what if this happens?

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highvolts582

Senior Member
Location
brick nj
What if a solar guy hired me to do a job and wants to help on the install of the job he is paying for. Should I just Pay him minimum wage pay for compensation purposes so he is on the "books". because he is making his money of the sale of the system with his buisness. How could something like this work. Ensuring safety and and abiding by laws is my goal considering the dangers of working on roofs. Any tips or experience would great.

Thanks,
Feel The Power Electric
 
Dennis Alwon

Dennis Alwon

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Chapel Hill, NC
Occupation
Retired Electrical Contractor
My opinion is if you aren't paying him then anything that happens to him is not your responsibility. I will note that I am not a lawyer so you may have a can of worms here.

I would not put him on my payroll and state he is on the roof on his own insurance etc.
 
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highvolts582

Senior Member
Location
brick nj
Yeah I think I may get professional advice figured I would fish around some thoughts first. These are Miner things im Ironing out before I go on a solar campaign. It all seems to good to be true wanna make sure I dont screw this up Im 27 and I still have so much to learn.
 
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mkgrady

Senior Member
Location
Massachusetts
Why hire him? He is already hiring you. If he wants a break on the labor he hopes to provide you can give a credit on your invoice to him. You can negotiate how much that should be. I find people that want to help are normally not helpful at all. They just slow you down. I would wonder what his motivation to help really is.
 
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highvolts582

Senior Member
Location
brick nj
tell you the truth one solar guy has 8 years and experience running his solar buisness and hell blow me out of the water on an install. but he is not an electrician. and does not do the ac end ever. he teaches me. he has somehow relized he should not touch anything because he is not an electrician.
 
growler

growler

Senior Member
Location
Atlanta,GA
mkgrady said:
Why hire him? He is already hiring you. If he wants a break on the labor he hopes to provide you can give a credit on your invoice to him. You can negotiate how much that should be.
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This is probably the best and only way it can be done without putting yourself in a position for some kind of trouble.

You will want to make sure that he has a business license and is insured so that he will show up as an independant contractor if something goes wrong ( he falls off the roof ).
 
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emahler

Senior Member
In NJ...all solar, including the panels, are the domain of the EC...The DCA has already decided this, and it is in fact the law....

Additionally, in NJ, it's illegal to sub electrical work to a non-licensed, non-electrical contractor....

The only way to have this non-licensed guy help, is to hire him as an employee....put him on the books and cover him with the proper insurances...

my advice is notify him of the illegality of his desires and tell him to stay on the ground...
 
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satcom

Senior Member
emahler said:
In NJ...all solar, including the panels, are the domain of the EC...The DCA has already decided this, and it is in fact the law....

Additionally, in NJ, it's illegal to sub electrical work to a non-licensed, non-electrical contractor....

The only way to have this non-licensed guy help, is to hire him as an employee....put him on the books and cover him with the proper insurances...

my advice is notify him of the illegality of his desires and tell him to stay on the ground...
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We get calls from these brain dead guys all the time, they think they can find someone who will let them use their license, they are all a little loose in the brain department.
 
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highvolts582

Senior Member
Location
brick nj
your right I know I cant sub out my work. So putting him on the payroll and paying him a small amount per hour while we work should be ok. right?
 
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mlnk

Senior Member
Let me see if I understand this. There is a certain Mr. Guy who has a solar company, he bids jobs, fills out paperwork, and I assume he has a city business license-- but I am guessing that he has no contractors license, liability insurance, workers comp insurance. Guy wants to hire highvolts582 to install the panels, electrical, etc. and then Guy wants to help work on the installation and receive something for his labor.
1. Why does Guy want to do this? If he wants to learn the nuts and bolts of the operation, why not just let him observe and take photos but not work.
2. If Guy is running a company, how does he have time to spend on a jobsite? He should be busy finding more jobs, making sure highvolts582 gets paid on time, etc.
3. Is Guy trying to get experience to obtain a contractors license in the future? If so, he is already functioning as a supervisor which passes for experience.
4. Does Guy want exercise to get healthy? Can climbing around on a roof in sweltering hot or freezing cold weather for 8 or more hours per day be considered healthy exercise?
 
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satcom

Senior Member
highvolts582 said:
your right I know I cant sub out my work. So putting him on the payroll and paying him a small amount per hour while we work should be ok. right?
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Why woukd you let him take in the lions share of the project money, for selling a job? I may of missed something but there are plenty of EC's Selling and installing solar systems, and making some very nice profits, you can always hire a roofing sub to help you with roof mountings.
 
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satcom

Senior Member
Dnkldorf said:
Why pay him to help you?

You should find a way to charge him, for helping you, to finish his job.
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Sure the EC is the professional, he is a 10% salesman, pay him his 10% for selling the job or 15% if he had any ad expenses, and move on.
 
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CopperTone

Senior Member
Location
MetroWest, MA
if you put him on your payroll then he becomes an employee - so if he falls off the roof - you may be liable for the WC or more. OSHA will be all over you, etc, etc

tell him to stay off your install and certainly don't pay him - he is the one paying you for this job right?

iff he is on the roof during install he should be at his own risk and as a general contractor supervising a sub.
 
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