Employee pay range?

The detailers I know pay a percentage of the detail. It is really crappy wages too. You can spend 4 hours on a car and make a whole whoppin $50 bucks. Meanwhile the guy running the joint charged $250. I lasted about two days in that environment. I would much rather make the $250 all to myself. :naughty Turn over is really high in a detail shop. They have a hard time keeping employees around simply because the pay sucks so bad. When I have had people help me out then I also pay them a percentage. Its enough that they feel good about the job. The last partner I had we split it 50/50. I'm usually more of a 70/30 kind of guy though. I figure that its my product and my client, so I should probably get paid for that. Profit wise we probably still split it 50/50, but I have a little overhead to consider.
 
The only help that I used that was effective were friends, BAD IDEA! I pay to them $10 under the table. WAY TOO MUCH if you ask me. And now they expect it. I used to pay kids $6 an hour... less skill and trust, but thats a decision you need to make. Family is good, You left that question pretty broad. Cost and price has a lot to do with this question. I hope this helps
 
Jngrbrdman said:
The detailers I know pay a percentage of the detail. It is really crappy wages too. You can spend 4 hours on a car and make a whole whoppin $50 bucks. Meanwhile the guy running the joint charged $250. I lasted about two days in that environment. I would much rather make the $250 all to myself. :naughty Turn over is really high in a detail shop. They have a hard time keeping employees around simply because the pay sucks so bad. When I have had people help me out then I also pay them a percentage. Its enough that they feel good about the job. The last partner I had we split it 50/50. I'm usually more of a 70/30 kind of guy though. I figure that its my product and my client, so I should probably get paid for that. Profit wise we probably still split it 50/50, but I have a little overhead to consider.
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That statement shows everything that is wrong with employee attitudes toward work these days. Pay me pay me pay me! However I want no responsibility or liability whatsoever. Employees at my shop are paid what they are worth - period. It's very simple. If you are worth minimum wage and give a minimum wage effort than that is what you get. Conversely, if you are worth $12 an hour then you get that instead and so on. You must remember that as an owner of a business that owner has a multitude of costs involved in doing business that an employee never sees or considers before saying something like "I made $50 and the owner pocketed $250". There are all the costs involved with having an employee (wages/taxes/employer contributions/workman's comp etc), rent, utilities, advertising, chemical supplies, office supplies, insurance, accounting fees, and I could go on and on.
Simply realize that there is a reason for employees wages being what they are because they are just that - employees, not owners so why would they be entitled to the lions share of the profits without assuming any of the owners hard work and risk? Something to think about.
 
a friend and I started a buisness together so out of each check we get from the customer we take a set amount out of it that goes towards the buisness and the rest is divided in half and thats our paycheck... its worked good so far and we have enough to pay for everything else.
 
ShineShop said:
Simply realize that there is a reason for employees wages being what they are because they are just that - employees, not owners so why would they be entitled to the lions share of the profits without assuming any of the owners hard work and risk? Something to think about.
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I couldn't agree more.
Everyone seems to forget the risks, costs and hard work involved when in business.
In addition, our society has lost site of starting at the bottom, working hard, and earning advancement in pay as well as position. I might be "old school" but that is how I went from working in a tool and die shop making minimum wage to eventually owning the business and being able to retire at 45 years old. So, I guess what I am saying is, pay your employees what they are worth and allow them room and opportunities for advancement.
 
I couldn't agree more. However, with the abundance of wealth in our society today younger people simply don't have to work as hard as they did in the past. I really get a sense that everyone believes they are "entitled" to the lifestyle that is portrayed by the ultra wealthy on television but has no ambition or drive to make it happen. I actually had an interesting conversation with a young guy who has opened a jewellry store this afternoon and he told me his ambition is to become a "billionaire" by the time he is 45. I think we all know that the chances of that happening are very remote but I like his attitude. I set out to be a millionaire by the time I was 30 at the tender age of 20 when I opened my shop. Did I make it? Nope. Did I come close? Somewhat. However, if I had set a goal of having a small house and and decent car by 30 I would have been setting the bar pretty low and definitely wouldn't have achieved as much.
 
Luv-N-It said:
me thinks this is going to get interesting...
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This isn't going to get interesting at all until people actually read my entire post. I am an adult and have been detailing for nearly 10 years. While that may not be long for some, it is a long time for me. I'm not 18 years old and a $12 an hour job doesn't cut it for me. I make $40 per hour when I am detailing. I thought it would be interesting to work for a shop to get some trade secrets, but I ended up not being able to afford that crap wages. A 16 year old doesn't have bills to pay. Give them the $12 an hour. I was over qualified to work at the shop so I went back to working for myself. Not everybody needs a boss.

All I was saying is that when I don't need a shop to get business for me. I'm more than capable of doing that on my own. I've been doing it for a long time. If you don't have the ability to obtain your own business, then just be prepared to make way less than you would if you were working on your own. That much may be obvious, but that is all I was saying.

I also mentioned that I pay my guys fairly. I resent being compared to an employee who doesn't appreciate overhead. I do appreciate that and I take it into consideration before I split the profits. I don't see anything in my statement that shows anything wrong with employee attitudes. People like to be paid what they are worth. When I feel that I am not being paid what I am worth then I move on. I don't know anybody who agrees that they are being paid what they are worth unless they are self employeed. I am worth $40 an hour and I've got several years of accounting that can prove that. Knowing what my worth is will keep me from working under anybody in the detailing industry. There isn't anything wrong with that. I would imagine that ShineShop is the same way. Once you know what you can do on your own, there just isn't any reason to work for somebody else.

