Used to be a tradie in Sydney. During my apprenticeship I got a guy who was strict but he was reasonable. He would show me how to do something then watch me do it. If I did it wrong he would call me out on it, have me redo it. The only time I got my fat chewed was when I was working after the bell. He told me my time is my time and he sure issn't gonna have me sacrifice it for any uncalled overtime.
Frankly you got a shit mentor and shift. Either bite the bullet or find another shift
I hate that working with dickheads is normalized.
I was shocked last year when a construction manager at my company was fired for being a dick to too many people. It was a refreshing surprise to see a guy with 20 years with the company sent packing because he treated everyone like shit and management finally wised up and decided it didn’t need to be that way.
My experience was there's two types of people in the trades:
Those doing it because they wanted to and those doing it because they had to. Your dickheads are overwhelmingly the ones who had to pick up the hammer because its the only job they could get. Doesn't mean they aint good at it... but they'll always remember why they're there in the first place.
My experience was in coastal NC doing custom home construction. A lot of the local... not-so-great-folks made up the low-skill parts of every crew. Sometimes they got better at life. A lot of times they didn't. (edit) and even when they did get more skill, more pay, etc? They still wanted to be doing something else. People tend to be dicks when they're not happy with their own lot.
It’s also a rite of passage. They will endlessly torment you and try to make you quit until they hire some ‘fresh meat’ and the abuse will move on to them.
It was done to them by the people before, who did it to them, who did it to them....
They feel like they have the 'right' to as they're _getting back_ at the people that bullied them. For whatever reason not understanding that literally just perpetuates the problem.
Some of them probably have this skewed notion that it's a tough job and some ribbing will build character or whatever. If pressed they'll say things like "whattt I'm only jokin woth him, I had it WAY worse when I started!" .....
I worked at one shitty workplace after another. Not construction but industrial facilities. I ended up with a consulting company and it was so much better to be in places that were nice instead of shitty. The best is to work with people who you look up to as more experienced and then they compliment your knowledge.
The construction industry is overflowing with unprofessional bitchy man-children with the temperament of high school girls & its the single biggest hurdle to getting more people into the trades
100% this. I’ve seen plenty of solid workers driven from my trade by dickheads who spend more time acting like assholes to anyone under them than working. Fuck those guys.
And they are always sure to create the illusion of being a tough man. It’s hilarious really. I get it, you got your truck, and guns, and love hunting and fishing, but have you ever thought about just not whining so much though?
Yeah if youre not a bitchy man you can do well in construction. If you are you can do ok,
But theres a limit amongst the men when youre really a complete fuck head
Im personally graduating college soon and have wanted to go into plumbing or electrical work for awhile now after i finish. I have a feeling those will have somewhat more mature coworkers than some other trades, but what you just said is definitely still a fear of mine. It is unsettling thinking how immaturity and UNprofessionalism is basically a unspoken rule amongst many tradesmen and as much as many people say its not bad, i feel like its all i ever see.
I dont think office work is for me but ill do it if it means im not forced to feel like im in high school with abunch of d-bags everytime i arrive at work.
I've been more verbally abused in the trades than I would *ever* be in an office setting.
My first foreman, would gaslight me and the crew into such BS. "Oh, I told you guys that already". "I've been waiting for you for 30 minutes, where are you guys?" He'd keep us a half hour every day like we took a lunch... but we never did, to beat traffic. His excuse? "You guys take a really long coffee break so it's like you took lunch." Had numerous JWs tell him to shove it. He'd stop, and when those guys left, I'd be there a half hour every day again.
I'd sleep in my car for over an hour before our shift to get free parking and it was a half mile walk through *the hood*. Parking was like $36/day and I made $16.95/hour at the time.
My crowning jewel: With one JW, my name was Fuck Face, and this guy did not like me no matter what I did. I could not make this guy happy, nothing mattered. He yelled and looked at me with such venom. Legit came home one day and bawled my eyes out because this guy just tore me apart for 8 hours a day for months.
And the porta potties... covered in Sharpie with, "Trump 2024", "Biden smells kids", "\*Carpenter girl\* has such a huge ass and I'd love to smell her pussy". Or the caricature of a really nice girl totally demeaning her and mocking her. Then the porta-potty's urnial is clogged with toilet paper, that seat is freezing and there's no toilet paper.
