who owns the tools you use

Status
Not open for further replies.

George Stolz

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Windsor, CO NEC: 2017
Occupation
Service Manager
Tiger Electrical said:
I bought a no-dog for fun but I never use it.
I bought the Greenlee short one and the screw busted off after the third time I dropped it, give or take. The Greenlee one has magnets, that's what I use.

But mine isn't engraved, either. I almost can't resist a gimmick like that... :D

ronaubrey-red-continuum.gif
 

cschmid

Senior Member
georgestolz said:
03582.JPG


Ooo - that one has a laser on it, I do have to get me one of those. :)

Sounds like I need to drop my level a couple more times, maybe off the fifth floor... ;)

I own it like it but I still bend free hand sometimes even with out using tape measure..:)
 

LawnGuyLandSparky

Senior Member
bikeindy said:
Where are you from? I can fire a guy for looking left only once before turning if I want to in Indiana. I don't need a reason to fire a guy. I could do it for fun. Thats not how I operate but I think you get my drift.

Correct, but until you DO fire him, you cannot not pay him.

I am not breaking a labor law by making an employee responsible for tools under his control, If he is working for me and I think he was negligent in his job and he caused property damage he is gone baby gone.

Of course. But you still owe the wages.
 

iwire

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Massachusetts
mdshunk said:
Any of you guys have the Robert Badger limited edition no-dog set? I hear it's a collector's item. :grin:

It was a buck a tool to have my name put on, it's not like I would have 'iwire' on them. :grin:
 

tonyou812

Senior Member
Location
North New Jersey
georgestolz said:
I bought the Greenlee short one and the screw busted off after the third time I dropped it, give or take. The Greenlee one has magnets, that's what I use.

But mine isn't engraved, either. I almost can't resist a gimmick like that... :D

ronaubrey-red-continuum.gif
mine broke off too.......hmmm
 

JohnME

Senior Member
Company buys all my tools, even the hand tools, they really take good care of us. If your in the middle of something and you need a hand tool, what are you supposed to do? Drop everything and go run after it? I just make a call to a supply house with the company account and it shows up pretty darn quick. I think it actually saves the company money in the long run, guys always have what they need because they dont put off buying tools they seldom use, they have it all and no time is wasted.
 
Last edited:

jdsmith

Senior Member
Location
Ohio
tonyou812 said:
mine broke off too.......hmmm


Are the screws that are breaking off brass like the picture shows? Steel thumbscrews are available that would probably last longer. They have stainless ones too if you need it to be shiny:).
 
I own the tools now

I own the tools now

A few short years ago the fellow I was working for along with my wife provided very few tools, my wife and I added more and more tools that were owned by us. It came to a point I had more and better tools than the owner inc circuit tracers etc. When the owner demanded that we buy all our newly required safety equipment too, that was the end. We explained that we would but he could start from that point of providing all the power tools that we had because we were pulling them off his truck. (a non-union Co). He laid us off on the door step of our own house. Turned out just fine as most of his good customers followed us to our new self-owned company. Now I know who owns the tools. We provide all tools past basic hand tools for our help. Perhaps there is a moral to the story?
 

ultramegabob

Senior Member
Location
Indiana
I only require my help to supply thier screwdrivers, dykes, linemans, strippers, torpedo level, tape measure, and pouch or box to carry them in, they can bring thier own cordless drill if they like, but its not required, and I really dont want them to bring anything else, I dont want to have the issue of replacing someones worn out or home project grade tools because they got broken on my job....
 

Rewire

Senior Member
lonetreeelectric said:
A few short years ago the fellow I was working for along with my wife provided very few tools, my wife and I added more and more tools that were owned by us. It came to a point I had more and better tools than the owner inc circuit tracers etc. When the owner demanded that we buy all our newly required safety equipment too, that was the end. We explained that we would but he could start from that point of providing all the power tools that we had because we were pulling them off his truck. (a non-union Co). He laid us off on the door step of our own house. Turned out just fine as most of his good customers followed us to our new self-owned company. Now I know who owns the tools. We provide all tools past basic hand tools for our help. Perhaps there is a moral to the story?
moral or lack of:when you go into business make sure and take your former bosses customers
 

Rewire

Senior Member
LawnGuyLandSparky said:
Customers are not property.
My advertising that I paid for attracted them to me, my telephone that I paid for is what they contacted me on,My truck that I paid for along with the gas,insurance ,and maintinance that I paid for is what brought my worker to them.My insurance ,license,payrole,taxes that I paid for allows my employee even to be in the position to meet the customer and you dont think I have reason to think it underhanded backstabbing for an employee to go after this customer if they jump ship?The first wife is not property but you hit on her and out go your lights.
 

LawnGuyLandSparky

Senior Member
Rewire said:
My advertising that I paid for attracted them to me, my telephone that I paid for is what they contacted me on,My truck that I paid for along with the gas,insurance ,and maintinance that I paid for is what brought my worker to them.My insurance ,license,payrole,taxes that I paid for allows my employee even to be in the position to meet the customer and you dont think I have reason to think it underhanded backstabbing for an employee to go after this customer if they jump ship? The first wife is not property but you hit on her and out go your lights.

I understand you points, but none of them are applicable to the decisions your ex-customer makes. They're free to decide who they employ. Just because they once were your customer, does not give you the right to claim some kind of "dibs" on them, that no other electrican or company formed by an ex-employee is permitted to woo a new client.

If you don't want employees or ex-employees to become potential competitors, don't ever hire any. Not that that means you'll never lose a customer, only the ability to blame the loss on someone other than yourself.

In addition, everything you spend on advertizing, telephones, etc does not give you exclusive rights to anything, and none of it "created" the customer.
 

Rewire

Senior Member
LawnGuyLandSparky said:
I understand you points, but none of them are applicable to the decisions your ex-customer makes. They're free to decide who they employ.
I never said they could not
Just because they once were your customer, does not give you the right to claim some kind of "dibs" on them,
why not
that no other electrican or company formed by an ex-employee is permitted to woo a new client.
I have no problem with other Ecs going after business I do have a problem with backstabbing ex employees targeting customers that they would probably not even know existed other than through employment with me
In addition, everything you spend on advertizing, telephones, etc does not give you exclusive rights to anything, and none of it "created" the customer.
yes but it did create the relationship with the customer
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top