A sad indictment of the construction industry

[Bri963]

Don’t get me wrong, I agree that there’s good money to be earned, and I did try to encourage my lad into the industry. But there is a range and not every operator or labourer is on top dollar. Factor in lost time through weather, employment instability and a frankly appalling work culture on a lot of smaller jobs, which hasn’t changed or we wouldn’t be discuss these accident figures, and I stand by what I say.

 

[doobin]

You can’t blame people if there are easier and more lucrative career options.In this sort of work, if you have anything about you, you soon realise that nowadays you aren’t going to get rich operating someone else’s machine, and as soon as you strike out on your own, you either find a niche, as several on here have, or you go mainstream. Which, to get anywhere, means taking on staff, and the circle of life continues.

This is it, in a nutshell. Staff are the only route to true wealth from construction and also a route to shite quality of work and lack of oversight on big projects.

 

[Smiffy]

This is it, in a nutshell. Staff are the only route to true wealth from construction and also a route to shite quality of work and lack of oversight on big projects.

But you could say that for most industries. Apart from a few it developers and the odd consultant, no industry really allows you to make money on your own. Even solicitors, vets and the like that are considered high paying jobs don't really get rich until they open a practice and take on staff. I know they are better paid to begin with but in the grand scheme of things not by much.

 

[LKSF]

Wonder what the stats were 50 years ago?
It's hardly like they don't appear to have implemented every conceivable preventative measure?

Or is it simply Darwin award candidates on cowboy jobs?

The further back you go, the worse it gets.
There were about 100 deaths during the construction of the Ribblehead viaduct, that's 2 per month.
The fact is you don't have to have any training in anything at all to be in any job, as long as your either working for cash or self - employed working direct for the public. Add that to all the other factors such as lack of common sense (or any sense at all), dangerous tools, heights, people coming in hungover or worse etc and it's no s**t that a few get lost along the way.
I bet we've all seen a few near misses in our time, I know I have. I can recall many if not all of them.

 

[LKSF]

But you could say that for most industries. Apart from a few it developers and the odd consultant, no industry really allows you to make money on your own. Even solicitors, vets and the like that are considered high paying jobs don't really get rich until they open a practice and take on staff. I know they are better paid to begin with but in the grand scheme of things not by much.

I think there are quite a few if we stopped and really thought about it. A mechanic owning his own garage business for instance, buying a trailer and car to start your own transport business, hairdresser.
Growing weed

 

[V8Druid]

This is it, in a nutshell. Staff are the only route to true wealth from construction and also a route to shite quality of work and lack of oversight on big projects.

But you could say that for most industries. Apart from a few it developers and the odd consultant, no industry really allows you to make money on your own. Even solicitors, vets and the like that are considered high paying jobs don't really get rich until they open a practice and take on staff. I know they are better paid to begin with but in the grand scheme of things not by much.

staff are the quickest route to a nervous breakdown and unless you have good ones, that actually earn their corn++ --- you'll end up poorer ... you can only physically earn X with one pair of hands and if all the other pairs under your control aren't producing efficiently, you're never gonna get ahead . Only real way to make money on your own is dealing - in anything that makes a profit - which has become incredibly hard to do

 

[Smiffy]

I think there are quite a few if we stopped and really thought about it. A mechanic owning his own garage business for instance, buying a trailer and car to start your own transport business, hairdresser.
Growing weed

In the grand scheme of things those aren't rich and not significantly better off than a good self employed tradesman.
They all start making money when there are additional staff.

staff are the quickest route to a nervous breakdown and unless you have good ones, that actually earn their corn++ --- you'll end up poorer ... you can only physically earn X with one pair of hands and if all the other pairs under your control aren't producing efficiently, you're never gonna get ahead . Only real way to make money on your own is dealing - in anything that makes a profit - which has become incredibly hard to do

It depends on the economies of scale. And how much you care.
100 blokes doing a crap job but earning you 50 quid profit a day each isn't a bad prospect.