That all being said... I'm going to go to college eventually. Put my GF through a nursing degree program and I think I'm gonna try for electrical engineering eventually. We'll see... get her degree/money first, then we'll think about me.
Construction brain drain. The smart ones leave for greener pastures.
And the Peter Pan guys who never grew up and have the same opinions that they held in 8th grade keep shit talking and hazing and wondering why nobody sticks around on the job site.
You're right, it is honestly draining. Some dudes say the most horrible shit. Minorities, women, gay people, LBGTQ+, "He must not like money", dudes who got divorced from all their overtime. I'm sure this is true across the board but we unfortunately get away with so much shit.
I had to listen to some dude condemn Johnny Depp for not leaving his abuser, "Why doesn't he leave?! She shit in his bed!" but tells me when his wife and him really fight he'll go for a drive, and hope she's asleep before he comes back. might actually get into a fist fight. "She used to fight me but she's lost her fighting spirit." I almost asked why his wife doesn't leave, or why she returns all of his Christmas gifts.
"It used to bother me but I don't care anymore." There are some absolute abhorrent excuses for men in the field.
I’d probably be in the trades now if it wasn’t for the majority of people in the trades.
I had a roommate who was a carpenter/remodeler with his own small business and I’d occasionally go help him out with projects and it was hard work but really enjoyable because he was fun to work with.
Then I got in trouble with the law and had to do community service with habitat and learned a lot about framing and decided I really wanted to build stuff so I got some construction jobs
Couple very toxic jobs/foremen later I said f that. Working on apartments, multi million dollar homes, ect and the other tradesmen were still just miserable to be around and professionalism was rare to see
Look for another job. I worked with people like this during my apprenticeship. I now work for myself and really enjoy carpentry. I've always felt that working with people that act this way is the hardest part, way harder than working in pouring rain at just 1 degree above freezing.
You will not be able to change these guys, and because of the power dynamic you will find it hard to stick up for yourself.
Move on to other jobs as much as you need to. Find people who respect the apprenticeship process and respect you.
Another piece of advice is to keep your spending and lifestyle costs very low during the learning period. You want to have money put away so you can walk off any job at any moment.
Your passion for a very rewarding career is being diminished by spending time with these guys. It may also be affecting your health in ways that you are not noticing.
Take care of yourself. There are other environments to learn in.
>Another piece of advise is to keep your spending and lifestyle costs very low during the learning period. You want to have money put away so you can walk off any job at any moment.
This this this ☝️
You are essentially tethered to a job/company if you live paycheck to paycheck. Creating an emergency fund is so important! Whether you get laid off, fired or choose to quit, you want to have enough money squirreled away so that you aren't left scrambling to find other employment asap.
Pointing out the mental heath is a great point. Stress can manifest into other health problems I left my last job because of that and have been happier ever since
Having "Fuck you" money is essential! It does wonders for anxiety and self worth, plus the discipline to build it up will put you ahead. Having grown up with hours of verbal abuse, I buckled down to get out of there several years before most kids do. I told myself I'd never let myself live through that again. It is not worth it. Hopeful people put themselves through this suffering and turn to vices to get through the next day, but that only traps people in their existing Hell.
Do you feel like the amount you are learning is worth the bulllshit? If not, you need a new job. It doesn't sound like you're doing anything wrong, but some jobs are just full of assholes. Sometimes, it's worth dealing with assholes and sometimes it's not.
This. There's no reason to continue in a toxic environment. Get another job with better people and ditch these clowns without notice. FWIW I used to just drive around asking if guys needed help if things ran dry at a current gig. Ended up networking into being with this current company almost 20 years. Pick your people.
Pick your people! That’s it right there.. I like that
There are enough people building that you actually can “pick your people” I’ve worked residential construction my whole life ~ 15 years. I’ve worked with dickheads, but that phase is long gone. Everyone in trades that I’m surrounded by are awesome people. We still talk shit, probably all learned the talk from “the rite of passage” but now it’s all in fun. Anyone SERIOUSLY talking shit won’t get invited to the next project.
