Guy got fired at work

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As I've occasionally mentioned, I'm a plumbing foreman for a mechanical company. Company is neither huge nor tiny, with a total payroll of around 160. I've just about finished the job that I've been working on for the past 6 months, and when that happens, a foreman is often bounced around a little, as skilled labor, until he starts his next job. So I went to a job where a hotel is being built.

On my second day at this job, the foreman asked me to take a look at some cast iron pipe that needed to be inspected. He said that it had failed inspection, and needed someone to get it ready to pass. It turned out that the story was somewhat more involved. I went to the other side of the building and talked to the testing crew. "How many rooms are we inspecting?"

"Thirteen."

"How many do you have under test?"

"Two."

OK, I'm beginning to see the problem. To inspect waste pipe, whether cast iron, plastic, or whatever, the procedure is to fill it to ten feet above the area that is being inspected. This puts close to 5 psig of pressure on the low points, much more than a waste pipe should ever experience in service.

As it turns out, the testing crew, consisting of two supposedly skilled (one journeyman) plumbers and two laborers had been trying to get this area under test for the past eight days. Knowing it wasn't ready, they tried to Bravo Sierra their way through the inspection. Didn't work, the inspector wasn't born yesterday.

The foreman asked me if we could inspect the next day. I said yes. Then a number of superintendents and other mucky-mucks asked me the same question. Same answer. The foreman flooded me with manpower, and we got started. 6 hours later, we were ready.

Inspector came, we walked, he signed.

The guy running the previous inspection crew got his walking papers. Why? Not because he had trouble with getting the system ready. Because he couldn't bring himself to admit that he was having trouble, he kept promising that he would be ready, and finally, he allowed the inspection to take place knowing it wasn't ready. In other words, pride, or perhaps hubris is the word.

I was able to finish it off in six hours, not because I'm some sort of superman, or God's gift to the plumbing trade, or something like that, but because I've done it before, and I know how to do it in an orderly fashion. Plenty of guys could have done the same thing, but apparently not the guy who was doing it. In fact, after 30+ years in the trade, there would be no excuse if I couldn't get it done.

We all occasionally get in over our heads. Even though I've been a plumber for most of my adult life, sometimes something comes along that I haven't seen before. I have to ask for help. The guy who got canned wasn't really a bad guy, in fact, if he had brought his rhetoric down a notch or two (you would have thought he was the King of Plumbers), he would probably still have a job.
 
I'm not understanding what you did that the other guy didn't do. Maybe he already had the necessary time and manpower to complete the job but didn't get it done on time.

You write very well.
 
Everything the OP said fits.

The deficient plumber burnt up time and money and doubtless made somebody up the chain answer for his inefficiency.

It sounds like the right guy got shown the door.

Regarding him being God's gift to the trade (or whatever exactly the OP said); my Dad had an expression for those guys.
"A person can be good but a big mouth is still a big mouth". Sounds like he was one.
 
Employee was lazy and didn't do the right thing knowing it was not ready for inspection.
That 'good enough' attitude really sucks in any industry/ career field.

Was the guy upset he was fired ?
 
Originally Posted By: Leo99
I'm not understanding what you did that the other guy didn't do. Maybe he already had the necessary time and manpower to complete the job but didn't get it done on time.

You write very well.


Thanks. What I did was put the steps in order, and direct people to perform those steps. I got my own hands dirty, too.
 
Originally Posted By: Kira
Regarding him being God's gift to the trade (or whatever exactly the OP said); my Dad had an expression for those guys.
"A person can be good but a big mouth is still a big mouth". Sounds like he was one.

Good one, Kira. I have similar bits of wisdom passed down from both older and younger acquaintances that stick with me. My father-in-law (RIP)once told me that you can fool people for quite a while, but eventually the truth comes out (regarding personal abilities/qualities).

In the OP's case, it seems that the employee's trust was lost due his inability to just be truthful and maybe a bit humble. Do what is necessary to get the job done, even if it means admitting some weaknesses and seeking help. You get much more respect being truthful. And, it is very liberating not hiding behind a false persona.

Thanks for sharing this story Stelth.
 
Originally Posted By: Leo99
You write very well.

I agree, OP's post was easy to follow. Lots of paragraphs. When someone writes 500 words in a single paragraph, I can't bring myself to read it.