 

[Furniss]

Really fancied plant sales, although tbh never been excited by plant its just a means to an end, as you say @V8Druid you can only put one treatment plant or driveway in at a time, so your limited by that, whereas theoretically there isn't a limit to how much machinery you could sell if you had the stock.

Was at a crossroads maybe 12 years ago - was selling quite a few machines, buckets and hitch sets over the weekends and digging during the week - got tired of trying to do the two so approached the bank to go all in plant sales, I was dealing with one or two blokes in u.k who were really looking for someone who could say yes to a good few machines at a time but I didn't have the bounce so went to bank for a few 100k but they turned me down, so I stopped the sales, whether Brexit (which appears to have changed the landscape) would of screwed us or we would of been established enough to adapt who knows.


Nobody has mentioned 2nd generation yet - if you were to take on a well established family business it it would be an all together different propostion to starting at zero, in fact without the debt or reduced debt as yards and machinery gets paid for it could actually be pretty rewarding financially.

 

[doobin]

The sweet spot seems to be one or two, operating machines.. Digger and driver at £450 a day, seems like a lot of effort on your own. Get another bloke out on a second machine (£150) and that's £750 turnover after wages for the day, which is a much better proposition.

 

[V8Druid]

In the grand scheme of things those aren't rich and not significantly better off than a good self employed tradesman.
They all start making money when there are additional staff.


It depends on the economies of scale. And how much you care.
100 blokes doing a crap job but earning you 50 quid profit a day each isn't a bad prospect.

now factor in the no-one works like you do/can/will and your 50 blokes become less profitable ..... and don't forget they only work as well as they're paid then factor in the losses to sick days, holidays, etc., etc. and yer 50 a head soon vanishes

 

[Gunners]

I believe the "average" deaths per year is a little less than one a week but one a year is still too many. You shouldn't have to die at work in this day and age and even with the legislation, money and time spent on H&S - this is still a very real problem in our industry and there are many reasons for it, stupidity is definitely one! But also employer expectations, poor training, and a lack of care of your workforce to name but a few.

However whilst deaths are sadly a tragic reality of working in the industry as it stands, there are far more serious, life changing injuries every year. 20,000 a year! About 65/day based on a 6 day week. Any of these injuries could just have easily been a death, and some would argue, depending on your injury - maybe worse than death.

We also loose around 5000 people to suicide a year. 13 per day. Nearly 100 per week!!! Construction runs 3 times higher suicide rate than other industry's - of which groundworkers are the highest proportion.....

Really makes you think. More likely to die from suicide than be killed at work in an accident. But we shouldn't be losing anyone in my opinion. I know its a fact of life and maybe it is - but construction is higher risk than most other industries for a reason that could easily be sorted if those higher up the chain actually cared about any of these statistics enough to change the game.

 

[Lancs Lad]

I believe the "average" deaths per year is a little less than one a week but one a year is still too many. You shouldn't have to die at work in this day and age and even with the legislation, money and time spent on H&S - this is still a very real problem in our industry and there are many reasons for it, stupidity is definitely one! But also employer expectations, poor training, and a lack of care of your workforce to name but a few.

However whilst deaths are sadly a tragic reality of working in the industry as it stands, there are far more serious, life changing injuries every year. 20,000 a year! About 65/day based on a 6 day week. Any of these injuries could just have easily been a death, and some would argue, depending on your injury - maybe worse than death.

We also loose around 5000 people to suicide a year. 13 per day. Nearly 100 per week!!! Construction runs 3 times higher suicide rate than other industry's - of which groundworkers are the highest proportion.....

Really makes you think. More likely to die from suicide than be killed at work in an accident. But we shouldn't be losing anyone in my opinion. I know its a fact of life and maybe it is - but construction is higher risk than most other industries for a reason that could easily be sorted if those higher up the chain actually cared about any of these statistics enough to change the game.

Be fascinating to see a cause breakdown for the accidents and injuries .
Big difference from "operative drove dumper off bench when high on weed" to "dumper experienced ECU malfunction and accelerated out of control"....