What to pay a qualified restoration employee

Not blaming the Japaneses, the blame really lies with the United States' dysfunctional trade policy. The Japanese auto business and government did what was best for their own interest and that of their own citizens. The US could learn some things from the Japanese about not letting foreign business trample domestic manufacturing.

The OP's question has been answered, seems the agreed rate is somewhere between $15-25 an hour depending on skill and the area's cost of living. That is about what I was thinking as well. Where I live $15 an hour would be the going rate for such a skill set. Wages are very low in my neck of the woods, people think that $10 bucks an hour is good money. Most jobs pay about $8.00 an hour.

 

That is my mistake in the wording. Henry Ford bought millions of acres of property all over the world for raw materials to build his cars, trucks, and tractors. And he built cars, truck and so on in those places. why make them and ship them over seas when you can make em and sell em out the back door of the place.For example, he bought forests full of trees that produce rubber, hardwood forests for floorboards, crating, and frame work, ore mines for the steel, coal mines to power it all, and so on. He bought these properties in all of the countries mentioned above. Hell, nobody owns China, they own us. but, back to the point. He was a forward thinker. He owned all of the locations for all the raw materials and most of the rails and trains to move the stuff. When I said owned, it was meant that Ford owned proprty in those locations and many more. Hope that clears that up. and once again, sorry to get o.t.

 

Back to the OP's question.

Having been both an employer and an employee, it seems that 1/4 to 1/3 the shop rate is normal.

Having said that, each case merits it's own decision. A new guy starting isn't worth much more than minimum wage. Time and experince should gain him skills and the wage to match.

A master tech should be pulling in closer to 50% of the shop rate due to not having to learn each step of the way but being the guy you go to on 5 o'clock on Friday afternoon to save your bacon.

Devin

 

Benefits go a long way too. I'm not in the automotive field but I don't make a lot per hour. I do get good insurance, a 4 day work week, free college tuition for me and my dependents, and a lot of vacation time and holidays off. I would need to get a much better pay rate to do with out those benefits.

 

Thanks for all the great answers Kenny. See? you can learn something new every day.

I can see that a lot of concessions have been made by the UAW and I congratulate them on at least trying.

I'm sure you do some great work and build some cars you can be proud of.

Too bad you don't work for Chevy though, I really like my 10' Camaro! haha


Scot

 

That sound that you heard was the hammer hitting the head of the nail.

Figure out what you would consider an "honest living", for the area where you live, and pay that. Set your shop rate to cover your overhead AFTER setting the wage, not the other way around.

Do the right thing, not the thing you can get away with.

 

I understand your point. Now I do believe were we are is probably night and day from you. At the time (3 years ago) this was a $2 an hr raise from the shop he left and also pretty high up on the non-professional wage scale for our area. The only people around here that make $20 plus an hour, that are not doctors, lawyers, etc, do road construction.

 

"My buddy is a sherriffs deputy. He puts his life out there for well under 30K a year."

That's rediculous-I find it hard to believe! For real, he's a degreed, bonafide, law enforcement officer? $14 an hour = about 29k a year $13 an hour about 27k. Where is your buddy a deputy sheriff? Mayberry RFD!!?? No overtime? Cops usually bank a lot of coin on overtime.

Hell, security guards in San Diego usually start at $10-$11 bucks an hour. That's for a non degreed, dude with a 'guard card' to stand somewhere.

 

We are in a rural part of Idaho. He works for Jefferson County as a as you put it "degreed, bonafide" law enforcement officer. He is a post certified deputy sherriff and his coverage area is one of the largest counties in all of Idaho. He responds to many calls including guns involved with backup sometimes 30 minutes away. He went hands on with a big dude all jacked up on drugs once in the middle of the street for over 15 minutes before a city cop finally made it to his location. These wages are all public record, check it out. As far as overtime, little to none unless there is a DUI grant or aggressive driving grant to work.

I work as a Division Chief over training for a combination fire department. 3rd highest ranking in my department. I make in the neighborhood of 40K a year, salary, no overtime. An entry level position as a firefighter in eastern Idaho start in the neighborhood of 25-30K.

I'm sure both jobs pay significantly more in your area. But I bought a nice 4,000 SF house here on right around a half acre of property for 189,000.00and sold my last house that was 2900 SQF with a 24x30 shop, detached oversize 2 car garage sitting on 3/4 of an acre with irrigation rights for 140K...LOL The low cost of living here justifies the low wages.

Scot

 

30 an hour is a start

 

in my town the coppers pull down 133k a year

 

30 an hour is a start? Wow, I'm in the wrong line of work!

Whats the expected shop rate at a shop that starts at 30 an hour? 145.00 per hour?
Scot

 

$30/hr costs the employer nearly $70k/yr. What can I expect, as an employer, for my $70K? Can I expect a Ridler winner? Can I expect that I never EVER have to say how I want it done? Can I expect that cl***ic "I'm smarter than you'll ever be..." mindset? I may damn well be orth $30/hr but there's no place here Motown that would pay it. Not even in the development depts of the big 3. ****, now I wanna move to Jersey!!

 

I'll go with you, we'll open highlander hotrods, only thing is cost of living is so high we'll have to share a studio apartment along with my wife and kids hahahaha

 

County sheriff's deputies in my county make $10.50 to start. I seen the ad up at the courthouse. City cops actually make more.

 

1/3 of shop rate is usually the standard so 30 would work if the rate was $90.00 but as long as I have been in this business I have not heard of a shop hand making $30.00.

When I had this question I called a few friends that also own shops and ask what their pay scale was.

I already knew their hourly shop rate so I had a good idea of what would work.


As a employer one of the first questions I ask would be how much they expect to make. This will let you know if you can afford to hire him.

I pay the most I can and still have the bottom line I need for taking all the risk as the owner.

