Took a job with a moblile company...

Wow, cheap a$$ boss, sounds like a real scummy joint. Did you get the $16/hr. proposal in writing?



Keep in mind: If you make under 6 and a half times the minimum wage, and you do, you are entitled to time and a half for every hour over 40h.

There has got to be some regulation about not being paid while driving a company vehicle for company business. They may try to hide behind behind the same laws that restaurant owners do, but I cant see how. Even a waitress gets paid bell to bell, granted its minimum wage. Its worth investigation for nothing other than felling good about yourself.





I set up a delivery business based here in NYC 2 years ago with a GPS vehicle tracking system and package management system. They spared no expense setting this up for their 40 vehicles, it ran them about $350,000-$400,000.

Vehicle tracking is easy, be careful.
 
breaks are required to be paid by law...at least every where i have worked. something like 15 min for every 4 hours worked or so. maybe it varies from state to state.



regarding the 1 month until higher pay. ALWAYS get it in writing. a verbal means nothing and depending on the direction of the wind after the month is up, you may or may not see more $$$. sounds pretty shady to me.



also, if you are riding around in a work vehicle...it should be on the clock. the owner is liable (worker's comp, insurance, etc) if you would be injured.



.02
 
jsatek said:
Keep in mind: If you make under 6 and a half times the minimum wage, and you do, you are entitled to time and a half for every hour over 40h.
Click to expand...

I've never seen it defined this clearly. Can you point me in the right direction for a reference?
 
Everybody is too quick to jump on the owner of the business.



I am lucky if I can get a good 5 to 6 income generating hours out of a day.



Lets start with 8, remove 1 to 2 hours for travel, two fifteen min breaks and 1/2 hour for lunch. Not to mention set up, client not being ready, equipment failure or the sky falling or ...........



Now out of the 5 to 6 hours of income everybody wants good pay, benifits, insurance, workers comp, SS taxes, holidya pay, etc etc etc.....



Then they break equipment, damage work van, damage client vehicles or property.....



The guys that drive my vans get paid as soon as they turn the key. The helpers get paid when the van arrives at the job site and stops when the doors on the van close on the last job.



To those that whine about it will get a list of the work site addresses and are asked to be there at a certain time.
 
I'm an employer, I own the business. I have 40 people on payroll right now as W-2's, 1099's, and some corp to corp's.



I don't pay people to commute to work, I dont think anyone does. If I have them commute to a site from my site, they are paid. If they drive their cars, they get a mileage expense of .50 per mile. If I need them to be somewhere other than their usual contracted job, I let them know the night before.



People in my industry are paid either hourly, daily(10h day), and yearly.
 
Thanks for the input guys.... Im not so sure he runs a shady business... I just dont think anyone that works for him questions anything. I know that alot of the clients (the athletes mostly) tip very very well and I think he hides behind their gratuity as a way to shorten his expenses. All the same I still dont like it...



Thanks again.
 
Get the f#$$ away as fast as you can. AZ is a right to work law but they still have to comply with state and federal law. If you leave their shop you are on the clock



Compliance Assistance By Topic - Travel Time gives you more details



You keep mentioning needing space. I'd go the mobile route and find more than enough work for yourself. A cell phone is all you need !!



Go for it and get away from their jerk off..... Is the name of the shop three words?
 
Usually my help has been my kids but I had a girl helping me out during the holidays a few years back. She got paid for the actual detailing, not riding with me to do the work-I don't get paid for driving to a customer (unless they are way out of my area, then I have a mileage charge) myself, I get paid for the work I do. Personally, I think it is better to pay a flat rate for the work, paying people by the hour sometimes makes them work slower.



In your situation, I'd try to get your own business up and running as quickly as you can.
 
BINGO- "Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), time spent traveling during normal work hours is considered work time and employees must be paid for this travel time. Generally, time spent commuting is not work time. The FLSA is administered and enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the Employment Standards Administration."



The ride to the first job site is commuting. We get our hands wet and the day (clock) starts. When the van doors close on the last job for that day, the clock stops and you get a free ride back to your car.
 
Superior Fine said:
BINGO- "Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), time spent traveling during normal work hours is considered work time and employees must be paid for this travel time. Generally, time spent commuting is not work time. The FLSA is administered and enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the Employment Standards Administration."



