Same here, actually...which is one reason I don't know that much about what he is taking except for his reporting in about progress.
Why is it so hard to find decent employees in SOMD?
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Same here, actually...which is one reason I don't know that much about what he is taking except for his reporting in about progress.
He'll come around. With his tech training he'll make a good mechanical engineer. One of the few in the field who understand that you don't just have to design an assembly, you also have to be able to assemble it....
Oh, and the work ethics problem in the area are real. It's not dependent on the hourly you offer, it's just an issue with the local workforce. People are no-shows for interviews or never return calls after turning in their resumee.
And yes, one problem is the competition from the base. The contractors are at times just looking for a warm body to fill a salary line so they can get their percentage, it doesn"t seem to matter much what qualification the employee has. If you are competing with nationwide employers who have 401k match, health and other benefits because they just bill it through to the DoD, it is hard for a small business to compete.
And yes, one problem is the competition from the base. The contractors are at times just looking for a warm body to fill a salary line so they can get their percentage, it doesn"t seem to matter much what qualification the employee has. If you are competing with nationwide employers who have 401k match, health and other benefits because they just bill it through to the DoD, it is hard for a small business to compete.
Isn't that a friggin' mess...or shame, depending on your point of view. We're one of the few "contractors" that still gets task orders more or less on our terms but even those terms are steadily deteriorating. Pretty close to refusing all business from the DoD. Much rather stick with our foreign naval and commercial customers.
Check Waldorf, La Plata, Prince Frederick for comps or even the local Tire places, Midas etc in the Hollywood, Leonardtown LP City area
If he's looking for a certified tech, yes, he's cheap.
All depends on his criteria. Is the OP willing to take a chance on someone with a record or do you want a spotless background check?
Education?
Not sure if people looking for a job in that range are on Indeed.
This is a very tough area to hire.
I do not think the OPs rates are off. I would expect a qualified, certified mechanic to make 45-65K a year in St. Marys depending on how much he wants to work. Someone entry level would be making $12.50 to $14.00 an hour. One issue St. Marys has is too many auto shops...especially for the amount of qualified workers.
That really brings everything to the core of the situation here. Too often the people who would be your mechanics, tradesmen, hell...even cooks and best buy sales reps get lucky and get a job on base paying more than any private sectore job will. Next thing you know, they have a clearance, and are designing drones, and will never been in the non government workforce. That means all of us private sector guys are fighting over the left overs. Basically people who want too much, for a job the are underqualified for, and will always resent you because they feel they should have a base job.
The issue the OP has is yes...he can advertise $30 an hour or whatever. But there is no value in his business for that down here. He won't get an employee that is twice as good, or makes him twice as much money. Plus that added costs will make it hard to compete in the already saturated mechanics market. The worst part is hiring is such a gamble. You won't know how good someone is until they work some for you. And there is nothing harder as a business owner than realizing after the fact that you are way overpaying someone. You are better hiring low, dealing with the turnover it creates, and giving the ones who are worth it more.
Lastly, he is right about people not showing up for interviews. It has gotten very bad in the last 5 years. I would say 1 in 5 interviews actually shows up anymore.
I do not think the OPs rates are off. I would expect a qualified, certified mechanic to make 45-65K a year in St. Marys depending on how much he wants to work. Someone entry level would be making $12.50 to $14.00 an hour. One issue St. Marys has is too many auto shops...especially for the amount of qualified workers.
That really brings everything to the core of the situation here. Too often the people who would be your mechanics, tradesmen, hell...even cooks and best buy sales reps get lucky and get a job on base paying more than any private sectore job will. Next thing you know, they have a clearance, and are designing drones, and will never been in the non government workforce. That means all of us private sector guys are fighting over the left overs. Basically people who want too much, for a job the are underqualified for, and will always resent you because they feel they should have a base job.
The issue the OP has is yes...he can advertise $30 an hour or whatever. But there is no value in his business for that down here. He won't get an employee that is twice as good, or makes him twice as much money. Plus that added costs will make it hard to compete in the already saturated mechanics market. The worst part is hiring is such a gamble. You won't know how good someone is until they work some for you. And there is nothing harder as a business owner than realizing after the fact that you are way overpaying someone. You are better hiring low, dealing with the turnover it creates, and giving the ones who are worth it more.
Lastly, he is right about people not showing up for interviews. It has gotten very bad in the last 5 years. I would say 1 in 5 interviews actually shows up anymore.
