First of all, there is a world of diference between helping your Grandmother, and putting up fliers at the laundromat.
There is a difference between a five-minute job after hours, and running a 24/7 "business" off the tailgate of your truck.
Finally, there is a difference between replacing a receptacle, and doing a service change.
There are reasons for contracting laws, and not all of them are there for sinister reasons.
I have known many folks who deliberately seek out the unlicensed. At best, these customers are miserly scum who think thay can get Champaign service at cola prices. At worst, they are scam artists, looking for fresh victims.
You see, they know that the unlicensed guy has full liability, yet there is no obligation to pay him. So they jerk the guy around, and end up getting some work for little more than the price of the materials.
When I did "side work," I made sure that I discussed it with my boss at work; I bought parts through the company (and paid them back). I did it this way because:
-This gave me the protection of working under his license;
-It avoided possible conflicts with what business he wanted to do; and,
-I wasn't about to endanger a full time job for a POS one-shot deal.
You know, the last time I checked, there were no laws that prohibited anyone from getting licensed- even if they had day jobs.
Now, maybe you will say "it's too expensive," and I might even agree with you. But consider this-
How will you finance the parts for a job, buy necessary tools, pay for a 'call back,' etc...if you can't even afford a license?
The only thing wron with the licensing laws is that they fail to address the cheap jackalopes who create a market for the unlicensed guys.