The ride to the first job site is commuting. We get our hands wet and the day (clock) starts. When the van doors close on the last job for that day, the clock stops and you get a free ride back to your car.
Click to expand...





^^^^bingo^^^^



i dont get paid driving to the restaurant I work at...why would I pay my help?
 
az57chevy said:
Get the f#$$ away as fast as you can. AZ is a right to work law but they still have to comply with state and federal law. If you leave their shop you are on the clock



Compliance Assistance By Topic - Travel Time gives you more details



You keep mentioning needing space. I'd go the mobile route and find more than enough work for yourself. A cell phone is all you need !!



Go for it and get away from their jerk off..... Is the name of the shop three words?
Click to expand...





The name of the shop is two words...both beginning with the letter "M". Anyhow I dont want to bad mouth them..



I have left the company as of today. I have several clients lined up but have kept them on hold thus far.... The only things I am lacking is a van and generator. I have called a few of them and have adjusted pricing so that I may have electric and water access. Thats all I can do for now... they have all been accepting.



Thanks again gents...
 
If you go with ONR (easy to haul small amount of water in 5 gallon jugs) and tell folks you need an electrical outlet (at least for now), what's to stop you from getting busy right away?
 
velobard said:
If you go with ONR (easy to haul small amount of water in 5 gallon jugs) and tell folks you need an electrical outlet (at least for now), what's to stop you from getting busy right away?
Click to expand...



Agreed. I average a little over 900 cars a year (straight wash jobs, details, exterior only details) and except for one client who prefers traditional washing, they are all cleaned via Optimum No Rinse. I haven't had anyone take issue with me using their electricity either, most of them would rather I do that than run a generator for 2-3 hours anyway.
 
Scottwax said:
Agreed. I average a little over 900 cars a year (straight wash jobs, details, exterior only details) and except for one client who prefers traditional washing, they are all cleaned via Optimum No Rinse. I haven't had anyone take issue with me using their electricity either, most of them would rather I do that than run a generator for 2-3 hours anyway.
Click to expand...



X2 - never any issue using client's water/outlet.



PS: I am glad that you are no longer working for that company.



Phoenix is my favorite city. You are lucky!!!!



Good Luck!!!!!
 
Allred00535 said:
Is ONR suitable for nasty wheel wells and very dirty vehicles?
Click to expand...



2007_Chevy_Corvette_Z06_dirtywheel_before.jpg




2007_Chevy_Corvette_Z06_dirtywheel_after.jpg




If the vehicle is caked in mud, you will have to pre-rinse it but for the dirt and grime that normally accumulates on cars in Arizona, it is more than adequate.
 
Glad you bounced from that company! It brought back memories of working for a detailer when I was in college. Anytime we went into Manhattan (50 miles + each way from the marina he was based out of), he would pay on the way in (No traffic leaving very early so we got there in about 45 min) but would not pay on the way back (Rush hour usually 2+ hours to get back to the marina).



The final straw was when me and another guy stayed at the marina while he and 2 other guys went into Manhattan. On the way back, he made a stop for drugs.....needless to say, I was glad I wasn't in the car and soon quit after that. No way in hell would I risk being in his truck with him getting pulled over and having to be accused of that AND not getting paid to boot! In NY, I believe drugs in car are considered community property so everyone gets the blame. HELL NO!!! If he wanted to do that, fine do it on your own time! This guy had such a great business, too bad he smoked and snorted all the profits.



Start your own lil by lil adding more equipment. Before you know it, you'll be full booked weeks out.
 
For vehicles with a heavier layer of dirt when using ONR, grab yourself a pump pressure sprayer and fill it with ONR solution. You can pre-soak areas to increase the dwell time and soften things up. If it takes more than that, like someone took their 4x4 mudding, it seems like a reasonable request to tell the client you need access to a hose for that portion of the wash.
 
BTW, wanted to say congrats on recognizing a bad situation and getting yourself out of there. Also, best of luck on getting your own operation off the ground. Maybe by next January you can have all the Barrett-Jackson guys lining up to show them what an Autopian can do for their car's value on the auction block!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top