Hello People,
I have got into another problem and i request views from CD members.
The problem is this :
I work in a company that does working drawings for houses. I am paid $12.5 an hour but i am made to work above the stipulated 44 hours and not paid.
There are some cases in which due to incorrect information given by the builder, boss and even by my oversight that i made mistakes. Until now , i have not been asked to pay for the mistakes that i have made and the company has also till now said that they have paid for mistakes done by us but have warned us that it canot go on forever. What they have said is " If the builder / client puts case on the company then we will put case on you".
Under these circumstances, i am not at all comfortable in my office. Every day, i wonder if i will be fired. Since i am incharge of major projects and i send 3 to 4 drawings every day, atleast once a week i find that i have made a mistake. I then am afraid for 3 or 4 days and then after that i tell my boss the mistake. Sometimes he says it is OK, sometimes he is angry but says OK. But i am still afraid when i will make a very big mistake and be asked to pay for it. For eg. with my salary, how can i repay $10000 or amounts like this?
Or on the other hand, a draftsman is supposed to carry on duties under the guidance of a registered technologist. If a legal issue occurs, can i just put the blame on the registered technologist and i escape? will that be legal?
In india, the max. that they can do for a mistake is to FIRE you. Nothing else. No legal action etc.. but i doubt if that will be the case in Canada. The salary is very small but the responsibility is big.
Please share your views.
TK
Sidenote : 3 weeks ago, for one of the houses, the client wanted elevation B. So i submitted to the town Eleveation B. Now when i see his purchase list , i see Elevation A. He had changed it after that. I did not have his original request in writing and the client says that he does not know anything about it. I have to inform my boss about this mistake. Donot know what is going to happen. The client is a very abuseive client. Justtoday (for another design) he abused me (infront of the manager ) in Italian language. He also generally used filthy words in English.The manager could do nothing. What are my options? I am a consultant.

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I am a Gents and not a Ladies.

Technically we call this as 'Scope Creep' and/or 'Changing Requirements'. To avoid such situations it is possible that you get the original requirements in writing from your 'boss' or any other designated authority, wether it is the builder or clients - whoever the 'boss' wishes to designate.

Alternatively what you could also do is send an email or whatever form you prefer to your boss/designate authority and confirm the requirement that you think you received from them. Say for eg. you mentioned about Elev B. All you need to do is send a 2-line email confirming that as per you conversation a drawing is required to be submitted for Elev B.

my 2 cents....

Disclaimer: Fear of expulsion....use at own risk

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SS
Reiki Grand Master

SS,
thanks for your reply.
Yes. I am aware of what you said. But sometimes, you do 10 things at the same time and invariably you end not documenting what happened. I had in fact documented this fact but did not get a sign from him. These people donot use the internet.
What happens if it happens to be my fault? am i liable to get sued? (not in this case but in someother case). Also it is prudent to work in a $12.5 per hour job when you may commit a professional mistake which can cost between $10K to $50K. What is my legal avenue for escape?
In India , in 1997 i got Rs. 10K a month from L&T. In L&T, the max. punishment was expulsion. it sounded good. but in Canada, the stakes are much more.
Tk
Sidenote : What would happen is : since the drawing is already submitted to the Town as Elev. B, to change it to elevation A, first of all , we need sign from the Engineer ($300) and Controlling architect ($600). We then have to resubmit to town. The fee is 10K (i donot know if we have to pay 10K again or another sum for changing the elevation). This process will take another 3 to 4 weeks. I am really afraid to communicate this to my boss.

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I am a Gents and not a Ladies.

TK- saab

I exactly understand what you are going through.
I am also in this business of designing and drafting residential houses.
This is a very tricky business where you have to satisfy developers, the city authorities, the engineers etc. etc.

With lots of money involved, time is an essence and any delays/errors in design can cost client thousands of dollars.
Everybody is so tense....
Errors and omissions are common in this trade. Though we all have a 'disclaimer' on the contract and carry a professional liability insurance, I still get stressed out.

In your case, being an employee of the company I do not think you should worry (hoping that you have not signed anything in your contract).
All the responsibility lies with the owner of the company for any errors by his employees.
The max. they can do is fire you, no court will entertain a case against you.

Regarding the wrong elevation sent to city all I can say is, act promptly and report it earliest to your supervisor.
Be honest and say it upfront, keep on insisting that the client asked for Elevation B.
This is not something which can be swept under the carpet. The building inspector has to check that the constructed house matches the drawing submitted. And at that late stage....
Beware, it can rear back and bite you and your boss more wickedly.

If it was me in your place I could never fear the boss firing me for this reason.
If he does then I just thank him and walk off the place thinking God must have opened other Avenues for me.

I do not know what is wrong with Desis. Why do they fear unjust sacking?
Is it a chip we carry on our shoulder from India....
Lay offs and sackings happen to the best and it happens all the time in Canada.

Do not worry. Good luck!

Disclaimer : This is just a random advice to a colleague and in no way to be taken as a Gospel truth.
I assume no responsibility if someone follows my views and suffers. Getting a new job , anywhere in Canada, depends on many many things!

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"After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb." (Nelson Mandela)

Hi Tourist,
thanks for the info.. you made me feel good today.
I am still afraid of taking this to the boss. I will resubmit the elevation and talk to the client's son (who is a soft guy and who handles the town submission).
Anyway, i have to tell my boss this but i am looking for the right time.
You also being in the residential homes drafting business, your post makes a lot of sense to me.
Thanks for reassuring me that i can be fired at the max..
Thanks a lot once again.
TK
Disclaimer : This conversation is between me and Tourist. No third party can can take us to court with these conversations. This is provided to you as a courtesy only. Please contact your lawyer, your counsulate if you get into situations like this.

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I am a Gents and not a Ladies.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Tourist
In your case, being an employee of the company I do not think you should worry (hoping that you have not signed anything in your contract).
All the responsibility lies with the owner of the company for any errors by his employees.
The max. they can do is fire you, no court will entertain a case against you.

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One thing we should keep in mind. This is just a job. The job stress should not impact our health. Ou health is our own health and will be with us till death do us part. Job is a job and if u loose one u will find another one. I have learnt this early on in my working career in India. I have seen CEO stressing out on th job, having heart attacks. Then one day the big boss telling him that he is not needed. He was admitted to hospital for another heart attack. It happened all in front of my eyes. So my lesson if ur job is impacting ur health. Look for a job that does not stress u even though money is little less. Ur medical bills will eat up ur higher salary.

The stress is rampant in my industry too. The clients insist on doing certain things against our advice and then blame us if something goes wrong. Our industries are so competetive that the company motto is client is always right even if he is wrong. Only thing u can do is document in the form of e-mails and when something goes wrong, simply produce the e-mail. The client usually keeps quiet as it will be his fault if he did not read the e-mail or reply to the e-mail.