What to do about this?

[calfbuyer]

I have been pondering this for a while now and decided to post it and see what yall think. I built a new set of pipe pens and a load out chute at my house. My wife has been bugging me to paint them and i have been putting it off. I called a local college kid who i used to help with his show steers and who's dad and i are pretty good friends to come and paint as i figured he could use the extra money. Let me back track and say that i called his dad and asked him if his son needed a little work to which his dad replied "he!! yes what time do you want him there". So the kid shows up and i show him what i want done and i tell him that he can take his time with it as i am in no hurry. I told him that if it were me i would come early in the morning while its cool and work till about noon and go home. Needless to say, he showed up about twice and painted for about 2 hours each time and has not been back in a couple of weeks, every time i try to call him i get his voice mail. If i call his dad about it, his dad may kick his azz as his dad is a good, honest, hard working guy. I don't want to start trouble in the family and i haven't paid him any yet. If he calls me and wants money i am going to tell him that he didn't finish and i wont pay till he does. what do yall think.

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

I assume the kid is over 18 so there's no reason to call the father as you're dealing with an "adult". I'd send the youngster a text and explain that he needs to finish what he started and if he does so within a reasonable time frame you'll be happy to pay him. If he is not interested in finishing the job then he has forfeited his time and will not be paid.

I have a son in college and he rarely checks his voice mail. If I need him I have to text him.

Good luck.

 

[cross_7]

my opinion is you owe him for the time he worked.
call him and leave a voicemail telling how much you owe him and you are getting someone else to finish the job.
it aint your place to teach him about work ethics.
if you want to remains freinds with his dad and him as well.

 

[Ouachita]

Just an opinion here, but I think it was a mistake to tell him " that he can take his time with it as i am in no hurry."
That may be the worse thing you can possibly say to todays youth. Unfortunately, I know this from experience

 

[john250]

Ouchita is right about the "no hurry". Also, you should have hired him directly--not through his dad.
Pay him for what he worked unless you hired him by the job.
It's easy to tell you what you did wrong on this forum. Anyone who says hiring people isn't the hardest part of life is lying or they've never hired anyone.

 

[calfbuyer]

I guess the biggest problem that i have is that i am just disappointed with him. I have the feeling that he has been lying to his dad about working for me and then not even showing up at my place. I was his age once and i understand where he is in life and what is on his mind now. He!!, back then if it wasn't ice cold or have a pair of panties on, i wasn't interested. But i was made to pay my own way and if i told a man i would do something i did it (still do). Hung over or not. His parents are hard working people who have worked for and earned everything that they have and i guess maybe they have given the kids too much and not made them learn to earn it and work for it.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Drop by and give his money to his dad. Needs his azz kicked.

 

[Ryder]

Drop by and give his money to his dad. Needs his azz kicked.

Agreed. Maybe dad will get after him. As has been pointed out it was a mistake to tell him to take his time. At that point he had no leadership which he needed.
But pay the money and get done with it.

 

[CottageFarm]

I guess the biggest problem that i have is that i am just disappointed with him. I have the feeling that he has been lying to his dad about working for me and then not even showing up at my place. I was his age once and i understand where he is in life and what is on his mind now. He!!, back then if it wasn't ice cold or have a pair of panties on, i wasn't interested. But i was made to pay my own way and if i told a man i would do something i did it (still do). Hung over or not. His parents are hard working people who have worked for and earned everything that they have and i guess maybe they have given the kids too much and not made them learn to earn it and work for it.

While I can understand your disappointment, you're also making alot of assumptions.
Maybe he thought you really did mean "no hurry"
Give him one more shot. Leave him a another message, or text him if you're into that, saying that you didn't actually mean that the project deadline was indefinite. Give him a deadline (date) when you would like the work completed. Tell him if you don't hear back from him, you'll deliver his wages (hourly, minimum wage) to his Dad. You'll know where he stands soon enough, and you won't have to do much explaining to his Dad. He'll figure out what happens if it comes to that. :2cents:

 

[Mother73]

young people! as a few have pointed out, text. not sure anybody under 25 will check a voicemail unless they are sure it is about the opposite sex. if you do not want to text, call his dad. don't call dad to tattle, just simply tell his father you were trying to reach the kid, and he is not answering his phone. that way you have not started anything, but the kid will show up on your doorstep.