The bottom line, and the point I was trying to make, is that working for a shop is a low paying job. Its just the way it is. I've got a friend making $9 an hour as a detailier for a Porsche dealership. Its a low paying industry unless you are the boss.
 
We have gone to paying our help strictly commission(finally got a competent crew togeather of 4 guys)---Works great= The more they hustle the more they make in a day, Plus it gives them an appreciation of getting every car done every day! Make sense? They like to take on as much work as we can throw at them.. They know if there quality suffers, The pretty little blondes with a peice of cake Mercedes won't be back in a few weeks for them to make some good profitts. So it's a win win situation at my shop to NOT pay Hourly? It's taken a couple of years of hard knock schooling to put this crew togeather--but we can sure put out the quality work that no one else in town can touch--and we are all finnially bringing home what we should--plus we are expanding
 
Paying by the hour is rough. Since there could be times that you are standing around for a couple hours doing nothing, its not really logical to pay them to stand around. I could see paying a really low base salary and then a low commission on top of that. That way they know that even on a slow week they'll at least get paid something. You'd have to have a pretty busy shop to support that.
 
This is kinda what I was looking for. Keep it coming.

I agree with ShineShop on paying someone what they are worth. I know a lot of people that are paid half of what they are worth to the company. When I do open I would like to pay a fair price.

I see what you are saying about a slow week Jngrbrdman. But the only problem I see with that is keeping someone when the could be getting a low pay every few weeks. It makes it hard on them to make a living.

James
 
Flexin said:
I see what you are saying about a slow week Jngrbrdman. But the only problem I see with that is keeping someone when the could be getting a low pay every few weeks. It makes it hard on them to make a living.

James
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I dunno... waitresses seem to do ok. They are on basically the same kind of deal. Many of them are only making 3 or 4 dollars an hour as a base and then depend on their tips to make up the difference. I don't personally agree with that particular setup, but its the way it is. Detailers can't really rely on big tips or the type of volume of customers that waitresses have, but they can depend on a certian percentage if they are fast enough. I see it as probably a more fair way to pay help at a shop. Straight hourly rates aren't fair to the owner and straight commission doesn't seem to be fair for the employee. Like I said, on a slow week you may not make anything at all. If you are making a couple bucks an hour then at least you would have something and turn over at the shop might not be so high.
 
Luv-N-It said:
me thinks this is going to get interesting...
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when people ask for opinions on forums-you have personality and history people are going to express. that opens a can of worms making it interesting. sad thing is... sitting at the keyboard typing and reading does not allow you to fully appreciate someones personality and their history and things can be taken out of context easily...that is why it has been interesting all ready...
 
Another thought is to pay a fair wage, but start the person out as "part time"
At least in our area, there are a lot of people who need to supplement their income with a part time job. Then, if the person works out and as your business grows, they can be moved to "full time". If you are really fortunate, you might find someone who is willing to be "on call" for certain days or times. Many times we need to think outside the box. Many times a situation has many solutions, we just need to find them.
 
Hey! Wait a minute. Did some one say $9 an hour to detail??? Where,where,where??? That sure beats that $7.08 an hour I seem to be averaging on my own.
 
Jngrbrdman said:
I dunno... waitresses seem to do ok. They are on basically the same kind of deal. Many of them are only making 3 or 4 dollars an hour as a base and then depend on their tips to make up the difference. I don't personally agree with that particular setup, but its the way it is. Detailers can't really rely on big tips or the type of volume of customers that waitresses have, but they can depend on a certian percentage if they are fast enough. I see it as probably a more fair way to pay help at a shop. Straight hourly rates aren't fair to the owner and straight commission doesn't seem to be fair for the employee. Like I said, on a slow week you may not make anything at all. If you are making a couple bucks an hour then at least you would have something and turn over at the shop might not be so high.
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This industry is very hard to compare to a waiter/waitress. Nobody has the volume that a diner or restaurant has. Plus, people know its customary to tip waitresses, and not everyone will tip a detailer. They figure its in the price and some are just plain cheap. I don't need employees right now, as my biz isn't big enought to support it. But I have offered my stepson to help, and he refuses. The work ethic of a teenager hasn't changed since I was a teenager. Well, a little I guess. They all think they will be millionaires by 21 and put out the "'one hit song" or "Get their big break". They simply don't understand reality. "Faith without works is death".
 
We all need to remember that this is not rocket science. It is hard work however. Paying someone $9/hr. is pretty good pay for a young person. We create our own realtiy and our own breaks. Usually that comes from hard work, faith, integrity, and doing a good job. When all of these principles and attributes come together, then a business (ANY business) will thrive. Finding people who share these common qualities is tough, because nowadays, these have become "uncommon qualties". Simply put: Most young people would rather sit on their arses and daydream, than go out and learn how to hustle and make an honest buck. I didn't learn that myself until my Mid twenties. That was when I started to find out that I need to go out and "do it" instead of letting someone else "do it to me". Principles and spiritual attributes have lasted 1000's of years because they are truth. Finding people who share them is the trick, like the person who "finally found a crew of 4 that work".
 
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