Mozzie
That said it is an eye opener when you see tradesmen earning hourly rates that would compare to doctors and probably double what many engineering contractors etc. might earn. What was once considered the bottom end of the employment ladder (at least by high schools anyway) is now an opportunity to do very well - provided you work your *** off. All I can say is tha t I hope they are saving for a rainy day because like the IT industry, at some point the work will dry up or become less lucrative and there is no point putting your hand out when times get tough. Not all trades are at an advantage though - I have a brother who is a mechanic and I can tell you mechanics earn absolute crap money considering the skill level required.
Just my view on this subject
i don't think a 3 hr minimum charge is unreasonable. Just remember that most of these people have lives and families as well. What value do you put on your home time? These are people who have to put their life on hold, get dragged away from families to fix things. As someone who has had to do callouts i can understand the charges that apply. When you are on call, you can't go away for the weekend. I lived in a remote area and when i was on call i basically couldn't leave the town to go to the next town to do shopping as it was 60km away. no drinking, no camping, no concerts, my life was on hold for the week i was on call
Also the price you get charged, doesn't all go to the tradey. You might get charged $75/hr but he/she see $40/hr before tax.
ok rant over
oh btw i have worked with a lots of different tradies and i have NOT seen any that have looked like that!!!!