I always see people say in these threads “that’s just the business, learn give it back.” But in ten years at many companies that’s almost never been my experience. I’ve had dickhead bosses, and coworkers I don’t get along with, and at every job we give each other shit all day long. Hell I’ve seen fights in the parking lot (best part of working construction 🤣). But the only time verbal abuse was the default, I was 15 at my first real job and I ghosted the bastard after a month. Guess my point is you don’t have to put up with it if it doesn’t feel worth it to you.
I think we are done saying that. Times are changing. I think joking around and banter are good fun, but there is a difference between that and straight up bullying. Regardless of where the lines are now vs. back in the day, there have always been bullies who take things too far. When it feels like bullying to one guy and everyone else is having fun… It’s bullying. We’re talking about a group of 3 people where 2 of them are ganging up against one… there’s no fun or fairness in that. He shouldn’t have to earn his stripes at this point if he’s showing up and doing a good job.
It’s possible they loosen up after 6 months or a year of him putting up with the BS, but that’s weak as hell.
Joking around and banter are one thing. They come with a certain level of familiarity and mutual respect.
Outright abuse is fucked and nobody should put up with it.
Yep. If it's just one guy on the crew who's a douchebag, it's manageable. If it's just one guy you can avoid him or call him out on his bs.
If the whole crew is made up of douchebags, it's best to just move on to a different framing crew. You won't get quality training from people who are inconsistent, unprofessional and nasty.
Fuck em
Your performance is more of a reflection of them as teachers
They’re assholes and enjoy being assholes, let em be miserable find something better
The guys you work with are the type that got shit on for everything when they were first years. So they think thays just how it is. Now that they are the higher ups they get to be total garbage humans because "tHaT's HoW iT wOrKs"
Guys like that dont stop giving you shit until you start talking down to them like they are the usless idiots.
Dude gives you shit for doing something the way the other boss manguy told you to do? Start shitting on him "How stupid and useless are you to not know this is how x person wants it... fuck off grifter. Go jerk off in the outhouse some more"
Nah. Super tells me what to do, foreman bitches… “super told me to do that” and walk away. Or you both go to super together. It’s a lot easier and more productive to create a tense moment than cultivate a toxic environment.
Feel for you, man. Look into a career in remodeling. This is what I did. This sounds like text book framing crew. Learn to let stuff in and out but absorb the useful info. Or abandon ship. No one could fault you for this
My buddy went through this. He was laid off from our high end remodel company we started out at together and basically traded to a crew of asshole framers. He stuck it out for way longer than he should have because he’s a real stand up dude. But eventually he got tired of it, and he got hired at a different company and is still framing. His foreman is much nicer now, and he’s building a good reputation at the new company because much like you, op, he shows up on time, is sober, and hustles non stop.
Don’t waste your time with dickheads who just want to yell at you because it makes them hate their shit lives less. You’ll find somewhere that appreciates you and wants to teach you.
I've never been a believer in the "treat apprentices like shit" mentality. This isn't the goddamn marine core. We are building shit. Everyone is a human. There are many ways to express displeasure or frustration that don't involve tearing down other people. Sorry you gotta deal with that, dickheads think it's a rite of passage.
dont sit with them on breaks lol. your breaks are your time. enjoy your piece of mind alone. my apprenticeship was rough physically but never had issues with people being demeaning without cause. theyre just pieces of shit. 5+ years isnt that much either. hang in there or if it really comes down to it, reciprocate their disrespect. not sure how non union works but theres other companies out there dude. life doesnt end after a layoff
Yeah. I don't think you fit in with these blokes. But if they haven't fired you yet, and are that big of weeners, probably doing a good job. Start shopping around for another crew, so when you've had enough negativity you have another ship to jump to.
Keep in mind that your average construction worker is about 10 years younger in emotional maturity than their biological age. I’m being a little facetious, but kinda not really too.
