supervisor (1 Viewer)

paul

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Being a supervisor the worst job in the world according to my last supervisor as he said not only does he get hassle from the scaffs but also he gets hassle from the manager and gets hassle from the clients . Any supervisor on here agree?
 
Yea...

Seriously though I quite like the job but I do a lot more than just the supervision.
One of the hardest jobs for anyone is man management dealing with all the different personalities.
Had 2 guys this morning arguing who was going to sit next to the window in one of the lorries this morning....I mean ffs...what do you say to 2 adults arguing like that!!
 
Yea...

Seriously though I quite like the job but I do a lot more than just the supervision.
One of the hardest jobs for anyone is man management dealing with all the different personalities.
Had 2 guys this morning arguing who was going to sit next to the window in one of the lorries this morning....I mean ffs...what do you say to 2 adults arguing like that!!
The hardest part about being a supervisor is

-Getting the scaffs to do a days work safely,getting the manager to pay for the days work, getting the cleint to sign the v.o. so the manager can pay the scaffs to do the days work.
Not having enough scaffs, having too many scaffs, scaffs taking days off ,scaffs leaving early and not answering their phones.

Having to make a margin when you know the estimator has gone in cheap to get the job to keep the scaffs in work, explaining to the scaffs the estimator's not a Wan**r he's just trying to keep us all in work so get on with it and stop moaning.The other gang aren't making a fortune on that other job, so you can't go there instead.

Explaining to your customers that having a gang of scaffolders on site every day regardless of what there is to do is a lovely idea, but if they planned properly (did their job) we might make a proffit and I wouldn't get a shoeing once a month.

Having to deal with site agents who know nothing and have been employed because they are young and cheep, having to deal with clients,site agents who have been on a 2 day scaffold awareness course and are now experts in everything scaffold related, having to deal with members of the public who take exception to you because "this used to be fields before you lot ruined it" calming down clients because your scaffs broke their window/ cracked their paving slabs/ knocked down their wall/ broke their gutter/ abused their teenage daughter.Calming down the manager for one or all of the above.

Having to deal with various excuses as to why the scaffs are not at work , sick,wife's sick, children are sick, someone's died again, ( had that one before) car broke down, missed my lift, over slept, didn't put my clock forward/back, left my tools at home, went to the wrong site all usually occur after the weekend or a major sporting event.

Apart from the above its a doddle.
 
Dave you must be employin blokes like mine , its like a playground here at 7am who wont work with who
Yeh i act as supervisor to and my man management skills are pretty basic , but i can relate to bein the person that gets all the grief - and they wonder why i go to the pub every night !

---------- Post added at 09:32 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:29 AM ----------

all the same - heard all them excuses too , or the best one
cant come to work today im sick - whys that - oh ive just woke up in bed with my sister
Or the ive fell down a well
The list is endless
 
Dangeruss, sounds exactly like a day out of my life.
Dave ja vu
I'm so glad I'm not a supervisor anymore mate, did it for 5 years 1 year in the west end of London 2 years in the City of London for BFT and 2 years for Palmers in Luton. Far and away the hardest job in scaffolding,I personaly think all scaffolders should spend a month in the office being supervisors then they might not act like the ***** they are sometimes (me included in that when I was on the tools) its the only promotion you get with less pay more responsibility, a good friend of mine who was a supervisor for Mills once told me that "if your name's not on the toilet door, your not doing your job right" he was right . Good luck to you and don't take it to personaly .
 
Two years ago my supervisor was off on holiday and he asked me to take the seat for a trip . I was only looking after two squads on a construction project on the rig . I was never so glad to get back on the tools , non stop moaning and basically never happy . It did give me a little respect for the position but not worth it .
 
you've all forgot to mention the stick you get off the mrs when you eventually get home especially when you've got to work all weekend for sod all doing the end of month valuations while the managers away on an all expenses paid weekend playing golf with the clients
 
You end up feeling like a babysitter half of the time,but you have to draw the line at ar5e wiping,rewarding when things go right,but frustrating when the 5hit starts flying,got to get a good relationship with the lads,which can be difficult at times,as a lot dont see you as one of the boys anymore..
 
Lot of sense there Daz,when I first took on the job as supervisor I tried my best to be honest with the lads and treat them all fairly,they abused the trust I put in them and would drop you in the *hit if they could.I hardened up after a couple of months and earned a reputation as a "hard b*stard but Fair"Did the job for five years 1975/1980 before moving on to a post as contract manager.I learnt a lot as a supervisor and on the whole enjoyed it You cannot be one of the lads and thier supervisor, it's one or the other
 
Just realised I may have made my ex supervisors life hell, for what it's worth, sorry mate !
 
Interesting posts , im sure theres more great storys to be told especially concerning excuses for turning in late ect or the great monday club
 
I had one scaff on a site on his own,moving hop-up brackets and erecting small runs of bricky lifts.There was never a full days work but the customer agreed to pay 4 hours a day daywork to make the wage up on condition that the scaffolder stayed on site from 8am to 4pm.
The scaff could not get his arse out of bed in a morning and was turning in at 8.15,8.30 sometimes 9.00 or 9.30 when I went to get the daywork signed off the agent would not sign it I would then have to haggle and make out a new V.O.
I read the scaff the riot act and told him to ring the office (this was before every one had a mobile)if he was not going to be on site for 8am
I went on the site a couple of days later no scaff at 8.45 he wandered on-site about 9.15.he explained his being late saying "the bus had crashed"I asked if he had rung the office he replied "the bus crashed into the phone box"I just shook my head in dismay,think he lasted another week before I outed him
 
I had one scaff on a site on his own,moving hop-up brackets and erecting small runs of bricky lifts.There was never a full days work but the customer agreed to pay 4 hours a day daywork to make the wage up on condition that the scaffolder stayed on site from 8am to 4pm.
The scaff could not get his arse out of bed in a morning and was turning in at 8.15,8.30 sometimes 9.00 or 9.30 when I went to get the daywork signed off the agent would not sign it I would then have to haggle and make out a new V.O.
I read the scaff the riot act and told him to ring the office (this was before every one had a mobile)if he was not going to be on site for 8am
I went on the site a couple of days later no scaff at 8.45 he wandered on-site about 9.15.he explained his being late saying "the bus had crashed"I asked if he had rung the office he replied "the bus crashed into the phone box"I just shook my head in dismay,think he lasted another week before I outed him


^^^:nuts:
 
You also must have the following qualities, as a minimum standard:

• Marriage guidance counsellor
• Referee
• Agony Aunt
• Detective
• Mother
• Bank Manager
• Nurse maid
• Big brother
• Chauffeur
• Teacher (maths & English)
• Juggler
• Clairvoyant

Fecking Superman has nothing on the scaffold supervisor
 
If anyones done the smsts or ssts courses you will also realise that if the **** does ever hit the fan, your the one thats gonna take the flak.

Dave.
 
Site management safety training scheme (we do the iosh instead)
 
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