A homeowner on the popular AskUK Reddit community has asked if there is a shortage of tradespeople in the UK – and the responses from both tradies and customers are illuminating.
The original post says that most tradespeople they’ve dealt with “are either turning work down or are telling you it’ll be several weeks before they get round to you”. They go on to say that their usual plumber is booked up for at least two months.
The popular post has received hundreds of responses, from both tradespeople and customers, confirming that there is plenty of work out there for most trades, although the situation varies depending on the region and the trade.
One commenter even suggested that tradespeople are so busy they “can’t be bothered with the hassle of small jobs”.
An electrician said: “I’ve work booked up till end of July and only squeeze in old customers for emergency work. I’m starting to take jobs on now for August / September.”
A carpenter – and site foreman – wrote a lengthy comment detailing some of the issues in the industry that have led to this shortage: “Firstly training is poor. The introduction of the NVQ system and the government dictating training requirements rather than City and Guilds has destroyed standards.”
The commenter goes on to say that the perception of trades in the UK – something the InstallerBUILD report highlighted – does not help: “UK trades people suffer a terrible image problem. Partly self inflicted and partly from society at large.
“On the continent being a tradesperson is a respected profession. Something to be encouraged and professionals are proud of their skills. Here trades people are often looked down upon, have their knowledge and craft taken for granted and the public (not all) want what they saw on social media for nothing and done in no time at all.”
The last point from this commenter says that practising a trade and running a business is tricky and not something most tradespeople are taught and it can be difficult to juggle the two.
Another tradesman agreed with this point, saying: “It’s actually really hard to find the right kind of work. Employers offer low wages for relative experience, poor working conditions and lots of aggro. Contracting for a company is a roll of the dice whether they’ll pay you at all, let alone correctly or on time. Companies constantly going bust and renaming to avoid debt. Going self employed is a nightmare. Customers don’t want to pay enough to cover tax, a pension etc so have to work for peanuts and do all admin, costing quotes etc in own time unpaid. And there’s still always someone willing to do it cheaper. Regardless you have to keep a vehicle and tools and pay overheads like insurance and living costs.”
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