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I’m gearing up to hire some framing help later this spring and was wondering how others go about evaluating job applicants knowledge and skills before hiring?
I’ve often read about the “good old days” when carpentry applicants would asked to build a set of sawhorses as a pre-hiring test. But frankly, I doubt many guys who’ve been framing houses for a decade could build a pair of horses worth a hoot. And what would I do with all the rejects anyway?
I’m curious what the rest of you do to evaluate the skills of job applicants? What tests or questions do you use to separate the wheat from the chaffe?
If you’ve never hired employees before, what tests or questions have you been asked when applying for jobs in the past? Have you ever been put off by line of questioning in a job interview before?
I’m hiring framing carpenters, but any trades experiences would be interesting. Let’s hear your stories.
Dick Streff
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Be prepared to hear the same story over and over.
I've spent hundreds (possibly a thousand) of hours interviewing on the phone and in person.
It's a job, and a lousy one at that.
Here's my take on it.
I jot down notes on every past employer that the applicant can remember, and the amount of time that they were employed.
Then, I ask for details as to what, they did for each. I ask why they left, etc. I also try to make sense out of the total amount of time that they claim they have worked with the amount of time that they worked for each employer. Often the amounts don't add up. Not good for that potential employee.
I ask about individual skills associated with framing i.e. roofs, stairs, pine, etc.
I ask about tools.
I ask about transportation.
I ask about availability.
Then, since I already have a feeling about the applicant, I ask about salary demands.
I then make a decision to: hire, invite for a jobsite interview, not hire ever, maybe hire later.
Here's some types that you should not hire: Carpenters with many years experience that ask for low wages. Those without transportation. Those without a phone. Those that need cash. Those that do not have any hand tools. Those that do not intend to give their present employer at least one week notice.
I rarely check references. Maybe I should start.
Blue
*Thanks Blue, that's much like I intended to do initially and you've given some me some extra things to think about also. It's a pretty tight labor pool around here right now, so I'm expecting that "beggars can't be choosers". But I'd like to weed out the real duds before they ever show up onsite.In a related question where have you, (and any others for that matter), been getting your job prospects from? I've run classified ads before and I'm not sure if its the most fruitful way to get good help. I've also picked up a part-timer from the tech school's job board. I'm doing this hiring and setting up shop in a brand new town, so my other connections are pretty minimal at this point. Any other suggestions where to hunt up quality help?
*I ask pretty much the same Q's as blue.When a gut gets past those I hit him with a few standard questions;1. R.O.s of standard doors,i.e. 2-6 6-82. easy math like 6/12 roof w/10foot run what is the rise3. minimum rise and run on stairs.4. here is a framing square, mark a rafter tail with 8/12 pitch, 7inch heel, and a 16 inch tail5. other simple math like 6x7, best answer on that one was"I'm gonna need a piece of paper for that"good luck jim
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I'm gearing up to hire some framing help later this spring and was wondering how others go about evaluating job applicants knowledge and skills before hiring?
I've often read about the "good old days" when carpentry applicants would asked to build a set of sawhorses as a pre-hiring test. But frankly, I doubt many guys who've been framing houses for a decade could build a pair of horses worth a hoot. And what would I do with all the rejects anyway?
I'm curious what the rest of you do to evaluate the skills of job applicants? What tests or questions do you use to separate the wheat from the chaffe?
If you've never hired employees before, what tests or questions have you been asked when applying for jobs in the past? Have you ever been put off by line of questioning in a job interview before?
I'm hiring framing carpenters, but any trades experiences would be interesting. Let's hear your stories.
Dick Streff