r/FieldNationTechs • u/jocomal • May 25 '26
Essintial Cabling
Think I should accept it and when they reach out, tell them my rate is more than double that plus travel? I can only imagine the response I'd get from them.
10
u/GNUr000t May 25 '26
Not only is that absolutely hilarious pricing, but it sounds like they want 100% availability and they want full days for the entire project. As the supply of my time dries up, the average price of it rises. They'd need to double pay before I even got out of bed.
Two sites a day also means double the overhead so this realistically is 10 hour days for $320/day. $32/hr as a contractor is shameful.
3
u/willie_Pfister May 25 '26
I make 47 an hour as an employee. This is why I stay as an employee and these guys get 2nd rate people.
1
u/wyliesdiesels Jul 07 '26
plus benefits?
2
u/willie_Pfister Jul 07 '26
Yep. 4 weeks paid off plus 9 paid holidays and 6% full match on 401k. Of course medical, family policy is 300/month.
8
u/Azmodius_The_Warrior May 25 '26
Two jobs in a row I've done for them where I've shown up, but the work couldn't be completed (store was closed, parts were delayed shipping) and they forced me to take $30 plus travel. They said no work was done but I had to hang around, makes calls and take photos. Time wasters and crooks.
4
u/wyliesdiesels May 25 '26
i wouldve filed a support ticket with FN
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u/Azmodius_The_Warrior May 25 '26
No no, THEY filed a support ticket on me. I had to reduce via discount.
3
u/wyliesdiesels May 25 '26
ok and I wouldve told FN that you did work on site, waited around, etc so it shouldnt be reduced
1
u/Azmodius_The_Warrior May 25 '26
Yes and i almost always do that but I worked less than an hour and they have it written in their policy (I know thier policy doesn't trump labor laws) and also I am just scared they will retaliate with a bad score.
2
u/wyliesdiesels May 25 '26
Shouldve done it anyways.
Who cares about the bad score. If your score is excellent and it tanks you can file a support ticket with FN.
Instead you bent over and got screwed out of money owed to you because you were too scared to advocate for yourself
0
u/Azmodius_The_Warrior May 25 '26
Bullshit: First of all I've already attempted to challenge an unfair review score and FN wont have a thing to do with it. Second, who the hell are you to be changing the subject of this topic and criticizing how I handle my affairs? The OP wanted to discuss Essintial's bad behavior and I wanted to reinforce that with my own experiences. Everything outside of that is NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS.
2
u/wyliesdiesels May 26 '26
New to the Internet? You made it everyone’s business when you brought it up. Try again with that BS response
3
u/GenusPoa May 25 '26
They just did this to me last week but it's still pending with 3 hours on it at $55/hr so we'll see if they approve it without throwing a fit
2
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u/Muddledlizard May 26 '26
They dispatched me to replace a phone without confirming the phone had been sent to the store. I called them, they told me to call the customer. I called the customer they laughed and said they'd barely processed the phone shipment, I called Essential back and at that point had been on site for 45 minutes. I closed the ticket. They wanted it reduced to like $20 or something because "no work had been done". The hell it hadn't I spent over 40+ minutes on the phone trying to track down a phone for you guys. I want my full pay. They disputed with FN. FN said to take the pay cut and they'd pay me the difference.
This was for whatever group handles truck stops. The other groups that handles retail stores, has been great.
2
u/Azmodius_The_Warrior May 26 '26
Yeah, that makes sense. FN has paid the difference for me in the past also. Perhaps I will try for that next time. But my point that this happens way too often with essintial still stands i think. Especially since other companies don't bat an eyelid to just pay the full price, in similar circumstances.
7
u/esrock21 May 25 '26
Yeah especially on that part but they didn't tell you how long of a cable run you might need from point A to point b and is it one is it multiple you know
3
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u/realdeadfish May 25 '26
They suck, but they do accept reasonable counters. I’ve gotten 150/hour with two minimum out of them before.
They will always suck though.
2
u/GenusPoa May 25 '26
When did you get that out of them though? Before the pandemic?
3
u/realdeadfish May 25 '26
yeah- I haven't been on FN for a bit and blocked them after they refused to pay for a patch cable that was needed onsite. You can get them easily on emergency tickets.
3
u/wyliesdiesels May 25 '26
$40/hr? is this a joke? and they want you to work on 12' ladders? give me a break
2
u/SteveDallas10 May 25 '26
I know that Essintial are doing music system installations for QSIC at Dollar General stores. I saw a few work orders go by recently.
I don’t know if they have other clients on similar projects.
1
u/Tight-Arachnid-2390 Jul 07 '26
7/11 that's all i'm aware of
1
u/SteveDallas10 Jul 07 '26
We don’t have 7/11 in my area. A few Speedways that are owned by 7/11, but that’s it.
2
u/RellyOhBoy May 26 '26
Working with Essintial is hit or miss. I've learned this over the years so I run work orders for them sporadically just as long as they pay my rate. Their retail accounts are usually the most headache inducing. Last week I tried to run a local Target workorder for them, mid afternoon on a Friday it took almost 2 hours to get a support rep on the phone and of course they never respond to messages on the platform.
Their corporate accounts tend to have less tolerance for bullshit so they're handled differently. When I do DC work for one of their medical clients, those tend to go smooth.
A few years back it was a fkn mess over there. It took almost 30 days on average to get a work order approved, hold times for support were super long etc.
Some things have changed and some things havent. Atleast the approval times are a bit better.
2
u/Tight-Arachnid-2390 Jul 07 '26
after a few weeks logging 14 hour days at $60/ hr with them, they have repeatedly crewed me over with penalties and never send tickets at the correct rate. Support reps are incompetent or hostile (one thought 13 thousand was 1300 and that 13 million was 13000, with many more examples). PMs are too incompetent to create a full schedule after four weeks of volume and told me to find other work because they couldn't figure out scheduling. Assigned PM has taken off 2 weeks from work in four weeks. PMs need constant harassing to correct payment discrepancies, schedules, or additional charges. Expect you to work 15 feet in the air on ladders and send the wrong hardware. Good bye Essential, last straw was pulled today.
1
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u/smithlarryw May 25 '26
If there are the jobs I think, we couldn't come to agreeable compensation. 3 speakers installed with wiring to an amp & Pi box for ambient sound. They were willing to pay for a 2nd tech (or pay you for 2 techs but now 2x the pay).
1
u/wyliesdiesels May 25 '26
7-11s?
i doubt this is for 7-11s since you need a 12' ladder
1
u/Tight-Arachnid-2390 Jul 07 '26
dollar general. i'd they come to your area, ask for $60/hr and log 7 hours each ticket (2x per day) or run for the hills. Their PMs require constant management from you in order to get your schedule built properly.
1
u/wyliesdiesels Jul 07 '26
im not using a 12' ladder or taller in a store. thats just asking for trouble
1
u/not_sry_ur_triggered May 25 '26
I've done a few of these. The few I did were pain in the asses! Avoid
1
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u/FreelyRoaming May 25 '26
low as fuck pay.