Workmen been sat outside in their vans since 8.30am

[Lovemusic33]

Yesterday I arranged to be at home (today) so work men could have acccess to me property, I live in a housing association house and my house is due some work/maitanace on the outside. I went to the gym early, come back and there are 3 vans parked outside, 2 work men in each, the weather is awful so obviously they can’t be up ladders due to strong winds. They have literally been sat outside all day doing nothing (waiting for the rain and wind to stop), finally the rain stops and they are now fucking off because it’s almost 4pm.

I have felt like I’m being watched all day (vans right outside facing my house). AIBU to wonder why they have just sat there all day knowing the weather forecast was shit? Surely they could have gone home or found another job to do?

Given that almost everybody on MN refuses to answer the door unless by prior appointment, how many would welcome workmen randomly turning up to do work?
It isn't that they are being lazy, they are scheduled to do a job and due to the weather that hasnt been possible.

You say go onto another job. They only have the materials for the job they’re sent to. They may only have the specific tradesmen for the job they’re sent to on that day. If the job requires flooring and kitchen unit fitting they don’t bring plumbers and scaffolders with them too. It would be pure fluke that they had the exact materials, tradesmen and guaranteed access to another job on the day they’re not able to do the first job.

Work for an HA and our lads aren't lazy but are mindful of safety, especially in high winds. They'll be trained to do whatever outdoor maintenance it is you need doing, so it's not like they can just go and randomly start servicing boilers indoors. Their vans are the only base they have between jobs.

Of course they couldn't have gone up heights during high winds but there must have been something else they could have been getting on with. They'd have been told to do something productive if they were my employees, whether that be tidying the office or washing and hoovering the vans.

From a blog

"radical redhead says:
October 10, 2017 at 12:00 pm

"Myself and a friend of mine live separately in a Home Group housing association block of flats. Over recent years our lives have been made a misery of through endless, industrial scale building repair work. Admittedly, some of it has been necessary, but the bulk of it hasn’t.

I’ve become depressed and anxious about it. Sounds of drilling and hammers make me panic. My friend who lives in a flat in the same block has sometimes been in tears. He’s seen 3 changes of windows in 15 years.

It’s been literally like living within an active building site. Pointing has been replaced (much of it was in good condition already) and masonry has been replaced for different shaped masonry. I’ve had perfectly good doors and windows replaced. The actual site manager once said that they didn’t need replacing but that they were going to replace them anyway.

I know a tenant who left because of it. There is no doubt in my mind that unnecessary jobs have been undertaken simply to make money for the contractors. I have no doubt either that Mears and Home Group are in bed together.

I’ve written to different organisations pleading for help – no one’s interested.

So now, Mears Group are ‘testing’ the electric sockets in my friend’s flat. The flats have all been completely rewired from new approximately ten years ago. Maybe this is justified – maybe not. However, this is a company that has earned a reputation for corruption and shoddy workmanship, who’ve been caught and investigated by the Police for overcharging landlords. I am not paranoid.

I worry for the future because the block of flats I live in is so large that any job, big or small will be lucrative for a contractor.

The official term is ‘Social Housing Contractor Fraud’ and Mears are one of the key players. You can find articles on Google about Mears corruption scandals and it’s happening up and down the country because social housing tenants can’t say ‘no’.

Crucially, it only works if the landlord is complicit. This must take the form of bribes and backhanders being offered to senior management.

It’s a bizarre turn around from the old days of social housing landlords dragging their heels over much needed repairs because they were strapped for cash.

Today the dynamic is different. Now, many large social housing providers have formed cosy relationships with contractors. These contractors are parasites feeding off working class tenants’ rents. Rents go up to pay for it.

I’ve lived in council housing before without any problem. Since moving from council to housing association I’ve noticed a huge difference.

If my fears over new ‘repairs’ being arbitrarily created in the future, year after year prove to be correct then I’ll have no choice but to move. I don’t need the stress. I need peace and quiet."

They'd have been told to do something productive if they were my employees, whether that be tidying the office or washing and hoovering the vans.

Stop being silly. If you have 35 men rained off work you aren’t going to have them all squished into a site office to tidy it. What bollocks. Washing work vans in gale force winds? Yeah, good one. Get a clue.

helena that blog post does not surprise me one little bit.

They have spent most of today outside too. I do feel sorry for them, they might as well go home given the forecast for 75mph winds?

It seems a odd time of year to send them out doing outside maintenance, March is usually wet and windy. I did speak to one of them on Monday and he said he does lots of different things (maintenance indoors and outdoors) so he does have skills to do other things but maybe not the supplies he needs to do them. They are basically cleaning the outside of the houses and the windows, the houses are not dirty and most people on my road (other than me) pay for a window cleaner once every month or so. I have to say they keep the houses up together but a lot of the work they do doesn’t actually need doing. Since being here I have had new windows, new boiler and new radiators, all were fine and dint need replacing but I have been trying to get a front door for 2 years and I’m still waiting.

@Lovemusic33 They are doing our front doors this week Taking the door off its hinges. Replacing the hinges the spyhole the letterbox and i think the seals and then putting the door back on.

i saw one of the workmen sitting in his van and recognised the name of the company. We had been getting letters about this since last August including one about an all week call to discuss it back in Jan.

Its only because i saw the workman sitting in his van that i was able to agree a time and book something even resembling an appointment. its also a three hour job.

the way they have been going about it is knocking on flat doors to see who is in and doing it that way.

They have to rest on each other, until the shovels arrive - then they can rest on those. That's all it is.

Done job today and did a brilliant job Really pleased with it and told him so. Also kept him going with tea and Jaffa Cakes.

We regularly check that all staff are working and on task through cameras in the office and regular patrols, especially at peak skiving times like just before lunch and home time. It's utter madness to pay staff to do nothing.

I do enjoy these tales from the YellowFish Sweatshop. Senior management there clearly never do any actual managing, they're so busy spying on their staff, patrolling the building, locking the doors in case someone tries to leave, and holding meetings to decide whether the staff are allowed to go off sick. To say nothing of the time they must be spending in the employment tribunal.