Poly trucking - Mechanics are Self Taught

sooo,,,does the same practice apply to health care. Not a real neurosurgeon,,just some guy who has dabbled in rattling around in someones noggin.

 

What? You never heard of back alley surgeons?

Besides, our medical system works on the "Either pay up or croak" theory. Can't afford it, you don't deserve it.

 

Better training = higher chargeable rates

 

IIRC to get an ASE certification all you had to do was take a written test. Therefore you could have a certified master technician who has never touched a truck. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

 

Exactly. And who wants to pay higher rates?

 

I'm not a gynecologist, but I'll take a look.

 

You must really hate your grandma. I know we're joking here, but this is actually on point. There are people out there that use these "back alley surgeons" to save a money. The same lines as hiring cheap mechanics. Narrow minded people can't see the long term savings of spending more to do things right.

I don't know enough about that company to judge. I worked for a really bad company once, but left after 3 months because they didn't let me fix things correctly. I've also worked for some that have excellent maintenance programs and spent a lot of money on training. Even there, they would hire people with no experience and train them. Many were "self taught" well before they received any formal training. Training classes/courses can make a good tech better, but they do nothing for a bad tech. Logically, a company will not spend thousands of dollars on a new mechanic. They wait until they know how they are and if they're worth training.

I've hired kids right out of high school. They start washing/polishing trucks, checking lights and many minor things that good techs skills are wasted on. If they do well, the jobs get a little more technical and I check their work. Some move to an apprentice position, some realize that this isn't the job for them. After a year or so, if they're doing well, I'll start them with online courses, which are prerequisites for classroom training. Becoming a good tech requires a lot of "self teaching". If they are willing to put the time in and are worth it, I will supplement that with formal training, but I will not just train anyone.

Even when I hire tech with experience, they are watched. Even good techs need training on how we do things. A good tech can earn my trust pretty quick.