can't find any workers these days!

[winchester85]

i posted a thread like this last year, but managed to finish the year with what i had.

now, this year i have several houses to frame and only one guy to help. surely there is someone with a college age or there about son or daughter that wants to work hard, make good money and live in a great place. long term or maybe just for the summer.
i have 5 homes to build between now and the end of the year, not including the one i am framing right now! some are in aspen and some are down near glenwood springs or carbondale.

i wear my bags and work with my crew, i get more done than the rest of the crew normally. i need a couple of good hard working people, people who take pride in their work and want to get some stuff done!

this is a great place to spend a summer, and learn a trade for a younger person, or a great place to live for someone who already knows the trade. i run class iv whitewater regularly, the hunting is great, the music festivals and such are common, and the climate is great.

anyone know someone who wants to work hard, play hard and make some good money?

[ol skool]

I know a kid that would be interested, has some experience too, smart hard working, can think. Doesn't mind working in winter. Needs to finish out his probation first though. Lot's of kids seem to stuck in the system lately...

[NC_JEFF]

We have a decent number of kids here who are willing to work when work is availed to them. We run a landscaping company and work varies from simply digging holes to building elaborate patios and walls. The younger guys seem to enjoy the variation offered in this line of work. Winchester I would have jumped at the chance to learn framing back when I didn't know anything about anything, I hope you find the help your needing.

[Love Life]

What skill level is required? Do they need to provide their own tools?

[Pb2au]

If you don't mind me asking, what does a framer make on the hour these days? It always seemed to me that framing was pretty involved task process, requiring a fair amount of skill to do well.

[jmort]

I did some framing back in the 70s in So Cal and it was generally all white and the money was good. Now it is generally all illegals and the $$$ is not good. Pay is probably similar to what it was 40 years ago. In the 70s a guy could work as a framer, pay for his own house, take care of his family, and have a boat or motorcycles to play with. Now, not so much. If I were younger I would beg you for such an opportunity. I would rather learn how to frame and do construction as opposed to getting an undergrad social science degree that can cost $200k and get you no where.

[fryboy]

have too many years experience with no/bad help .... we're in the same boat , good help is hard to come by in this trade and if we find a young one willing to learn seems they learn a little bit think they know it all and move to what they think is greener pastures [sigh]
worse , seems all the newer saddles ( bags) dont last about year anymore, ballistic nylon may be great for gun holsters and cases but ....
oddly enough in years past here most were medium to small , now it seems most are large customs with all the bells and whistles
got a spot for my dog as well ? lolz

[runfiverun]

I'm assuming you are talking about the work being in Colorado?
which just happens to be where I am this week. [not framing houses]

[snowwolfe]

What are you paying per hour and are medical benefits included? I know two people who are looking and I live in the Springs.

[white eagle]

I know what you are talking about
seems as though the work in the trades in general for the younger people
is not as favorable as it once was
I work as a journeyman mason and I do not see the younger folks wanting to get in
sure its hard work but the pay is generally decent and you know you have done something at the end of the day
might be the time of computers and the web has opened up a different perspective
for the younger people,don't know for sure but just my guess

[montana_charlie]

anyone know someone who wants to work hard, play hard and make some good money?
Much better chance of an effective reply IF your location was visible.

[dakotashooter2]

The problem seems to be having a nail in one hand and hammer in the other leaves no hand free for texting. What we see around here is that the young guys that are willing to do that kind of work head straight for the bar at quitting time and stay till closing which results in them not showing for work the next day or showing up late and hung over.....

[DR Owl Creek]

?Hablas espanol?


Dave

[C.F.Plinker]

Much better chance of an effective reply IF your location was visible.

Looks like Aspen, Carbondale, and Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

[mold maker]

I always found plenty willing to sign on, they just weren't willing to swing the hammer, without I held the nail. At some point it was expected they do more than look pretty.

[10x]

In the late 1970s we had a large number of migrants from the rest of Canada come to Alberta. Some were hard workers. Some wanted a cash advance and a few days off before they started the job. No one ever gave them benefit of doubt - They were told to come back when they were ready to work and when payday was.

[winchester85]

a framer here starts at about $16/ hour, that is someone with very little experience and very few tools. i do not hire many like that because it takes too much of my time to teach them, and then after they learn a little they quit and go somewhere else. a GOOD framer here makes $30 to $40 per hour as a sub. they should (but rarely do) supply all their own tools.
I have 3 houses to do in Aspen this year, and two more down valley near Carbondale. I have a reputation for good quality AND fast pace. Many guys that i hire, with the lure of big money, are no where near qualified. I get guys wanting to "run" my job all the time, they ask for $35 to start, but when they get here, they do not know how to do the job, and or are very slow, or do poor quality work, or all of the above.
If i could find a person that can do high quality work, make very few mistakes, keep the crew moving, and himself get lots of physical work done, i could pay $50 per hour and be tickled.

Right now i need to find a guy or two with some experience, at least a couple of years. those people need to be able to take direction, even if they know how to frame some where else in the world, what we build here is very high end. i can teach someone, but they have to hustle and get stuff done. most young guys these days want top dollar, but will not work until they are tired!

the house i am framing right now is 3100sqft, it would sell for somewhere between $3.25 to $3.75 million!
I have a 10,000sqft house to do starting next March.