 

As an employer speaking from many, many years of experience, I would love to pay my employees ten times what they make now. I would love to be able to brag about how they make more than anyone else in the industry. But...I have compe***ion. I have to be able to sell my customers on the idea that they are getting ten times the service to pay ten times the wages and I can't do that. Even if I could, would the customers be willing to pay for top notch service or would average service be more within their budget?

So, I offer the customer the option. It's not something I advertise but I have my first string employees, my second string employees and for really demanding customers I offer my personal services.

Everything boils down to supply and demand, or should. That's the Free Market American way, or should be.

Morally corrupt politicians often hold the consumer and non union workers over a barell for union votes which corrupts the Free Market. Morally corrupt politicians p*** tariffs which upsets the balance of Free Trade.

I have nothing against unions existing or collective bargaining but I also believe an employer should have the right to fire collectively.

Government also has no cons***utional or otherwise right to force non union companies to pay union wages to protect union jobs. That's blatant corruption.

 

A MEN to that brother, still have money owed me after 15 yrs. Cliff

 

OK...I am a retired Ford ***embly line worker. "Plug a wire into a dash and p*** it on to the next guy." Geeez, there are a lot of auto workers on this board who are shaking their head at such a stupid commit. My grand son now works on the same ***embly line that I did, and he gets $16 per hour. There are 3000 workers now doing what use to take 5000, so you can bet its not a good place to work... BTW.. when companys move their plants overseas, they get to deduct their moving expenses.

 

maybe I need to go back to workin on cars full time--but work for someone else.

I have a master's degree and a salaried position and don't make markedly more than the $16.50/hour figure. I made more/hour doing restoration work, but the headaches (and backaches) and feast or famine nature of a new upstart shop led me back to other stuff. If I thought I could make $25 or $30 bucks an hour for 40 hours a week with no h***les of ownership I think I'd be all over it.

 

Using the definition that F&J provided, I have coined the term: "The Marrying Your Daughter Index."

Feel free to use it. It is defined as: "Would you want your daughter to marry a nice guy who was only making <insert rate="" here=""> in this world? What would be their future? Never a new car, never a vacation to the islands, never hope for a cabin in the mountains or on a lake...just poverty?"

As you can see, it can easily be applied to any permanent job, and especially those of a skilled trade, that required a lifetime of skill and wisdom.
</insert>

 

I ***ume that was a Union job. I also ***ume that the the Union held a certain amount of sway over politicians who p***ed certain laws that favored Union workers. If that was the case, and I can't imagine it not being, then Ford's ***embly line workers made more than fair market value. That means that consumers had a choice of paying the higher price or buying a less expensive non-union car, if they could. Usually the Union's political sway caused politicians to p*** tariffs against non-Union companies. In that case consumers have little choice but to subsidize Union workers through coercion and corruption. When businesses get together to fix prices it's called collusion and owners go to prison. So, what to pay a restoration mechanic should be based on Free Market value, not what the restoration mechanic wants, needs or demands. I have paid mechanics more than they asked for because I didn't want to lose them. I knew their fair market value was higher than what they were asking and it would only be a matter of time before a compe***or lured them away. I have also fired mechanics on principal because they tried to hold me over a barell for more than free market value. An employer/employee relationship should be totally voluntary on both ends with no need for hositilty. You are both agreeing to a fair trade. A guy who can restore a rust bucket to an award winning car without supervision is worth a lot more than a guy who has to be supervised just to keep him from sleeping, texting or stealing. If at any time either party feels they are not getting their fair end of the deal they should sit down and renegotiate on a friendly basis. After all, if offer you X for your car and you refuse does that give me the right to cuss you out and call you a no-goo-*******? No. Same with an employee/employer relationship.

 

Let me aplogize to anyone here that is making that wage or less, and was offended by that term, despite whatever type of job/occupation that you have right now.

I never meant to insult someone in a certain phase of their life, and salary level.

What I meant about "marry your daughter" was that "if" a VERY skilled and talented restoration technician "could only expect to make that wage" , then your daughters future would be iffy. I just feel that that type of all-around skill should be valued much higher, that's all.

Lots of people here must be under that wage due to location, economy, downsizing, etc.

 

And I only meant it in the context of trying to figure out what wage to pay a prospective employee.

I am under the index for the area where I live. It tends to keep the number of dates to 3 or 4.

 

I guess it's all relative to where you reside and the cost of housing-the huge factor. A can of soup is about the same anywhere. Housing wise you're doing terrific. A whole lot better then some guys making twice your salary in other parts of the country (like here in Socal)!

 

I've been working at a shop for 5 years, I make 14.50.

 

start your offer at 1/3 your charge out rate per hour ... then negoiate from there.. it should be an individual rate decided with quailifications experience and quality of workmanship .... you want a good bodyman include him abd pay him acordingly ..

just my $2 worth

 

40% of your shop labor rate, based on the old 60/40 split.

 

O snap!!! Now i know why my (our?) taxes went up sooo much!! That buys ALOT of donuts!!J.K.!!!

 

I make $22 per flag hour in a collision shop in rural Missouri. I've got 28 years experience and have built hotrods and muscle cars for longer than that. I can rebuild, repair, replace any component of any car with competance in a timely manner. I wouldn't consider doing resto work for $14-$16 an hour. Hell we pay our apprentice bodyman $15 an hour. Finding good help that is'nt terminally drunk or whacked on drugs is hard enough without offering poverty wages to boot. I hear the shop owners boo hoo about how slim the bottom line is, right after they tell you about the newest latest greatest thing they just bought after their third trip to Vegas this year. Sorry, but if you want quality, depenability and loyalty....you have to pony up the bucks. Otherwise your stuck with wanna be posers that will screw things up and move on to the next shop.