Common Courtesy
We’ve had a lot of construction done in the last few years. Our house, chimney, sunroom, and now our pool.
Dealing with construction of anything can wear on the nerves. Project dates are always changing while the construction bills are still expected to be paid on time. Your daily schedule is interrupted throughout the whole project.
I still can’t believe the lack of common courtesy in these projects.
One day I heard someone drive up the driveway. I waited before I went to the door. I didn’t hear a knock, so I went to see who it was. It was a worker for one of the projects we had going on. I walked outside to where the project was supposed to be going on and couldn’t find this guy. As I came back around the side of the house, I saw him coming from the back of my shed. Hmmm… wonder what he was doing there. No projects going on over there. I could guess. You can guess. I know we know what he was doing over there.
Today I hear someone drive up the driveway. These are guys arriving to work on our project. I look out and they are preparing things to get busy on the project. I sit down and check my email. My husband looks out the front window and makes a sound. I turn and ask what was wrong? He said one of the guys out front is doing his business in the front yard. Yuck!
What happened to stopping at the nearest gas station? This is a business doing this to their customer. Now whether they know their employees are doing this, I know not. But, I WILL have this built into any further contracts. If someone were to piss on my property during the contracted work, there will be a cost. A payment of $100 or so for each incident!
What would you do?
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Comments: 1.
I’m gonna put my money on cake. I bet he was baking a cake behind your shed.
Comment by Will — 4/21/2006 @ 3:33 pm
2.
I am rather shocked to be reading this.
Recently we had a theft incident as well. It was rather small, too small to phone the police, but, I feel we should have on principle.
Wendy, if not for the reprocussions, I swear, I’d make that digital camera and the power of the BLOG work for me in this instance!
Comment by Barbara (Xerraire) — 4/21/2006 @ 3:40 pm
3.
I would be so frustrated as well. That is totally inappropriate and indecent. 
Comment by Karlyn — 4/21/2006 @ 4:32 pm
4.
Actually after thinking about it, “Common” was a keyword on your blog subject.
Comment by Barbara (Xerraire) — 4/21/2006 @ 5:56 pm
5.
Let’s not forget the empty cans of Mountain Dew, Gatoraid, Pepsi & Coke littered throughout the yard. Or the empty bag of pork rinds floating in the pool. There is a piece of paper sunk to the very bottom of the pool which I’m thinking is the “Scematic” for the project. The treeline in back of the pool is littered with debris high and low which I’ve yet to identify. There are McDonalds wrappers in the driveway as well as some kind of Mexican food wrapper I’ve never seen before!
Comment by Michael Shepherd — 4/21/2006 @ 8:17 pm
6.
When contractors are building a house here in Arizona, they usually have a porta-potty delivered and maintained for the duration of the project. Maybe you need to have that provision in the next contract plus a dumpster for their trash.
I can see that it is not practical to ask workers to work at a site without the amenities they need throughout the day but I feel it is the contractor’s responsibility to ensure their workers are provided for. (Of course, they may pass those costs on to you, the consumer, thus driving up the cost.)
Comment by Julie — 4/22/2006 @ 10:45 am
7.
Hey Mom. 
Yes, a porta-potty would be nice for them also. They only work about 5-6 hours on these projects at a time, with an hour lunch (off site) in between. I will be more in control of any further contracts for future work. I also want more control over the draw schedule. Once they get the bulk of your money with the first few installments, they piddle around getting the rest of the job done. I want to write up the draw schedule! I also want to put in a clause that states an end date of the project. For every day they go over that end date, they pay $100 or so.
Comment by Wendy Shepherd — 4/22/2006 @ 11:21 am
8.
I cannot believe what you have had to put up with when they did there business on my lawn I would have fired them on the spot and your contract deal sounds like the way to go…And I totally agree with your idea about charging them for the job not finished they would sure have harassed you if the job was not paid for on time. Good luck, Stephanie
Comment by Stephanie — 4/25/2006 @ 6:35 pm