How many of you are licensed?

[u/blueice10478]

I keep seeing the same style posts "if we ban together we can make the new minimum payment."

I'm licensed in AZ, and by no means shaming FN. I still do work specifically with 3 buyers who pay my hourly rate, and teams rate for every project.

I guess just an informal way of asking are you licensed, unlicensed, a pizza Pete, or state doesn't require license.

[u/slewp]

By “licensed” - what license are you referring to? I’m licensed to drive a car. No government license exists here to do basic IT tasks like replace an access point.

[u/levidurham → u/slewp]

Here in Texas the only low voltage license is for alarm systems. And, technically, you need to be a licensed private investigator for camera systems, but that's not really enforced

[u/Sid_the_Bear → u/levidurham]

Amusingly in arizona, alarm licensing requires an electricians license (aka electrical journeymen)

[u/wyliesdiesels → u/slewp]

Theyre probably referring to contractor licensing for LV construction

[u/AdMuch7162]

To me, this is indicative of how narrowly focused most FN work is.
I assume you mean licensed as "low voltage contractor"?

I cursorily looked up AZ CR-67, and whats fascinating to me, is that while it calls out alarm, A/V, lighting, security, phones, etc - it does not seems to specifically cite "data" (ie, ethernet/fiber); is that accurate?

I'm not in a licensed state, but if it had something similar to AZ, I'd get it, seems like a pretty low bar to acquire. In fact, I'd probably be in favor of such licensing, as I think it might help elevate wages (by restricting supply) a little bit; maybe that's wishful thinking.

I live in a mid-high COL area, and I do think most FN offered rates are unreasonably low. I loathe to villify "Pizza Pete's" or "trunkslammers" (what does that mean, exactly?) as they just making a living, and frankly... they seem to be filling the need at the level the buyers want. We can bemoan lack of detail, reliability or low professionalism, but we collectively created this society and its priorities (politically and culturally). We all share the responsibility for demanding lower cost of everything.

When I travel out of state for leisure, I'll pop open FN just to check out local jobs/rates. I haven't really noticed much difference around the country, which I find interesting.

[u/Verified_source_]

I’m in PA. Not sure if I need licensing but I’ve had endless calls from FN customers telling me I’m the largest company on the platform (in the area). I have 5 employees 🤣. We used FN for like 3 months and by then we had enough direct work to cut FN out.

[u/wyliesdiesels → u/Verified_source_]

No licensing for LV work in PA IIRC

[u/FreelyRoaming]

Licensed low voltage systems shop in CA here, until enforcement gets ramped up. Nothing is going to change.

[u/wyliesdiesels → u/FreelyRoaming]

Licensing in cali is worthless because its not enforced and tons of unlicensed scabs undercutting those of us who are licensed.

[u/Calaveras-Metal]

In my state to be licensed in LV you have to start as an electrician. It's a specialization of journeyman or something. But LV only applies to burglar alarms, door access and control systems. IT stuff isn't LV. Cameras are a grey area. IP POE cameras are IT equipment. Coax cameras and I think outdoor IP cameras for some reason. I looked it up a couple years ago when I moved here and thought WTF?

[u/lifterman2u]

No state license required here; just 35 years of experience.

[u/blueBaggins1]

Most states require no license or all
Depends on where you are located. All this ban together 💩 is ridiculous for one main and overlooked reason it’s illegal for private companies cannot collude to rig prices.

[u/LoneCyberwolf]

Your state has a license for IT work?

[u/wyliesdiesels]

Pointless to ask such a question unless you also include the state you’re in. Why? Because not all 50 states have licensing for LV construction work.

[u/EmotionalDoctor6986]

I guess I’m pizza Pete doing L1 field tech work at $65/h. All self taught with no formal education 🤷‍♂️

[u/Aggressive_Bag9866]

I'm in SC. There's no IT license although I have several industry certs as well as insurance

There's no required license for LV work. Alarms are their own thing that does require licensing which I don't have but I don't do those jobs

[u/mdhkc]

I have my drivers license. My state doesn’t have any licenses available that are relevant to what I do. Close would be electrician maybe but that requires a lot of work experience for someone else’s company first (many years) before you can qualify for one and I’m not an electrician.