Mechanics question

[KAgantua]

Mate of mine has worked at a few garages recently (hes a mechanic) but being a bit of a softy, each job he goes to he never seems to get an employment contract, and is 'pressured' into doing funny hours with no extra payment (ie overtime) and they are often late paying (citing 'cash flow problems').

Are all garages like this or is my mate just a bit of a mug?

[SpeckledJim]

Good mechanics are in demand. If he's any good he shouldn't be putting up with shoddy treatment.

[Rich_W]

The lack of contract thing is often the case if the company isn't a large one. Have worked for 1 place for thick end of 4 years with no officlai contract. Just the letter saying "thanks for accepting the job, hours are... Money is..."
The pressuring to do extra hours is often. Normally a Saturday or around teh time the reg changes occur and there's either cars going out OR a new loads of part exes to be prepped. Though it can vary depending on employer if this is included foc/time/x1.3/x1.5

Late payment would worry me. Wouldn't accept that at all. Indicates a real problem with the employer. Better to leave!


The motor trade is one of the most backward ones out there in my opinion. I'll try and keep this brief and its confined to Aftersales

Obviously there's a lot of bodgers out there. The irony is that the people who can ONLY fit pads and spin filters tend to earn more because they are kept away from anything complicated that takes time. And smash out the easy work, saving time and thus earning higher bonus's. But skilled people ( ) are hard to find. Yet companies forget this and do have a habit of forgetting that a good tech is worth a lot. So generally pay them the same as the bodgers! How to accurately diagnose say 100 common faults on 10 different models. (If you're a main dealer) On EVERY system a modern car owns. From ignition misfires to timing chains to water ingress to coolant loss to auto boxes to central locking to vibrations to rattles to duty cycling and CAN Bus networks. All while getting cut fingers or knuckles or burnt or covered in mud or adblue or coolant as manufacturers "packaging" reduces even the simplest job to being a pain in the arse. And being able to interpret wiring diagrams or workshop manuals and use at least 2 computer systems. (Diag and Information)

And believe me cars are being built ever more shodily by manufacturers. So they go wrong more often!

Oh, and of course Techs are on their feet from roughly 8-6 every day (bar lunch), have every minute of their day analysed by managers (don't ever be stood there not moving or worse actually making a personal important phonecall) who then berate them because although the car got fixed and the customer is happy. They took more than the allocated time to find and fix the problem so they must be incompetent. The same managers that have NEVER done the job, and have become managers by taking the key off the customer and saying "thanks call you later" And woe betide you if you want a half day holiday in the next month. As I've witnessed so many people be denied holiday as "the diary is already booked" whereas a friend who works in Media can have a couple days off with about 24 hours notice. I actually one year got to the end of the year with holiday untaken. Asked if I could be paid it. No. Could I have it off. No, diary is already booked

All for a wage that averages between 24-28K a year (for a 45hour week) and normally 20 days holiday and you have to buy all your own tools (Average id guess at between £10-15K over a decade or 2)

Whereas Sales people get double that and whilst I'm sure its hard at times. Work in a main dealer (lets use BMW) when the customer comes in and says "I want to buy an X5" half the job is done. Just a case of working out how they pay for it. But these are the guys/girls that get a company car. Get on site parking. Get to stand at the coffee machine chatting for half an hour.

TBF There are 2 types of Salespeople. Those that are nice to Techs. And those that only talk to them when they've fked up "OMG my customers here and the cars not ready, I need a towbar/number plates fitted now!" The former I'll always help if I can. The latter get a "sorry too busy"

I'm sick to the back teeth of it. Why did I bother. Why didn't I just go and do something worthwhile with my life

Edited by Rich_W on Sunday 16th October 21:08

[Cerberaherts]

No. He's been unlucky. Good mechanics are very hard to find, it's a dying trade.

[philthy]

SpeckledJim said:

Good mechanics are in demand. If he's any good he shouldn't be putting up with shoddy treatment.

Cerberaherts said:

No. He's been unlucky. Good mechanics are very hard to find, it's a dying trade.

This.
If at all possible, he needs to set up on his own.

[powerstroke]

Rich_W said:

The lack of contract thing is often the case if the company isn't a large one. Have worked for 1 place for thick end of 4 years with no officlai contract. Just the letter saying "thanks for accepting the job, hours are... Money is..."
The pressuring to do extra hours is often. Normally a Saturday or around teh time the reg changes occur and there's either cars going out OR a new loads of part exes to be prepped. Though it can vary depending on employer if this is included foc/time/x1.3/x1.5

Late payment would worry me. Wouldn't accept that at all. Indicates a real problem with the employer. Better to leave!