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MarieB
New Member
It's also an area where it's tough to get interviews and to get hired (depending upon circumstances of course)
littlelady
God bless the USA
We own a business here and week after week we post on Indeed, Craigslist (yeah I know), SOMD.com classifieds, and Facebook looking for an automotive technician. IF we happen to get a call back, then one of two things happens: they don't show up for a face-to-face, or if they make it through a phone call, they don't show up for the first day of work. We pay more than minimum wage (starting $12.50-$14.00 depending on knowledge level), we aren't looking for rocket scientists, we have so much work that we have to turn jobs down. Someone enlighten me. What am I missing? It feels so hopeless.
Your post reminded me of this thread. Just putting it out there.
http://forums.somd.com/threads/320141-auto-mechanic-apprenticeship
And then there is that. They quit and then you still have to argue with the state why the state shouldn't give them your unemployment money.
I sometimes wish our work could be done by robots.
kwillia
n/a
I do not understand why a person can draw unemployment when they quit. Ridiculous.
DEEKAYPEE8569
Well-Known Member
http://www.bing.com/search?q=CAN+SO...&src=IE-SearchBox&FORM=IENTTR&conversationid=
"Even employees who quit their jobs may be able to collect unemployment, but that depends on their reasons for leaving. In every state, an employee who voluntarily quits a job without good cause is not eligible for unemployment."
Because the maryland division of unemployment is run by a mixture of rabid socialist do-gooders and morons. I have had employees give me written notice that they quit because they found a better paying job and I still had to spend hours in phone hearings to get their UI claim denied. In MD, by default the employer is a greedy capitalist exploitative pig who made the poor suppressed worker quit and is therefore responsible to pay UI regardless of the cause why the employment relationship ended.
getbent
Thats how them b*tch's R
This. 2 classes from my accounting degree, working in Admin / office for approximately 20 years, applied for about 15 jobs within the last 3 months and nothing.
DEEKAYPEE8569
Well-Known Member
Have you considered applying for jobs commensurate with your skills, in another state? Also, if hired in another state, would the potential employer at least pay part of your moving expenses?
Why dont you hire on as a service tech at a oil change place. According to our experts here, they pull 90k in this area.
Many years ago, I worked for a temp service. One of our temps quit her paid position with our client so she could work for him for free, because he could no longer afford to pay us for her services.
She then filed for unemployment. While at the hearing, she was asked why she quit a paid job in order to work for free. Her answer, "because I'm a good Christian woman."
He actually laughed at her. DENIED!
getbent
Thats how them b*tch's R
I'm not willing to leave the area. I am already working but no room for advancement, no raises, new boss soon who will no longer offer paid leave and no benefits except 401k.
getbent
Thats how them b*tch's R
Great idea!!
hitchicken
Active Member
Dear Bent:
You are correct. Do NOT leave the area. As I have shown in my previous 2014 Kiplinger magazine link. Lexington Park, MD is the 3rd largest concentration of millionaires IN THE ENTIRE COUNTRY!!! (Go back & read that again, please. Thank you).
To put that in perspective, get a map of St. Mary’s County and tack it to a bulletin board. Get a pin and start poking holes in the map particularly around the LP City area. When you reach 3458 holes… stop. That’s the number of millionaires in SMC… nearly 3 years ago… and they are your neighbors. Make them your friends. That’s 8.8% of the entire area’s local working pop.
Kiplinger also states that the entire average local income is $85032. They also state ‘driven local incomes into the 6 figures’.
So why would you WANT to leave? Where better would you go? Smell that opportunity… and stay.
The base and supporting contractors are both a gravy train and a cancer. Like political parties who seize total control of both the Congress and Presidency, instead of using their newly found power to act, they will begin bickering petty differences on the inside and get nothing done. (Yes, I talking about the Republicans today, but also the Democrats 8 years ago).
Smart people cultivate influential friends on both the base and contractor side so they can double-dip when they retire from their cushy govt jobs. Dumb people create convoluted proposals, requests for proposals and contracts no one can comprehend or respond to and make enemies. And they do it just because they have the power. Total power totally corrupts. They’re shooting their futures in the foot. They are the cancer that will metastasize and kill the host.
Stay & nurture the movers & shakers before it is too late.
PS: Talk about timing? Check out the latest thread by the NewsBot. The one on Trump defense spending. I love it when I hit the nail...