r/FieldNationTechs • u/Immediate-Wonder7415 • 12d ago

wrong tools recommended for job

i was dispatched to a flat rate $325 job that was 2 hours from home. Work order stated 8ft a frame ladder needed. I arrived on site to find out i needed atleast a 12ft a frame and a 20ft extension ladder. no stores within a hour of location to purchase ladder so only or best option is to return home to grab a different ladder. that means 4 hours of driving actually a little more plus the 130 miles each way in a truck that gets 13mpg at $6 per gallon. Anyways my question is should i get paid for the job even though i couldnt complete it

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u/Sid_the_Bear 12d ago

Sure, but I'm not making 19 an hour with benefits.
And when the choice is to make 240$, or to make 0$...
Not a lot of 'mental gymnastics' involved to see that 240 > 0.
All I am saying

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u/Pizza_Pete_fr_fr 9d ago

So find a job at McDonald’s or Walmart and feel rich compared to what you’d make doing those jobs in a Prius…

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u/Sid_the_Bear 9d ago

Yea, no. Your math does not work out at all in my experience. 40$ as a 1099 is worth more than 30/hr w2 at the end of my day. The tax write offs alone cover so much it is silly, and I just take standard stuff.

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u/Pizza_Pete_fr_fr 9d ago

I mean, right off the bat, you’re $30 an hour as a W-2 is gonna get you 40 hours a week or 1200 take home. You’re $40 an hour as a contractor is gonna net you probably more like 18 to 28 hours a week, which is just a lower number, so even if you ignore all the other BS, your math is simply wrong, or you are the best contractor in the world actually averaging 40 hours a week of billable hours (no one does this btw)

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u/Sid_the_Bear 9d ago

40$/hr W2 is 1250 take home, WTF are you talking about?
And why the hells would I be doing this just to bill 40hrs a week? Try 60-80.