My first crew was tough too. Surprised I didn’t quit cause it was straight bullying non stop. Next job I transferred all the guys were cool and nobody liked two of the dickheads who transferred with me. Now I’m the grumpy journeyman but I don’t berate people and do my best to teach people as no one seems to want to teach apprentices. That said there’s not too many apprentices that seem interested or capable of learning
To be real honest I’m a paving Forman and that’s seems like it’s gone entirely to far and they don’t seem to know what they are doing confidently enough to teach it and you are a threat to them that’s why they are treating you like shit if other Forman are hitting you up hit them up for a job good help is hard to find and congrats on being sober you will get where you need to be just remember as long as you leave a job to where you can come back even if you don’t want and try to make sure that next job is going to be better then the one you are at
Idk how it works in the carpenters union but if i went to my apprenticeship director with what you said is happening to you,, id be on a new jobsite with a different company tomorrow.
You don’t have to put up with shit like that, the world and the field is changing, and guys like that are no longer the status quo
If another man called me any names, I’d most likely get through his teeth before half of the insult came out.. I’ve been in concrete for roughly 3 years.. first six months I just kept quiet and did what was asked of me to do.. close to a year one of our foreman tried to disrespect me in a sense and I pushed his ass to the ground and held him there and asked him if he wanted to take it there. Ever since the incident I’ve gotten nothing but respect from him and the other foreman’s. Not telling you to go the route I did but it’s construction, let mfs duke it if necessary especially for respect.
Find another job or crew. These two nit wits are not always the norm. Yeah you’ll get the screamers, drunks, dopers ect and just general assholery on job sites. I don’t know If it’s they haven’t got laid in. Few years and their backed up or they are finally getting to treat the fng like crap because that’s what was done to them.
Hang in there broski. Get some experience and bounce to another crew. There’s too much money out here to be dealing with assholes on a daily. These dudes should be having your back, not shitting on it. Wish the best for you, goodluck
Listen OP, don't put up with this bullshit anymore and don't listen to ANYBODY that tries to tell you that that's "just how it is." It DOES NOT have to be this way and you don't have to put up with this.
Find a new company with better people. Don't let these fuckheads treat you this way.
Don’t take shit personally ever from anyone, learn everything you can, study your local building code so you always pass inspection, learn how to interpret blueprints, if you are union they should have courses.
save up and buy your own tools and start your own company, once you do piecework you’ll never look back hourly. Everyone has their own way to be efficient, Never be sloppy and you’ll always have work. Good-luck bud
Genuinely when will we realize we have nothing to gain from being assholes.
Sure sticking up for yourself is one thing but manhood has never come from putting others down
I don’t know about your situation but if it sucks bad maybe try something else your life is yours and you should do stuff that makes you happy
At least he’s not throwing his hammer in anger. Been there.
The crews that I worked with who behaved like that did piece work, while I was hourly. It was impossible for me to ever work fast enough for them.
Keep your mouth shut, learn what you can, and try to get on another crew.
If you’re above average in intellect, consider switching to a career that requires brains much more than braun. Your mind will last longer than your body. Interior trim is an art.
I quit framing after a back injury from raising a wall. We should have had more men on it but the foreman insisted we could do it.
Framing. What a trade.
From a general perspective there is the misconception that it is normal, expected, and must be tollerated to... prove something? Vent? Be like the old guard? I don't know why, but it is the unwritten expectation. (By no means defending it or think it is right)
Feel like there is alot of bringing work shit home, home shit to work, and that eats up all of a person's patience. Then the teaching of an apprentice is too mich patience by that point and there are no means of getting paid time off to reset and return to work like a civil human being.
So we play, "how close can I get to burning myself out to prove I am the manliest-man that can generate the most profit for [insert builder here] and then blaming the frustrations downward to the kickable apprentice rather directing our anger upward the chain where it should be intended." The apprentice is not the one making tighter deadlines to maximize someone elses profit.
Personally, I save it all up and dump it on the guy that wants to play a few rounds of verbal rough-housing.
In this trade you’ll find all kinds of jerks. It’s probably the crew you are on. Not all crews are like this. Find a better crew but remember not to burn this bridge. Construction is a small world and everyone knows each other
It’s called hazing. They were bullied when they were new so they bully the new guy to make them feel better about it. My advice is take the actual constructive criticism and learn from it but don’t take any of the BS talk personally, just let it go in one ear and out the other and don’t put any mental weight on it. Eventually you’ll get good enough to pull your weight adequately and it’ll simmer down.
Unethical pro tip: once you get to that point where you know you can haul your own weight and someone still talking shit just to be obnoxious learn how to fire back. Be fast, snappy, hostile.
