No kidding Daryl. We learned to live off of monkey pricks and what we could find.
next project in the Keys, you can hire me, I'm a short drive or the fast boat. $26 per day anywhere near Key west this time of year isn't going to go too far.
But, I think you're taking good care of them, so if they are happy, all is good.
Andy
Mr. Abbitt
Have to admit I'm wondering how a firm from NW Illinois ended up doing a survey project in the Keys...
Do you have a Florida office?
I made a ton of per diem money in Alaska, since there is nothing to do but work and no where to spend money anyway. lived in a tent for a few weeks, and a shipping container too.. loved it.
Mr. Abbitt
we are performing construction layout for a private company on a private site, under the watchful eye of a licensed professional engineer, within the regulations of the State of Florida
the assignment is a continuation of similar work in parts of the country that our client requests our talents, as long as we can do so within the limits of the particular State jurisdictional regulations
Mr. Abbitt
As RADU would say, good on you. Quality and a good working relationship is it's own marketing.
Which explains the rapid decline in the Oklahoma monkey population.
LOL PL.
Are those costs built into the proposal?
by jwabbitt...
...I am fighting thoughts by others that the 2 man crew are on a vacation...
Sounds like you have volunteers to fill in so your travellers can come home for a spell.
I spent many weekends, just as Deral describes, and totally agree with his post.
Mr. Abbitt
FYI....
Land Surveying and Mapping, Chapter 472, Florida Statutes Page 1 of 18
472.003 Persons not affected by ss. 472.001-472.037.--
Sections 472.001-472.037 do not apply to:
(1) Any surveyor and mapper working as a salaried employee of
the United States Government when engaged in work solely for
the United States Government.
(2) A registered professional engineer who takes or contracts for
professional surveying and mapping services incidental to her or
his practice of engineering
AND who delegates such surveying and
mapping services to a registered professional surveyor and
mapper qualified within her or his firm
OR contracts for such
professional surveying and mapping services to be performed by
others who are registered professional surveyors and mappers
under the provisions of ss. 472.001-472.037.
$28 per day + vehicle + paid for room. If I worked Saturday, they paid for the room on Sunday, but no per diem.
Paid as a bonus later seems a good way to go. Setting a company policy which goes beyond what the vast majority of companies do may be something you don't want to do. But if these guys are doing a good job and not costing you money by getting in trouble after hours, they deserve some extra reward once the job is done.
When one is isngle and unattached, assignments like this are great. You can save your paychecks and live on per diem while seeing parts of the country you may otherwise never have the opportunity to see. But that all changes when you have family back home. Extended travel, especially to places like this, tropical beach destinations, can present hazards for the family man which were considered opportunities when he was single.
If you are concerned about them getting bored, getting thmselves in trouble during downtime, or souring on the company (the previously mentioned bonus should mitigate this somewhat), consider sprining for some entertainment opportunities like a fishing trip, football tickets, etc.
$26/day for meals seems low. In these parts, $40/day is standard and many crew members have trouble keeping it in those limits. You may want to revisit whether $26 is a realistic number, but other than that, I see nothing wrong with your company's policy as constituted.
As for the attitude from other management that you are paying your guys to be on vacation, that sounds like it's coming from engineers and administrators who rarely have to travel and produce at the same time (going to conferences don't count). That attitude conveys a decided lack of respect for your travelling crew's real family responsibilities back home and for the work they are performing and associated profit they are generating for the company. IMO, they should be ready to recognize those factors or shut the f*** up, put their boots on, get their fat lazy @sses down there and "vacation" in the same manner as your guys who are there, not returning home for several weeks. Let's see if they produce, if their wives don't get resentful and jealous, if they stay out of trouble, if they come back with great tans and good attitudes.
I'm starting to rant. Guess it's time to stop and hit "OK - Submit"
JIm
Is it possible to negotiate weekend work with your client? or is site locked down?
Here in OZ employees get time and half and double time rates for over 37.5 hours worked including week ends.
When I go north I work 7 days a week. Admittedly solo as I could never bear sitting around doing nothing knowing that I had a mountain of work needing to be done before being able to return to base.
BTW when I was employed (almost in another life LOL) and went Bush we always worked 7 days and were paid accordingly.
If unable to work on weekend and you choose they stay I would have thought it reasonable to pay 7 days for food and accommodation as obviously a cheaper option than traveling. At least these days family communication can be maintained through the internet.
Perhaps if away for month even if can not work weekends that you give off rest of return day and the following day for "family home day" to allow catch up on family business etc that would be normally done in their normal home time .
RADU
Mr. Abbitt
Andy,
I appreciate the note on Florida Statutes.
We researched the requirements prior to accepting the work.
We are under the supervision of a Florida licensed engineer, performing "engineering surveys and inspection of construction for the purpose of determining in general if the work is proceeding in compliance with drawings and specifications".
I never wish to practice my profession outside the boundaries of the laws of any state. I have been an active participant in my own state for the past 36 years, 22 as a professional.
In each state we have to consider subcontracting the work to a local firm if I am not properly licensed, and whether or not it makes financial sense to do so.
The replies by everyone are helpful, and I hope to be able to report back with changes made to reflect the needs of the employee in such cases.
Mr. Abbitt
I can understand that, but unless your engineer has his/her own in house PSM or contracts with a PSM, I don't think you are within the state regulations. How else would you read the quoted statute? The list of people NOT subject to Chapter 472 Florida Administrative Code is pretty clear.
We use the Federal Per Diem Rates, cost of the room, plus $46.00 per day for normal cost areas. Some areas are higher. The crew gets that 7 days per week, as long as they are onsite. Overtime and Weekend work is encouraged. We usually work 7 days a week, 12 hours a day, on 30 day assignemnts, with full pay during travel time at the beginning and end of a project. After the 4th day we also pay for laundry expenses.
Back in my travelling days [mid-late 80s] I was given per diem of around $25/day regardless if I ate or not. I usually skipped breakfast and lunch and opted for the huge supper. Actually I could exceed the limit so long as I provided a receipt. Rooms, car rentals, laundry for stays over a week, etc. all paid for. I had an unlimited company card to use. If I was gone 3 weeks or longer I was allowed to fly home every 2 weeks for the weekend if I wanted. If I stayed as opposed to flying I was given pretty free reign [within reason] to do what I wanted - movies, San Diego Zoo (which I did twice), go to a ball game, go out on the town (which I often did) and stuff like that.