Welcome to West Virginia where quality electrical work is a lost art. I have had a WV Electricians license for 30 years now and I am more convinced than ever that no one knows how to wire anything anymore.What makes things worse no one really cares. Just as long as you have the correct voltage to it thats all that makes any diference.As long as you have $50 each year you are qualified to do electrical work .Code classes who really cares ,working without a license who cares no one ever checks them please tell me it is better in your area. THANKS HYPRESS
You might think so in NY, wouldn't you?
Not all areas by a long shot!
Hypress:
i am not going to brag anything in here who or whatever is best all we will say in here is no one is perfect at all no matter what corner of globe you are from it dont matter if from usa or european or austrila area great eastern area really it dont matter at all the only thing i dont like is the diy's whom they dont understand the code and safety at all
that all i have to say in here
I have plenty to say about the sad situation in our industry, when it comes to the general shape of education, workmanship, and pride. I will keep this part short though - for now.
Complaining gets us nowhere, unless .... we do something about it. Being reactive, as most of our industry seems to be, will not cut it anymore. Proactive - that is what it is going to take to move us along in the positive direction. There are a lot of very good people in this industry, and we need to move in a positive way and start using them in favor of improving our industry.
The 'older' guys who may say the hell with it, can be our best source of encouragement and strength, a good way to end your careers and help an industry that really needs the help.
More later ... maybe.
Pierre
Hypress,
Welcome.
As a fellow Mountaineer, I can't find anything in your statements to argue with. You did forget to mention that a WV Masters License isn't worth the paper it is printed on.
However, things may be changing, though you would need a micrometer to make an accurate measurement and be sure.
WV now requires licensing of electrical inspectors. This doesn't apply to any employee of a government body. There is a continuiing education requirement to keep this license. The assistant state fire marshal in charge of this program feels that eventually the CE requirement will also apply to electricians licenses. If you think continuing education is a good idea, you should contact him, his name is Anthony Carrico, Field Deputy Fire Marshal with the Regulatory Division of the State Fire Marshal's Office, 304-558-2191
As far as that $50 fee is concerned, blame your state legislators. They keep failing to fully fund the Fire Marshal, so most of that $50 fee goes to paying for other important work. BTW, the inspectors license is $100 a year. As you should well know, in WV a license is just a tax by another name.
Factoid- 12,000+ licensed electricians in WV, 5,000 were grandfathered.
Sorry for the long screed, but Hypress has touched a nerve that has bothered me for a long time.
Tom
TELL IT ALL TOM TELL IT ALL
This same sentiment has been voiced many, many times by Virgil Kelly (Sparky66WV) since ECN's inception.
It must be very frustrating to have high personal work ethics and try to do a quality job when all you get in return is told that some carpenter in the next town will do the job for 1/2 the price. The bottom line is that the customer's light bulb lights up either way, and even though it may be liable to burn the building down, an unknowing customer is opting for the same apparent result.
My hat's off to you guys that take keep going and do a good job despite the obstacles. You can take Pride in your work, and Pride in yourselves. Keep it up...S