Is plumbing complete pants

[hammers4spanner]

Is anyone here actually happy with their job ??
Every plumber I know who has been doing this for a decent level of time utterly hates this trade .
Must admit I'm included in that bunch , nearly 30 years of this and it grates me .

 

[Harvest Fields]

I love my job and will be doing it until I retire. But I’m a heating engineer first and foremost really.

 

[rpm]

There are good days and err, not so good days. Find a lot of it depends on the customer tbh.

 

[Harvest Fields]

There are good days and err, not so good days. Find a lot of it depends on the customer tbh.

And the previous engineers work

 

[Welder]

Every plumber I know who has been doing this for a decent level of time utterly hates this trade .

Inventing TapMedic has meant me moving from the tools.

Like you, I had begun to despise dealing with the general public. Their ridiculous and unsustainable demands and unwillingness to understand our perspective or advice, coupled with always assuming we are lying b4stards, sapped my willingness to get out of bed, or return calls or even show up on occasions. You kinda think, sod it! if I'm treated that way I'll behave like they expect me to. I loved many many of my customers, and still go to help when they call me, but I found it took 10 good ones to offset the negative impacts of an arseh0le.

I also found dealing with the major merchants more & more frustrating. For most it was all a 'transactional' relationship. By that I mean the, 'right I've got your money now go away' attitude. That was why I moved to independants.

However, interestingly, some of them are now growing into that mindset as they are swallowed up. Personally I feel it's a lack of connection by management that drives it. Bringing people in to 'run' the business who have no idea of the business, means you lose the critical success factor of that connection.

 

[Scott_D]

A trade means you don’t have many transferable skills. You have spent so many years doing the same thing you are kind of stuck.
Unless you want to go and start at the bottom of the ladder again.

 

[Welder]

Just wrote this. Thoughts?

Recently on a help forum I frequent, a tradesman of over 30 years shared his slide into what can only be described as ‘loathing’ his trade.

Dishearteningly, he is an archetypal ‘good guy’. He is a truly gifted individual, someone who chose his trade, someone who enjoys giving not someone who failed to get a job asking, “Do you want fries with that?” that we see presented today.

You know, it saddens me deeply, but I get his point. When you are continuously treated with utter contempt, considered dishonest, unprofessional and a work shy ‘thicko’ for most of your working life, is it any wonder that people revert to type as a form of defence? Is it any wonder that no one, certainly no one of any level of emotional intelligence, wishes to put themselves up for this global crucifixion – customers, suppliers, media et al?

One can argue till one is blue in the face about the chicken or egg of the situation. The fact is, the physical skills the UK needs to literally run on an hour by hour basis are dying out as the talented, experienced tradespeople get out – regardless of reasons why.

Let’s just contemplate the consequences of, say British plumbers, withdrawing their labour. How might it impact YOU? Most of you reading this will think, no problem. You’d be wrong. Very wrong. Whilst you may not be immediately impacted, as soon as vital infrastructure reliant upon plumbing skills breaks down then millions are impacted simultaneously. Let’s look at a little, very far from exhaustive list.

• No hot water

Bathe in cold water
Many businesses closed​

• No cold water
  No bathing at all
  No toilets at all
  Many businesses closed
• Blocked drains
  100s or 1000s impacted
  NO ONE connected can flush their toilets
  NO ONE connected can throw stuff down the drains
  All businesses connected must close
• Sewage treatment works closed
  100,000s impacted
  NO ONE connected can flush their toilets
  NO ONE connected can throw stuff down the drains
  All businesses connected must close
• Hospitals closed
  Plenty of deaths directly attributable
• Food production halted
  Preparation not possible
• Food distribution slows to crawl

Yes, the humble trades person doing their job has a massive positive impact on UK PLC and its continuation. Without those essential skills people die. Businesses & consumers need to rethink the way they treat people because if they don’t then the consequences are laid bare above.

 

[Last Plumber]

There are obviously days where if crying would help you'd do it but I think that goes for every Human in every walk of life.

In general though, I enjoy it. I am more on Heating than anything else and the majority of my work is commercial.

 

[Welder]

the majority of my work is commercial.

In my experience that def helps Last. A level of professionalism & less daft emotions

 

[Ted808]

Maybe we should start a campaign to educate the general Joe about the value of plumbing and the endless challenges we face to earn a crust. Recently I went to join in fancy smanxy place, a Gardner trimmed the hedge, the kid was having guitar lessons, the other had gone off horse riding, the cleaner was polishing the door knobs, the dietician was preparing the next meal, the ..... You get the point. The heating was on full wack. I changed a 2port motor only- in and out in under an hour and they questioned the cost?!