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COMPANY STANDARDS
REQUIRED READING FOR JOB APPLICATION - Step 1 of 3
Overview
If you don’t love building homes, and don’t want to have fun while doing so, you’re in the wrong place. Our philosophy is based on safety, production, and quality. Our professional, “old school” approach ensures excellence and an enjoyable work environment. If you want to act professionally and learn the way artisans have learned for centuries, continue reading. If you think this is just another construction company run by incompetents who will let mediocrity slip through the cracks, you don’t need to read any further.... it won’t happen at SkyTop Builders and you’ll have the unpleasant experience of being rejected directly or fired promptly.
Here are some common sense points:
IF YOU’RE NOT CAPABLE OF DOING EXCELLENT, CODE COMPLIANT WORK ALL DAY, EVERY DAY, OR TAKE INSTRUCTION FROM SOMEONE WHO CAN SHOW YOU HOW, YOU WON’T LAST AT SkyTop Builders. WE BELIEVE THAT IF NORM ABRAM WALKED ONTO OUR JOB SITE, HE WOULD BE IMPRESSED
IF A PERSON WITH NO SKILL OR ABILITY IN CARPENTRY IS ABLE TO LOOK AT YOUR WORK AND FAIL IT FOR LACK OF ATTENTION TO DETAIL, YOU HAVE FAILED AT THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL LEVEL - A MECHANIC UNDERPERFORMING LIKE THIS WILL NOT LAST AT SkyTop Builders
IF THE WORK YOU COMPLETE IS NOT SUITABLE FOR "FINE HOMEBUILDING" OR "THE JOURNAL OF LIGHT CONSTRUCTION", IT'S NOT GOOD ENOUGH. WHY SHOULD A CLIENT EVEN BOTHER HIRING A PROFESSIONAL IF THE WORK IS NOT GOING TO BE PROFESSIONAL QUALITY?
Two basic points:
1. If you’re not organized, or can’t learn to be that way, you can stop reading. Every professional needs to be organized, at the very least. When the jobsite gets messy, people stop caring about quality. For example, if your tools are in a big heap at the bottom of Tupperware bins and you don’t own a sharpening stone, you’re miles away from where you need to be to work for SkyTop Builders. So when you need a 1” chisel to add the last touch to your current task, and because you’re not organized enough to have THAT tool available when you need it, you will fail at all levels. You’ll compromise safety [dull tools are unsafe], your production speed will go down [because you’re hunting around for your chisel in the heap of tools - a good mechanic will have one sharpened and available], and quality will go out the window [eventually, the task will be hacked because the worker became impatient and the wrong tool was used... or the right one could not be sharpened]
2. If you think construction is a fun job because there are less rules than other jobs and you can do what you want, stop reading. In any professional environment, there are rules. In our work environment [One of the most dangerous - statistically more so than stunt man] there are tons of rules. We follow them - and we expect those that who work for us to do the same
Current Client Sales and Potential Client Sales
As an employee, it is expressly forbidden to address any aspect of sales while employed by SkyTop Builders with anyone other than an owner. Distribution of sales material [including business cards] and pitches to the client requesting additional work on any of SkyTop Builders job sites is expressly forbidden
Any inquiry regarding work specific to residential construction made by individuals stopping by the job site should be directed to an owner of SkyTop Builders. Any job contracted [even a moonlighting engagement or “side work”] that results from an inquiry made on any of SkyTop Builders job sites is expressly forbidden
Any violation of these guidelines is grounds for immediate termination and substitution.
The following is a description and specification on Quality Standards and Role Qualifications. This is a base document and may be modified and/or appended at any time.
Standards
The following is no joke and are maintained without exceptions. They provide a broad framework for the craft of being a carpenter. The employment world, and even retail advertising, think little of the carpenter career path [i.e. - A national box store advertises to it’s patrons that “You can do it.... we can help”]. Being a tradesperson requires years of artisan training and they CANNOT do it... they need OUR help. If you want to leave the average carpenter in the dust and blow away the box store shopper with your skill, continue. If you want people to make fun of you and your unprofessionalism*, you can’t work here.