The motor trade is one of the most backward ones out there in my opinion. I'll try and keep this brief and its confined to Aftersales

Obviously there's a lot of bodgers out there. The irony is that the people who can ONLY fit pads and spin filters tend to earn more because they are kept away from anything complicated that takes time. And smash out the easy work, saving time and thus earning higher bonus's. But skilled people ( ) are hard to find. Yet companies forget this and do have a habit of forgetting that a good tech is worth a lot. So generally pay them the same as the bodgers! How to accurately diagnose say 100 common faults on 10 different models. (If you're a main dealer) On EVERY system a modern car owns. From ignition misfires to timing chains to water ingress to coolant loss to auto boxes to central locking to vibrations to rattles to duty cycling and CAN Bus networks. All while getting cut fingers or knuckles or burnt or covered in mud or adblue or coolant as manufacturers "packaging" reduces even the simplest job to being a pain in the arse. And being able to interpret wiring diagrams or workshop manuals and use at least 2 computer systems. (Diag and Information)

And believe me cars are being built ever more shodily by manufacturers. So they go wrong more often!

Oh, and of course Techs are on their feet from roughly 8-6 every day (bar lunch), have every minute of their day analysed by managers (don't ever be stood there not moving or worse actually making a personal important phonecall) who then berate them because although the car got fixed and the customer is happy. They took more than the allocated time to find and fix the problem so they must be incompetent. The same managers that have NEVER done the job, and have become managers by taking the key off the customer and saying "thanks call you later" And woe betide you if you want a half day holiday in the next month. As I've witnessed so many people be denied holiday as "the diary is already booked" whereas a friend who works in Media can have a couple days off with about 24 hours notice. I actually one year got to the end of the year with holiday untaken. Asked if I could be paid it. No. Could I have it off. No, diary is already booked

All for a wage that averages between 24-28K a year (for a 45hour week) and normally 20 days holiday and you have to buy all your own tools (Average id guess at between £10-15K over a decade or 2)

Whereas Sales people get double that and whilst I'm sure its hard at times. Work in a main dealer (lets use BMW) when the customer comes in and says "I want to buy an X5" half the job is done. Just a case of working out how they pay for it. But these are the guys/girls that get a company car. Get on site parking. Get to stand at the coffee machine chatting for half an hour.

TBF There are 2 types of Salespeople. Those that are nice to Techs. And those that only talk to them when they've fked up "OMG my customers here and the cars not ready, I need a towbar/number plates fitted now!" The former I'll always help if I can. The latter get a "sorry too busy"

I'm sick to the back teeth of it. Why did I bother. Why didn't I just go and do something worthwhile with my life

Edited by Rich_W on Sunday 16th October 21:08

Yes and when they build a new dealership the showroom is massive and the workshop cramped ! its madness the internet can sell cars!! you need skiled people to fix them and techs are still treated as grease monkeys and the lowest of the low.....

[PorkInsider]

Rich_W said:

<interesting insight into a mechanic's life>

That reads almost word for word how a good friend of mine describes life as a mechanic in a large dealership.

He's a workshop controller with 25 years in the game up to master technician level with several different brands and a lifelong obsession with all things mechanical.

I know he earns less than £30k works some Saturdays for that and puts in countless unpaid additional hours Monday to Friday each week.

As I understand it, most dealerships manage to get a couple of decent mechanics and have to backfill with less skilled labour these days.

Given the hourly rates dealerships charge for service work, and the potentially huge expense of a mechanic screwing up, it would seem obvious that paying the staff better rates and generally treating them better would go some way to improving the profitability of the business.

It seems that the fact that you can employ a "mechanic" (note the quotes) for £8/h trumps all that though.

Edited by PorkInsider on Monday 17th October 08:59

[Rich_W]

powerstroke said:

Yes and when they build a new dealership the showroom is massive and the workshop cramped ! its madness the internet can sell cars!! you need skiled people to fix them and techs are still treated as grease monkeys and the lowest of the low.....

You just reminded me of something else. Sales have a showroom, a forecourt, an area for cars to be prepped/storage.

Yet they still have a fking irritating habit of dumping a car in the middle of the workshop, impeding everyone else getting in and out. Then locking it and then fking off to god knows where with the keys.

I guess they think it will mean we do it faster if we can see it. But they forget we do have other jobs on and if we can't get the existing job out the workshop, we cant start on their precious fk up.

Which leads me to another stupidness. Customers who see the "Staff only beyond this point" signs. And drive past the empty car park and into the workshop "I'm hear for my waiting service"


Good for you, where do you park when you go Tescos? In the fking deli aisle? And whilst its difficult for the majority of them to comprehend. This picture is NOT the waiting service you'll be getting



I could write a book on the amount of crap I see.

[Buster73]

philthy said:

This.
If at all possible, he needs to set up on his own.

If he's getting the run around as is apparent now , I would guess he hasn't got it in him to go self employed.

[Little Pete]

SpeckledJim said:

Good mechanics are in demand. If he's any good he shouldn't be putting up with shoddy treatment.

Well said. Good technicians are like unicorn poo and good independent garages pay decent-for the trade at least- wages. Tell him to send a cv to the better workshops in the area.

[DanSkoda]

I'm not sure if Rich is actually me in disguise, the rant is uncanny to my thoughts about the motor trade!