Do any of you other plumbers out there do work for General Contractors? I have done some work in the past few years for General Contractors that are pretty decent guys but recently I have decided not to work for anymore GC’s.
They usually take way too long to pay and they need it done for next to nothing. I’ve had much better luck with residential service work.
We’re a GC and we pay perfectly. We highly value quality subs who perform as promised and consistently treat our clients as their own, because they are yours, at least for that project. Like any business or industry, there are the honest players and then there are the pirates. Look for the signs (no not eye patches or parrots), the quality of the GCs people, workmanship, client base and check them out for claims and complaints. Just do work for the good guys!
I’m also a General Contractor and have to say I’ve heard this story many, many times and like all stories they are 3 sides to it. In this case the General Contractor side, the subcontractor side … and the truth 
I’ve dealt with many subcontractors that bid low on jobs just to get them and then try to submit change orders for things they were supposed to do from the beginning. Or subcontractors that bid low and take forever to complete the job since they try to do it in whatever free time they have.
We have been working for over 13 years with the same group of subcontractors and we have been very successful by applying the folliwng policies: we pay as promised or before, we take care of our subcontractors the same way we expect them to take care of us, we treat them with respect and we tackle every job with the same care no matter how big or small.
I would advise you to check around before taking any job, try to talk to other subs or employees and see how they feel working for that particular GC.
I wish you good luck in all your future endeavors
Unless you have a long standing relationship with a GC, and you have had less headaches working direct for the residential client, you should stay on that path. You need to have a different business model to work for GC’s vs Residential Clientele.
We have had great luck with GC relationships. As stated before. You must make sure you know who you’re working with. Do your homework and check into them. Ask around.
Hope you the best.
We are GC and we take care of our sub contractors on every job, unless the plumber did not get his rough or finish inspections approved for some reason, or did not meet the scheduled time frame, it is spelled out in the contract documents. Some come to the job wanting to take the project over by wanting to do this and that, then they are fired, that goes to all subcontractors. We work on residential & commercial projects, some commercial projects with construction loan, pay once a month based on % of work done in place.
