Probably the most profound statement/question yet.
Or you finally come to the realization that the boss is making all the $$ and doling out to you exactly what you initially agreed to work for irrespective of the fact that you are now working twice as hard and twice as long than when you first signed on while he's always thinking that you should be greatful that he's given you a job. (Sorry, didn't mean to go off but it struck a nerve.)
I don't think the issue is really about "working together" but rather about getting the amount of $$ for a job based on what the market will bear. For example, if the going rate for a 200 amp resi service upgrade is going for say $2400 in your area why would someone come along and take the job for $1600 ? Don't get me wrong, I love America and the free enterprise system and our abhility to compete but a $600 disparity on a job like this is just plain bad business. If you're in a highly competitive area and you out-bid the next guy by $100 that's one thing but leaving $600 on the table is not only bad business - it's stupidity.
I'm sure the vast majority of us have come up through the trade and have learned all those technical things that make us good mechanics. However, I believe one of the things that should be a requirement to getting an EC license in any given State is having some formal training in business development or management. Learn how to do your own accounting, learn how to perform a break-even analysis, learn how to price up and bid on a job, research what the going prices are for work in your area, etc. Many of us ended up in this trade by default because, as 220/221 pointed out, we just couldn't put up with the stupidity and BS working for someone else.
I once had a friend refer me to a GC who was interested in changing EC's. All he did was complain about what a lousey job his current EC was doing, that he seldom showed up on the job or met deadlines, etc. I'm always leary to hop on the bandwagon in situations like this because I'm only hearing one side of the story but he asked me to give him a price to wire the next house he was building. So, I did and faxed it over to him. I believe my price was $14k (all the usual things, 2 AC units, double wall oven, big kitchen, etc.). He called me the following day and said he couldn't make out the price on the estimate........."Was it $1400.00 ?" I said "No, it was $14K". His response was "Gee, my electrician has been doing these houses for $6K". I then told him to stop complaining about your electrician, hire a limo and go pick him up, take him out to dinner, drive him home and tuck him into bed !!!
