that a decorator should not ask

[PTFO]

me to make his lunch for him then sit at the top of the stairs eating in?

Hes painting the bathroom. He asked if he could have his lunch- yes fine. He asked if I had a microwave- no I don't why do you ask? oh er could you just bung my spag bog in a pan and heat it through for me....er really its frozen solid. yes thanks...he then helped himself to a bowl and fork to add to my washing up. oh and he knew which cupboard had the bowls in straight away but he does appear to be washing said bowl up...

I might ask he lives five mins away...

What about a Nanny Slevedge? Would you let your Nanny heat up her own spag bol on your stove? I bet you would. Both builder and nanny need to spend the day in your home....is it just that builders are men? Or that Nannies are a bit special?

I'd have no problem with heating the stuff up. The thing that would upset me would be eating it at the top of the stairs. No food outside of the kitchen in this house and certainly not hot food.

Well maybe he felt unwelcome.....I agree not the best place to eat but OP should have invited him to use her table.

Thank you everyone for making this a really interesting and entertaining thread - for me anyway.
It is strange really how a tiny minority go to perhaps too much trouble - full english breakfasts, etc...
Most are very live and let live - help yourself - treat my house like you would your own - I am in that group.
Then there is that minority who don't want workers to touch anything in the house not relevant to the job.

My husband and many other professional workers will treat everyone as if they fall into the last group - so as not to offend.

It is well worth being in the other groups, as mentioned - when you do want a tradesman to come out at antisocial hours or for an emergency.

Good tradesmen are in demand and can pick and choose clients. They aren't going to drop everything to help someone who is rude.

Good tradesmen are in demand and can pick and choose clients. They aren't going to drop everything to help someone who is rude.

The customer gets to pick and choose as well. No-one is going to choose a tradesperson who is rude, they'll get another quote from someone else.

ICameOnTheJitney I would let the Nanny heat up their spag bol, but would wonder why as we all eat the same meals together in my house. I would, in fact, let the decorator heat up their coq au vin, or whatever, on subsequent days, but would assume that as this is not the convenient option that microwaving is, and armed with this knowledge, they would make other arrangements. I would not be happy that either trades were eating on the landing which is the pertinent point as Whatdoiknowanyway has grasped.
FYI my decorator is a woman and the nanny is a man, so who's the sexist one now?

As a tradeswoman,I'm shocked at how some of the posters here view us.I can't believe how rude and inhospitable they are.Thank goodness none of my customers are like this!

Inhospitable? Aren't we paying for a service to be done and not paying for our whole house to be used as the trades person fancies? I didn't realise it was part of hiring someone to also let them use whatever they want during the process.

I know kerwhizzed it's not like you are inviting them around for a tea party! You are paying for their time!

I think offering a cup of tea and letting them to use your toilet is fair enough but cooking full english breakfasts!? Some of you are bonkers!!

This really got as far as calling people sexist!

In our area there arent enough tradesmen to pick and choose.So its a lot easier for them to be the selective ones.

Wouldn't bother me - they're entitled to something to eat and drink during a working day

Someone heating up their lunch is not using the 'whole house' 'as the trades person fancies'. Nor is it a 'tea party'. FFS.

Some of the attitudes on display on here are reprehensible. I always offer tea and biscuits and, while I wouldn't appreciate someone (anyone, tradesperson, midwife, Queen of England...) asking me to heat up their lunch, I don't think it would be beyond me to say 'I'm busy but here's how to use the hob and please feel free to use anything you need – here's the bowls cupboard, here's the cutlery, salt and pepper etc.'

Letting someone use your toilet and heat up their lunch on their break is hardly letting them use your entire house as they fancy

My dear Dad was a plumber and my DH is a builder. Tradesmen are fully aware of who are nice folk to work for and who aren't. It is remembered!

And by nice - i mean allowing them to use a tap to fill a bucket. An offer of a cupper every couple of hours if you're home. If not, to be allowed to boil the kettle for their flask. Perhaps to be allowed to use the loo. (In the case of my dad he would often be working right next to the loo anyway - in the case of my DH he is often too dirty to walk around the customers house) Or wash their hands before they eat their sarnies in the van.

A few years a go (B4 DH) i had a big loft conversion done. It took 7 tradesmen 14 weeks working 5/6 days from 8 till 4. The firm worked as a gang. I think i got through a lorry load of Tate&Lyle in those 14 weeks and made about a billion bacon sarnies. I was on first name, 'deep converstaion over the kitchen table' terms with each before the work was finished. Also they would each take turns to come down for a cupper and a bitch about all the others

I almost missed them when they left.