* A current TV advertisement for Toyota [January, 2010] shows a crew of carpenters and tradespeople bumbling through a home renovation project, hinting that they’ve been there for too long. The voice-over states “.... and we can all use a little more quality”. It’s so commonplace for construction workers to be perceived as idiots and undependable that the commercial is 15 seconds long. It takes almost no time to develop the notion in the viewers mind that, on average, carpenters are incompetent, slow, unprofessional, and stupid. If this doesn’t make your blood boil, STOP READING. WE ARE NOT A BUNCH OF CLOWNS THAT WILL BE THE LAUGHING STOCK OF ANYONE. FIVE MINUTES ON OUR CREW IS ENOUGH TO SET US APART FROM ANYTHING THAT’S WORTHY OF COMEDY. IF YOU’RE NOT AS MAD AS I AM ABOUT THIS REALITY, STOP READING AND GO WORK FOR A CONSTRUCTION COMPANY THAT IS COMFORTABLE BEING LAUGHED AT.
Still reading? Good! All roles are accountable for maintaining the following standards for Safety, Quality, and Production:
Safety
- Residential construction is one of the most dangerous professions. As a result, extreme care needs to be taken in order to preserve a safe work environment. EXCEPTIONS TO THIS WILL NOT BE MADE. If at any time an employee is deemed to be a hazard to themselves or anyone else, immediate steps will be taken to remove the hazard.
- Scaffolding on the job site needs to be set up in order to provide safe access to a work location. SkyTop Builders will provide scaffolding that meets OSHA [www.osha.gov] standards for residential construction.
- All tools that are brought on the job site by an employee MUST be maintained in accordance with OSHA [www.osha.gov] specifications and cannot pose a hazard of any kind.
- All work environments MUST be kept clean [all day - not just at the end of the day]. Work should proceed such that debris that poses a hazard is removed routinely.
- When employees are working at high locations, they are required [through common sense and an eye on safety] to ensure the debris they create makes it to the garbage container in a safe fashion. Randomly discarding refuse [hoping it won't hit anything] will result in an employee's termination.
NOTE: AN EMPLOYEE WILL BE ASKED TO ADDRESS ANY SAFETY ISSUES IMMEDIATELY. IF THE SUPERVISOR DEEMS IT NECESSARY, AN EMPLOYEE WILL BE SENT HOME IF ANY SAFETY CONCERNS ARE NOT ADDRESSED IMMEDIATELY. REPEATED OFFENSES ARE GROUNDS FOR TERMINATION
Quality
- Work will be performed so that it is visually appealing to a lay person’s inspection. Burrs, crooked cuts, tooling marks are all discernible to even the most forgivable critic. If it looks shabby with even a quick look, it needs to be fixed.
- Tools will be maintained so they function toward the goal of attaining safety [see above] and quality. This means keeping blades sharp, maintaining tool sets so the appropriate tools are available to perform their intended function. For instance, if you need a plunge router to make a precision mortise, don't use a circular saw and hope no one will notice.
- Work will be level, plumb, and line. Carpenters know what this means and know how to implement it.
- Nick marks, scratches, open miters, crooked molding, are all unacceptable. They will need to be repaired or replaced.
Production
- Production needs to be maintained together with quality and safety. None of these are to be compromised for the sake of production. Stop and plan production with safety and quality in mind first - in that order.
- Workers are expected to come to work promptly at 7:30 and be prepared to work. If workers require more time to "get started in the morning", they should show up early to account for that.
- Workers should save stories that require the undivided attention of fellow workers for after work and lunch. Work time requires people to focus on their tasks as to minimize mistakes and poor quality.
- Total break time during the workday is 45 minutes. Work hours are from 7:30 AM to 4:00 PM. Overtime is OK whenever workers want but is only expected when a job must be completed for weather of schedule reasons.
- Repeating tasks due to poor quality indicates a worker is performing tasks above their ability. If this continues, they will need to work under the mentoring of another worker until quality improves. If quality does not improve, this is grounds for termination. Additionally, the workers salary may need to be addressed in alignment with their relative ability. The guidelines for such are detailed in the role definitions on this site.
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