Labor rates
 

Okay guys and gals, what kind of labor rates are your mechanics charging in your areas? Also, do any of you know if the mechanics working on a commission is pretty standard in the marine industry?

The marina I deal with is near LOTO They get 69.00 an hour. Not sure on commission, but they always take care of me and have gone above and beyond.

I'm in the habbit of NOT charging myself an hourly rate. I could never afford me!!!:D I do most of my own work.

When Crazyhorse helps me (or maybe I'm helping him with my own motor??) he charges me beer by the 12 pack for his wife!!!

Mike,

I've had it with the mechanics around here. Top $, marginal work, hell they can't even clean up after themselves. I'm in the middle of building a storage building and am going to go back to working on these things myself. It will be nice to actually have a place to work in for a change. Of course you realize that the Michigan OSO brothern will be getting some phone calls....but I'll make sure we have a big fridge in the warehouse:D

Oh, BTW one of the big deciding factors is the now $82/hr labor rate and the mechanics work on commission (can we say...screw the consumer?):mad:

I TOTALLY understand!!! Why don't you build that building up this way.....I'll work on your stuff in exchange for letting me work on mine there too!! LOL!!!

I'm fortunate that some of my friends (mostly OSO'ers!!) have places I can work on my stuff. I live in the city.....can't even build a barn here. I'm waiting for my garage to fall down (it's old, and I bump into it with my bumper whenever possible!!!) so I can build a new one!! Bigger, better, and heated!!!

150 to 200 usd per hour here in Turkey.

Mike, Seriously, If we didn't have kids in such a great school system that they really enjoy, the west side of the state would be our choice but for the forseeable future I think were over here. It takes us right at 2 hrs to get to GH or Muskegon so thats not too bad.

The warehouse is 3400 sf and I'll have a small section of it for office. As soon as it gets done (November) I'm yanking the engine out, and firing up the sleds:D

No charge :D :D we do all our own work :p

Labor rate is $85/hr, and I always ask how many hours of labor before each job and if it takes them longer, they still only charge for what they quoted.

I have a friend who runs his own shop. Merc master technician and he previously charged 50 an hour. Merc forced him to raise his rates so as not to undercut other shops in the area. He is still backed up 2 to 3 weeks.
Tim T.

Naples Marina, in Naples ME.

$55.00/hr

CHARGE???


$0-- Just ask Waterfoul,Whitey and Morrie (his friend),BGIII,and others. They don't even give me beer.:p

Tinkerboater, please delete that post, I don't want merc to get their panties in a bunch for you not charging enough:D

Griff,

That's the way it should be! But some places you ask for a quote and they hand you a big suprise (inflated bill) when you come to pick up your stuff! Not even a courtesy phone call that it might be a extra before they do the work. If it takes longer for them to do the job than what they quoted you on then THEY should "eat it"...not the consumer!

I'm going to be general as I can here, but here's an example:

Business: "Geeze, I forgot to tell you that it took me longer to do this stuff and it's going to be X amount of $$$ more." :p

Customer: "WOAH! :eek: What's THIS? (customer looking at his bill and choking on it) Hey listen, I asked you for a quote BEFORE the work was even started! What's going on here?" :confused:

Business: "well, I had to put more time and work into your stuff so the price went up!" :D (hoping that the customer will fall for it)

Customer: "Yeah but that's not right! :mad: I asked for a quote BEFORE the work was even started so that I knew how much I was spending on this project!---Not some open contract where you just charge what you like without consulting with me first! :mad: And now you hand me this big suprise of a bill and just expect me to pay it right???" :rolleyes:

Business: "Well Mr. Customer, (business dude trying to act like he's a professional business man) we DO have your stuff here in our fine, reputable place of business. You'll have to pay for it first before you can leave with it---company policy you know!' :p

Customer: "Well Mr. Business, not a problem! ;) Let me just reach into my pocket and throw the CASH at you----I mean after all, I have a money tree in my back yard and it just grows there! Yep! It just keeps falling on my lawn and making a mess so I'll just hand you bunch because after all, just because I own a boat I can certainly afford it----no budgets for this guy---nope! Got so much money I can't seem to get rid of it fast enough!" :rolleyes:

My point being, no matter how nice they are to you or how much they sweet talk you; get a QUOTE, get it in WRITING, have them sign it and do NOT pay in advance unless it's for parts! And make sure you get a receipt for any money put down towards the parts and a copy of the invoice of work quoted on BEFORE you leave and any other time you come in and leave any money---ALWAYS get a copy of a receipt/invoice or work being performed.

Labor rates !
 

We're a Platinum Dealer with 4 boat lines and our labor rate is now at $75.00 an hour.

Pwrbt33
Offshore Performance
Grasonville, Md

$90.00 to $100.00 per hour here on long island,ny

It's been my experience that you don't get what you pay for in the marine industry here in west Michigan. Marinas regularly estimate lower than the actual bill turns out to be. The workmanship tends to be sloppy as well as the overall condition of the boat when returned to the customer. All that being said, I HAVE seen some very good work come out of Skipper Bud's in Coopersville. I would probably take a boat there for service if I needed to (and could afford to).

Playn,
Where have you been taking your stuff...$85 and hour ?!?!?
There are only 4 mechanics I would trust with my stuff. And I don't think a single one charges $85 and hour. And they don't work on commission.
If your interested I can give you some numbers.
I actually have told my one friend that he should charge MORE !

That is exactly why we started a boat business. $90-120 an hour here and they don't even fix the problems. We charge $75, and that still blows me away.

ah yes;
forgot to mention : they also do not fix the problem here in Turkey
:)