how many to pour a sidewalk
 

seems at least 14 going by the number of vehicles that showed up

http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h3...5/DSC02855.jpg

Do find the process entertaining.

First had the equipment taking off the soil, they go away, another crew comes back and contours they go. The hoes come in they do the sewer lines, backfill and go. Oh, lets dig it up again for the water. These guys for the side walk, then after they leave someone else to back to pave. If as the other areas, still will have 3 more separate crews (gas, power, comm). Not finished yet, need to cut the new pavement for the manholes, wait no fire hydrants or street lights. Can't forget to get the concrete guys back to redo the sidewalks at the corners for ramps. Once the houses start, more digging to bring the utilities from the curb.

Understanding the $150K for a vacant lot

Looks and sounds like a typical construction job to me, and if its union of course you need 3 or 4 crews because you cant go taking away work from someone else.

Yup, union work. One person can't do anybody else's duty. Each person's job is very narrowly defined & you'll get in trouble if you do more.

In Powell River, they once had to shut down a section of the local pulp mill because of screw was loose and the guy whose job it was to tighten screws on that piece of machinery couldn't get to it for a couple of days, so they had 30+ guys being paid union wages to sit around and sun tan for 2 days until the designated guy tightened the screw on "his" machine.

Then they complained when the pulp mill shut down because the owners were losing too much money and the mill was the most inefficient in their company.

Hmmmm.

Union jobs are great for people who have them (better wages, more bargaining power, more benefits), but are sometimes very inefficient. Not all situations are as bad as these two examples though. I've known several unions and union workers who worked as hard or harder than their non-union counterparts (who are more easily fired if they don't work hard).

Union people working on what looks like a residential lot and nearly all of them are diving white vehicles? They must be a city crew. I remember watching the city pour a sidewalk across the street from us last summer after they tore it out to access some utilities. From start to finish I think it took 5 months.

careful bashing the unions boys lol i work union and would invite any one of you to come and try scaffolding for a living. Its is nice not having to worry about begging for a raise or fearing for your job everyday but on the other hand if you dont work you just dont get hired for the next job

i was just doing a scaffold job in ontario and esso. we never sat around or screwed the pooch like that. however when i working hydro it looked like a pumpkin patch, 1 guy working and 10 labourers watching me. can't fire them they have senority. i'm a union carpenter and don't sit around, however some people do.
and the wage sounds great till you get layed off for 6 months.

Not many companys that build houses or contracted to do commercial housing work are union, probably have city surveyors, utility company, etc. out at the same time. A housing company would go broke very fast if they used that many people to do everything.

I hope there won't be a postal strike. It's a good thing my 3 orders with Amazon this week is via UPS.

Im a union Elevator Constructor. I can imagine next time someone is in a Hi-rise elevator that they would expect that the car is installed and maintained by highly qualified techs to be the safest transportation for the public. Not by under paid, overworked and non qualified people. Ive seen first hand the quality control being implemented by the non union sector of my trade. There are buildings in Calgary I wouldnt even ride. Being stuck in elevators sucks. Unions provide not only good wages for its members but they also provide good pensions and welfare programs. I know this post isnt to bash unions, but there is benifits of being a union member. I.U.E.C Local 130 Calgary AB

I think the point here is more that there is of course major benefits to being in a union...just not for those who pay for them.

like tax payers in many cases.

Unions are an antiquated aspect of civilization from a time before there was sufficient human rights advocacy.

They are outdated in todays competetive market place and a HUGE reason why the US cant keep their massive debt in check.


That being said, given an opportunity, I would love to be part of a union.:redface:
It's stressfull being employed purely on skill and work ethic in a competitive market place.

I cant even imagine what "seniority" feels like....lol

Funny, I havent heard about any major elevator related deaths or incidents in Calgary...

I was wrong on my original post, they didn't pour the sidewalk just the curb.

Since then, they have left, another crew showed up and graded/packed the street, took all their equipment away. Another crew, different equipment, laid out the gravel and after grading gone. Yesterday noticed sprayed oil and see today the paving crew is starting to show up today.

Not sure when the sidewalk will be in.

wow great point of view for a province that has been socialist ever since i was in diapers lmao its one thing to judge all the unions by watching the city crews work its another to get off the couch and join a working trade. Again just dont cast that one stone and claim that we all get hit by it

Wow, I see that there is a lot of misinformation about unions in this thread.

Lets use the original post as an example. I am not sure about Edmonton, but typically in most of the Vancouver suburb cities it is the subdivision developer who is responsible for building (to civic standards) utilities, roads, sidewalks etc which is contracted out to private firms. So all of the speciality crews that you saw come in very well could be one or a series of private companies with each crew specializing in a or a series of tasks. Long gone are the days where we have well rounded workers who can perform a multitude of tasks well, but Mcworkers who only focus on one specific task. But obviously, no one crew was ever able to install gas power and communication lines.

From what I have seen, all of the true union companies (CLAC excluded) in construction are as hard working and dedicated as any of the best non union companies that I have seen. As a matter of fact, all non union workers have unions and union workers to thank for their wage rates. Without unions to set the standard, wages would be significantly lower across all industries in Canada.

In terms of union wages of municipal workers in Vancouver, they are not that great, matter of fact they are significantly lower than one could make anywhere else. The trade off comes in the long term stability and pension.

Unions also don't just represent themselves but often have programs to promote social justice in developing countries where basic human rights are trampled all to the overt or blind eye of the government, which are often committed by large multination corporations.

Oh, and BTW I am not a union worker myself, just a member of middle management that recognises that unions have played an important part in our history, currently play a necessary role and have a strong role to play in the future of our country.

Only a couple deaths that I know of in Calgary in the last 15-20 years, but injuries happen on a daily basis. Usually being hit with doors or tripping when entering. The media won't publish a broken arm or leg because that doesnt interest the public, but I here about them in saftey meetings or union meetings in attempts to prevent these things from happening.