BTW, I respect plumbers, its a tough tough occupation. I know you get lots of physical or mental "headaches".
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Kira


Regarding him being God's gift to the trade (or whatever exactly the OP said); my Dad had an expression for those guys.
"A person can be good but a big mouth is still a big mouth". Sounds like he was one.


My favorite one is: If I could buy him for what he is worth, and then sell him for what he HE THINKS he is worth...
I would be an Frigging MILLIONAIRE!
 
Originally Posted By: Kira
Everything the OP said fits.

The deficient plumber burnt up time and money and doubtless made somebody up the chain answer for his inefficiency.

It sounds like the right guy got shown the door.

Regarding him being God's gift to the trade (or whatever exactly the OP said); my Dad had an expression for those guys.
"A person can be good but a big mouth is still a big mouth". Sounds like he was one.


Right. Somebody pretty far up the chain got a call asking what sort of circus he was running. That same somebody called the job foreman and asked who was running the test crew. When told, he said, “Send him to the office and tell him to see me.”

Yikes.
 
Every field has it. Lots of people who are only where they are because they know how to blow smoke. But sooner or later it gets put to test and you see how knows their stuff.
 
Originally Posted By: Stelth
The guy who got canned wasn't really a bad guy, in fact, if he had brought his rhetoric down a notch or two (you would have thought he was the King of Plumbers), he would probably still have a job.


I wonder if anyone has cared enough to tactfully explain to him his flaws......

otherwise it'll be wash, rinse, repeat..... job after job after job......
 
Originally Posted By: Stelth
Somebody pretty far up the chain got a call asking what sort of circus he was running.


yeah..... that's never good
 
One of the first things I say to new hires who are working for me is that I want someone smart enough to say
“I don’t know”.

I have asked our project superintendents what trade they think is the hardest and plumbing is the most frequent answer. Congratulations on your position and your wisdom through experience.

Fewer things are worse than going through an inspection when you know you’re not ready, especially when there are people counting on you to make your inspection so they can follow you with their work.
 
Originally Posted By: Linctex
Originally Posted By: Stelth
The guy who got canned wasn't really a bad guy, in fact, if he had brought his rhetoric down a notch or two (you would have thought he was the King of Plumbers), he would probably still have a job.


I wonder if anyone has cared enough to tactfully explain to him his flaws......

otherwise it'll be wash, rinse, repeat..... job after job after job......


I guess many jobs are a lot simpler than the corporate world, where getting canned for work performance issues can be a long and daunting process for management.
 
It pays to have hardworking people who know what the heck they are doing.

The same thing happened in my current position. 3 guys before me lasted under 6 months in this job. They were overwhelmed, couldn't keep up with the work, never said anything to administration until they were really behind, then quit or were fired. I came in, realized the state of the environment, told everyone involved upfront what resources were necessary in order to turn things around, and I have fixed probably 80% of the problems so far. It wasn't easy, but it is the difference between someone who comes in and gets things done and wants to improve, and someone who just collects a paycheck.
 
Originally Posted By: JTK
Originally Posted By: Linctex
Originally Posted By: Stelth
The guy who got canned wasn't really a bad guy, in fact, if he had brought his rhetoric down a notch or two (you would have thought he was the King of Plumbers), he would probably still have a job.


I wonder if anyone has cared enough to tactfully explain to him his flaws......

otherwise it'll be wash, rinse, repeat..... job after job after job......


I guess many jobs are a lot simpler than the corporate world, where getting canned for work performance issues can be a long and daunting process for management.


Depends on the corporation. All of the corporations I have worked for people have been considered "at will" employees. They could come in, hand you the papers, and off you went on the same day. The world of state government was totally different where it took 10 years to fire someone.
 
What does "Bravo Sierra" mean? Is that anything like an A&P mechanic (Spartan grad) doing a P-51 inspection on an airplane? Parker used to make a P-5i fountain pen so the reference to P-51 meant someone was simply signing off on the inspection rather than doing it.
 
My former boss used to say: “Nobody gets in trouble for having problems.
But if you have problems and don’t ask for help, there will be trouble for you” …
 
My favorite saying about the corporate world:

“Make a $10,000 mistake and they’ll fire you.
Make a $1,000,000 mistake and they’ll make you Vice President.”
 
I wonder if the person who was fired ever realized that his real sin, in the context of a complex project, was holding up all the other trades and processes which were dependent on his task? And then compounding it by not alerting the higher ups, therefore putting them in a situation of looking incompetent?
 
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