[MaryB]

Wish I was younger and not crippled up! Not a professional but helped strip and remodel over 2 dozen houses growing up, and helped build 3 brand new ones. We went from a bare foundation to roof on and shingled and windows installed in 2 weeks on dad's last house with a pro carpenter, dad after he got off work, myself, 2 brothers, and 2 sisters. 16 hour days, we crashed on site in whatever part of the house we could hang a tarp over and mom ran out food, beer, more beer to keep us going. Shower was jump in the lake and soap up, duck under to rinse. 3 bedroom split level with a basement walkout... I was never afraid of hard work!

One of my nieces was out last year for a week visit. She knew we would be putting up knotty pine upstairs for 3 days. She had a total fit when she got dirty! Not like I don't have a shower sheesh get back to work lol. Kids these days all want desk jobs and don't want to get sweaty or dirty.

[Fergie]

I went through college to get my degree in construction management and took a paid internship a few summers before graduation.

That summer, and the next, I worked as a surveyor, ditch digger, form setter, framer, finish carpenter...you name it. The very large company I worked for wanted all the new kids coming out of college to know what hard, manual labor was before they earned good money and ran jobs. We had two career paths, and I chose the field at the time....boy did I learn a lot!

Must not have stuck though. I'm heading back to school to become a PA in another week.

15 years ago, I'd have jumped at this opportunity.

[tomme boy]

I wish i was not messed up also. I was a framer in my early 20's. Built over 20 houses. Would have kept doing it except for all the illegals showed up and cut everyone's pay in half if you wanted to keep working.

[bear67]

This sounds like a great opportunity for some young men to earn and LEARN. But I wish you luck as the last 10 years as a GC, finding good help became harder and harder.

The last two houses I built were for my children. The smaller one we framed with family help, but the larger one (3800 sf with 2280 in porches--too big) I used a framing sub. Sub was white citizen, but he had a Mexican Sub/sub who supplied the help and 90% of the supervision. Work was good, but they had more waste cut off material than I like and when presented with a change order they could not figure the math to place 5 windows in a upstairs sun room wall. In Texas framing crews are hispanic, period. Believe it or not, I did find a white drywall crew to install sheetrock even if the tape and bedding was hispanic.

But I have learned that not all of the young men these days are not painted with the brush of lazyness and lack of work ethic. I am around 10 or so young men who are 19-21 years of age and run with my grandsons. Some of them are learning a good trade working on the job--two in aprenticeships that will end in license/certification. I have visited with a couple of employers who are impressed with their work experience and ethics. One is welding days to attend school at night and one is busting wrenches nights on diesel trucks while attending trade school days. My grandson is working 40+ hours a week to qualify to take the tests for the A&P license to maintain aircraft and is proud of what he has and is learning.

So there is gold in that sand if you shake the pan in the stream long enough.

[youngmman]

i posted a thread like this last year, but managed to finish the year with what i had.

now, this year i have several houses to frame and only one guy to help. surely there is someone with a college age or there about son or daughter that wants to work hard, make good money and live in a great place. long term or maybe just for the summer.
i have 5 homes to build between now and the end of the year, not including the one i am framing right now! some are in aspen and some are down near glenwood springs or carbondale.

i wear my bags and work with my crew, i get more done than the rest of the crew normally. i need a couple of good hard working people, people who take pride in their work and want to get some stuff done!

this is a great place to spend a summer, and learn a trade for a younger person, or a great place to live for someone who already knows the trade. i run class iv whitewater regularly, the hunting is great, the music festivals and such are common, and the climate is great.

anyone know someone who wants to work hard, play hard and make some good money?
FYI,
I was in the Navy SeaBees during the Viet Nam Era and belong to several sites on facebook related to the Bee's and there are ex SeaBees all over the country who have connections with younger "Bees" who may be able to give you a hand if your interested.

[Old Scribe]

Check with the local VA office and give a returning veteran a job. Most vets are good employees.

[DanWalker]

Check with the local VA office and give a returning veteran a job. Most vets are good employees.
AGREED!!! Go to military bases and inquire about job fairs. LOTS of eminently trainable guys with strong work ethics and solid moral foundations are being forced out of the military every day due to the draw downs in troop numbers.

[winchester85]

i signed up on the site to hire veterans, i got one response a few months too late. and the guy did not live close enough to work here, nor far enough to want to move.

[PULSARNC]

wish i was 30 years younger i would jump all over this .

[jcwit]

Suggest you get ahold of the County VA Service Officer and see what kind of input he gives you.

[TXGunNut]

Agreed about SeaBees. Old girlfriend's son is a SeaBee and he's a good, hardworking kid with the kind of values that gives me hope for his generation. Some of the youngsters I work with give me cause to worry. Anyone with a grade-school education can do what needs to be done but the kicker is attention to detail and a work ethic that includes the satisfaction of a job done right. We wind up hiring mostly bored retired guys.

[snowwolfe]

i signed up on the site to hire veterans, i got one response a few months too late. and the guy did not live close enough to work here, nor far enough to want to move.

As someone else suggested, go to the job fairs at the local military bases around you. Within a few hours drive of Denver there are three major Air Force bases and at least one Army base that I can think of.
Be ready to offer some solid numbers to the people you talk to such as pay per hour, how long the work will last, medical benefits, etc.

You mentioned you were looking for the same workers last year and now having the same problem again. Maybe you are looking in the wrong places or not paying enough or offering the right benefits or incentives?