Every technician is responsible for cleaning his own area daily before leaving. The shop absorbs this expense. That's the way it's done in middle TN there Brent.
Hey B29... It seems to me your biz philosophy and mine are very much in alignment except it sounds like you are a commission shop. We are T&M so I require my guys to average 87% annual productivity --and we track it weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually. Salaries and employment is based off of those numbers. I am in this business for profit ...not passion. 87% productivity means that my guys must bill 7 out of 8 hours a day. In my shop that is VERY easy to do as long as you pay attention to details both in your craftsmanship AND your paperwork. I have 8 employees so it is difficult for me to know EVERYTHING that is done to a customer's car. Therefore their job also includes listing in detail what they did since I didn't watch them do the operation, and the customer wasn't even there. A good example would be if a employee logs 4 hours to remove a fender and just writes Remove Fender on his time sheet. When the office girl logs the time she logs what she reads but I have "veto" power. I look at it based off of what he said and then shave some time because I do not feel this was a value to the customer. If I shave it back to 2 hours then the employee is at 50% productivity. If he complains I tell him that he did not educate me nor the customer and that is part of his job. Employees learn quick or they do not stay employed. The flip side is that if the job took extra time due to fastener issues, or maybe a welded fender, then if this is explained on the timesheet the customer understands why he is paying extra on the invoice. Mistakes that a employee makes are non-billable too. Re-do's are on me and the employee receives his wage but not added to the bill so his productivity suffers. Monthly average below 87% means he is talked with to see how corrections can be made. Quarterly reviews affect annual raises --and below & above 87% for each month annually means that the employee must meet over 87% a month over 87% of the time annually. This may sound tough but we have a job to do and the customer wants a value. We aim to give both!! WHY is it done that way? In a service industry I think it is a part of the overall project. In a lawn mowing job, cutting the grass is the main service but sweeping up is added in. In a 'service call' industry, you are charged the travel time to and from the job while the serviceman is riding. Even though a lawyer is representing you in the courtroom, you pay for his travel time and expenses. So I do not understand WHY you feel the shop should absorb this expense? I might also ask who is responsible for cleaning out a vehicle before restoration? In your shop, who pays for inventorying the customer's parts when they are dismantled? Who pays for washing parts? Who pays for making the parts list? Just WHERE should the line be drawn? In my shop, if it deals with a customer's project then he pays for it just as if he were having to do it at his own shop?
Most of my work is "on site" i.e. I show up, unload my tools and supplies and get to work. I usually don't go on the clock until I actually start working in the wiring. If, however, I have to unload most of my supplies, the customer will be billed for a portion of the set up / tear down time. It's something they need to live with if they want to keep their vehicles in their own garages while I work on them. Most of the time, though, I don't have that many tools and supplies scattered around so picking up usually doesn't ake more than five or ten minutes, anyway. Since I rarely work at the same location on consecutive nights, I need to put everything back in the car before I leave so I have it for tomorrow night's job. Trailer it to my place and the clock stops when put the tools down. Putting 'em back in the tool boxes is my own responsibility. On the other hand, if I have to chase down parts, I am obligated to charge for my time. If I wasn't chasing parts, I'd be working on something else (and getting paid). My time is worth money. If you're taking up my time w/ your vehicle, you should be expected to pay for that time.
The Jalopy Journal
