Sub-contractors

[Sawdust]

I was interested in hearing what companies and individuals thought about hiring subs' for daily rates or what ever it might be.

Seems like alot of companies turn away from it. I sub and have a small company. All I do is hire sub's when I need them. I also enjoy working for someone else, getting paid and goin home.

I would appreciate any comments on this. Good and Bad.
Later

 

[Tom Dunlap]

I work with subs a lot. This is a great option because there is no attitude, they are on the job early and the skill level is high. This costs me money but the work gets done quickly.

Hiring subs is like renting a specialized piece of equipment. No need to own a crane and operator for a once a month job.

Tom

 

[western_DAWGGG]

love to be able to sub out work in this area but it seems that cletis and jethro cant pass the contractors exam so if I did hire em it would be bootleggin and that is a no no correct ?............robdog

 

[tophopper]

iuse subs also, like Tom says it costs more but the skill level is greater and things get done quicker. A good sub around here will charge anywhere from $30 hour up to $ 50 hour. This works out to roughly 400.00 per day at the most.

i will generally use a sub on larger jobs with lots of climbing involved. Cost wise it probably works out pretty close to the same as an employee making top dollar, but i have no committment for 40 hours a week. The subs show up with all their own gear and I supply nothing but the work and a check when it is all finished.
I know a few people and all they do is sub out to other tree services. They have little to zero overhead, work 2-4 days a week and make a decent wage too. if you have a good reputation in your area amongst other companies and you do good work at a reasonable speed and rate you can keep yourself pretty busy.

 

[Nathan]

Subs are great. You may pay more but you stay in a variable cost situation which is not a bad thing in this economy.

I have problems with subs getting bitter because they charge me more and more until I use them less and less, finding other subs that will do it for less. They end up a bit bitter but usually come back hat in hand and we can get back to a rate that is fair for all of us - and the cycle starts again.

I often think the subs must do better than I do. Maybe a bit less cash but a lot less headaches.