Hello. In about a month, we will start building a new single-family house. Other houses in the development are being constructed by the same general contractor. We recently visited the site where some of the others have already started building. I was a bit confused when I tried to talk to two construction workers, but they didn’t understand a word. Now I wonder how our site manager (general contractor) plans to communicate with them. What have your experiences been when the craftsmen have no German language skills? If the builder goes bankrupt, I also imagine it would be difficult to hold subcontractors based in Ukraine or elsewhere accountable for defects. Or am I overthinking this?
I don’t believe that Polish, Spanish, or any other workers are too incompetent to do the job well, leading to poorer quality work.
The real question is whether it’s justifiable in good conscience to bypass local craftsmen simply to avoid meeting their higher wage demands—which, in turn, reflect the local cost of living. Personally, I feel uneasy paying dumping prices for quality workmanship here. Moreover, I prefer having someone locally available in case I have questions or defects arise one or two years down the line. Local craftsmen can’t afford to disappear, and from my experience, they provide good support.
This was important to us. We chose a small, regional company that pays its employees fairly. Their workforce includes Romanians and an Italian, but they still receive the standard local wages, which I believe is right and fair.
What worries me is a construction crew from some far-off place doing the work for a fraction of the price, living in containers on site during the build phase, and then being sent back home. Sure, they earn well relative to their home countries’ conditions, but what about the local tradespeople? I think we have a certain responsibility here. You can’t just buy everything at rock-bottom prices with a penny-pinching mindset and then be surprised when there’s no local workforce left for emergencies.
A good example: my mother has always used a local heating engineer. Last winter, the heating system broke down—Murphy’s Law, of course, on a Saturday evening. Outside it was below freezing, and inside the heating wasn’t working. Our longtime heating engineer came out that very Saturday evening and installed a temporary solution for the weekend—so Mom was warm again. The heating firm from some distant location might have installed the system properly and performed regular maintenance, but none of them would have stopped by on a Saturday night to save a longtime customer from a cold weekend.
The real question is whether it’s justifiable in good conscience to bypass local craftsmen simply to avoid meeting their higher wage demands—which, in turn, reflect the local cost of living. Personally, I feel uneasy paying dumping prices for quality workmanship here. Moreover, I prefer having someone locally available in case I have questions or defects arise one or two years down the line. Local craftsmen can’t afford to disappear, and from my experience, they provide good support.
This was important to us. We chose a small, regional company that pays its employees fairly. Their workforce includes Romanians and an Italian, but they still receive the standard local wages, which I believe is right and fair.
What worries me is a construction crew from some far-off place doing the work for a fraction of the price, living in containers on site during the build phase, and then being sent back home. Sure, they earn well relative to their home countries’ conditions, but what about the local tradespeople? I think we have a certain responsibility here. You can’t just buy everything at rock-bottom prices with a penny-pinching mindset and then be surprised when there’s no local workforce left for emergencies.
A good example: my mother has always used a local heating engineer. Last winter, the heating system broke down—Murphy’s Law, of course, on a Saturday evening. Outside it was below freezing, and inside the heating wasn’t working. Our longtime heating engineer came out that very Saturday evening and installed a temporary solution for the weekend—so Mom was warm again. The heating firm from some distant location might have installed the system properly and performed regular maintenance, but none of them would have stopped by on a Saturday night to save a longtime customer from a cold weekend.
L
Leon1305119 Mar 2019 12:02My point is not that Polish workers are bad... It's about expecting that on a construction site where 12 people are working, at least one person speaks some German in case questions arise.
I have never spoken badly about any Polish worker; some of the reactions here are somewhat concerning.
I have never spoken badly about any Polish worker; some of the reactions here are somewhat concerning.
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wurmwichtel19 Mar 2019 13:15Pädda schrieb:
...What experiences have you had when the contractors don’t speak German?... Bad!
But it was mainly due to our general contractor, who thinks very highly of himself and always blames others.
Although verbal communication with the construction workers was impossible, I made it clear to them that vapor barriers belong beneath the masonry and that I did not want to find horizontal joints nearly 1cm (0.4 inches) high between the aerated concrete blocks.
This led to extremely high adrenaline levels from the specialists here and there (temper tantrums), but what can you do.
They simply had to start over several times.
By the way:
Construction workers without German language skills do not have to be worse than local specialists, even though this stereotype exists.
After all, German specialists were responsible for well over 90% of the total 117 defects in our house.
Climbee schrieb:
Personally, I just feel uneasy paying dumping prices for quality craftsmanship.I don’t feel that way. The disadvantages of the EU and open borders are supposed to be endured by the average person, but when it comes to the few benefits, they should question their conscience first? That doesn’t add up for me. It’s one or the other.
Especially since local tradespeople now buy materials themselves from Poland and other countries, only to resell them to me at a high price.
Polish companies are not inherently cheaper than firms from, for example, East Western Pomerania. It’s just that they often excel at certain tasks, such as brick cladding, windows, or landscaping. For heating and electrical work, I would prefer local professionals because of better service.
I wouldn’t automatically favor Polish companies either, but given the shortage of skilled workers in our sector and the current construction boom, a bit of competition from abroad is necessary and beneficial. Regarding language: Poles speak Polish, Romanians Romanian, and so on. However, companies that compete internationally always have a contact person who speaks at least English.
I’m referring to companies, not independent crews who only work for cash. By the way, those also exist locally in Germany. I know one near me that builds houses at a fixed price without issuing invoices and only accepts cash at a competitive rate—if that’s what someone wants... I didn’t want that. Karsten
I wouldn’t automatically favor Polish companies either, but given the shortage of skilled workers in our sector and the current construction boom, a bit of competition from abroad is necessary and beneficial. Regarding language: Poles speak Polish, Romanians Romanian, and so on. However, companies that compete internationally always have a contact person who speaks at least English.
I’m referring to companies, not independent crews who only work for cash. By the way, those also exist locally in Germany. I know one near me that builds houses at a fixed price without issuing invoices and only accepts cash at a competitive rate—if that’s what someone wants... I didn’t want that. Karsten
Nordlys schrieb:
By the way, these are also available in German. I know someone around here who builds houses at a fixed price, no invoice, cash payment, at an interesting price,Garden sheds or proper houses meant for living in?