 

[J&D Cattle]

Drop by and give his money to his dad. Needs his azz kicked.

Agreed, pay him what you owe him and let old Dad handle it. If you and the father weren't friends then I might handle it differently. If it was my son and he was 40 I'd still want to know. I would still fully expect to get my a$$ jacked from my Dad if I didn't keep my word.

 

[HOSS]

I guess the biggest problem that i have is that i am just disappointed with him. I have the feeling that he has been lying to his dad about working for me and then not even showing up at my place. I was his age once and i understand where he is in life and what is on his mind now. He!!, back then if it wasn't ice cold or have a pair of panties on, i wasn't interested. But i was made to pay my own way and if i told a man i would do something i did it (still do). Hung over or not. His parents are hard working people who have worked for and earned everything that they have and i guess maybe they have given the kids too much and not made them learn to earn it and work for it.

Sometimes this turned out to be one and the same :mrgreen:

 

[Limomike]

Drop by and give his money to his dad. Needs his azz kicked.

Best advice .. right there. In the future, be more specific about when you have someone working for you to do the job, and have it all completely understood about how long you expect it to take, the pay, and what the complete job is.

 

[john250]

Drop by and give his money to his dad. Needs his azz kicked.

Best advice .. right there.

No! You went wrong in the first place using Dad as an employment agency. Pay the kid face to face and if there is anything to be said (or heard) say it then.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Pay him for his work and be done with him.

Pay him in front of his dad. It will be a great lesson for the kid. If he's been telling dad that he was at your house painting when he wasn't, this gets you off of the hook with a friend of yours.

Don't hire him again.

Everything else has been said.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

I guess the biggest problem that i have is that i am just disappointed with him. I have the feeling that he has been lying to his dad about working for me and then not even showing up at my place. I was his age once and i understand where he is in life and what is on his mind now. He!!, back then if it wasn't ice cold or have a pair of panties on, i wasn't interested. But i was made to pay my own way and if i told a man i would do something i did it (still do). Hung over or not. His parents are hard working people who have worked for and earned everything that they have and i guess maybe they have given the kids too much and not made them learn to earn it and work for it.

that has'nt changed for me,, you mean there's a cutoff point :???:

 

[Ouachita]

If I was the Dad, I would want to know. There is still the honor of family name. If you're good friends with the dad, it's likely you both have the same values, and he would respect your thoughts. I have to agree with those that say the kid needs his azz kicked. I was raised that way. I know I did things for my Dad to hang his head about, but work ethic never was one of them.

 

[calfbuyer]

Thanks for the input folks, i appreciate it. I think ill just get ahold of him somehow and tell him if he wants to come finish what he's started fine, if not ill just pay him for what he did and ill be done with his little lazy azz.

 

[JSCATTLE]

I hired a neighbors son to help this summer . He's a senior in high school this year . He worked for a couple weeks pretty good . Last weekend we baled about 80 acres . Well Monday he didn't show for work . He came Tuesday and went home after a hour on Wednesday . Well I saw his dad at the store this morning and he asks If work is slowing down . I say no why? Apparently the kid had told him I didn't need him Anymore because he doesn't like working . Needless to say dad wasnt happy . If it were my boy I'd want to know . I'd probably call his dad and say when you talk to your son have him to call me I'd like to settle up with him for the work he's done . And I'm sure he will ask how the work Is going . Just be honest and tell him .

 

[Jogeephus]

Looking through the cracks here it sounds like the father is enabling him to be lazy. I agree he needs to know the facts because his father needs to wean him else he won't amount to squat. This is no bad reflection on the child its just something this boy has yet to be taught. You make a person hungry (for gasoline, movie tickets or whatever) and they will be happy to work. Coddle them and you create an unhappy monster. What I see is a lot of young people don't know how to work. They hate it. They spend their miserable time at work looking at the clock waiting to go home. Its just natural but the best thing a father can do is to teach a child how to work and once they learn this they see the day flies when they stay busy and productive and the leave work with a check and a sense of self satisfaction. JMO