will give you the number. you will need your cscs card to get on most big sites so book your test and you will be given your number, most firms last year were accepting the number without the card but the last 4 jobs ive been on they wanted to see the card. Most jobs ive seen advertised you needed this card so i think they are finally in. Work has'nt seemed to dry up but a think a lot of the main contractors are not taking on, just keeping there own lads going.
 
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