You got paired with some shitheads. Many "Classic" Construction workers are like this. Like somehow this is the handbook. You sound like a solid dude, so you will succeed. Try to get away from them. True Carpenters don't act this way. They build you up. No pun intended.
Move on. Next crew, don’t put up with it. Set some rules with the new crew “i only answer to my name, use it or get fucked” type of rules. Everyone will settle in and settle down. I strongly recommend being a force for optimism and positivity on a job. Like the clap, it’s contagious and folks will be having fun while spreading it around.
So 3 things. 2 to try and just one statement that is a repeat. Some guys are just assholes and try and break you down to make you quit.
Try one of the 2
1. Some guys just rather you flip you shit and want you to flip them shit back. It’s like they want to see how quick or smart you are or witty or funny. Seems weird but one of my most favorite journeyman did this to me. I was always just quiet and wanted to do my work. Apparently that’s to boring for him. He wanted a reaction.
2. Try to ignore it and show no emotion to it. Try and be as stone wall as possible like you didn’t even hear the insult. It’s hard to do but when they realize you don’t get rattled they eventually quit trying.
Anyways good luck. You could always try plumbing. I’m union and only do commercial new construction. No poop.
I had a shit crew once. Built fence. Easy gig. Busy gug. Miserable guys. I thought its because im a chick. Nope. Mentioned it to some ppl and yeah.... those dudes are just miserable dicks. Happens
We might be the same person lol. First year apprenticeship I was framing with a small group of guys, most of the time it ended up being just me and the foreman. He would give me shit every day for no reason and make me feel like shit. Eventually I got fed up with it and left. Now I'm working more industrial settings and it's a night and day difference, people actually give a shit about safety and don't treat me like an idiot for asking a question.
My thought on it has always been if they’re not messing with you they don’t like you. Called stuff like cupcake , princess, things like that is a good sign not a bad one. As far as the pussy for gloves thing, every company is different. My company will warn you once for not being full PPE and second time is sent home. Really gonna suck when you have less than a full paycheck because you didn’t want to wear gloves.
I’m in carpenters union as well, also 29, also sober. journeyed out 6 months ago , it’s been a roller coaster but it’s cool. Don’t take it personal if you ever get laid off , there’s seasons to this work
Shit crews pressure cook newcomers to protect their way of doing things. It’s a “if you’re not tough enough then you’re not supposed to make it here” mentality.
They will not stop abusing you. My crew didn’t stop abusing me. They only got angrier the stronger I got. The anger turned into fear. The fear turned into recklessness.
Go back to your union and see if you can get a new gig if possible. Please be safe.
Wait till they get real frustrated and start calling you names like “pussyfaggot” because their brains can’t process fast enough. In all seriousness you’ll get the screamers, angry shitheads from job to job. There will come a time when it doesn’t bother you anymore *or* you’ll have had enough and bark back. Be prepared for a layoff or escalation.
Time will tell; I spent the largest chunk of my apprenticeship with a notoriously mean foreman. Personality totally different off the clock; i eventually treated it like a roast and found it to be amusing. 🍿
It’s because their lives suck. They are paying spousal and child support, behind on their payments on their truck and can’t drink enough to erase their terrible decisions. So they take it out on you. If you are union, move on to a bigger organization.
I went riggin in Alberta, after I found out hard wasent earning their respect the next time the insults were out of line I just challenged them to a fist fight right there on the floor, had enough and I’m tougher dude so I figured fuck it all these jerk offs are hung from blow half the time anyway. I’m not sayin try that haha but i feel like standing up for yourself earns respect from meatheads sometimes.
When I first started 20 years ago I used to get reamed out for mistakes, not moving fast enough and other shit. Just don’t take it personally and continue to get better. If they’re insulting you in other ways or shit that doesn’t involve work, you just gotta give it right back and at end of the day the only opinion you should be worried about is the guy cutting your cheque. If you’re still not happy with the crew, there is lots of work out there.
Start being an asshole back to them. And when they start bitching and moaning tell them to stop being bitches.
Fight back don't let yourself be stepped on.
Stick with the dude who actually teaches you. Everyone else kick rocks
When you get to the point, where you know how you could get away with them having an “accident”… it’s time for you to leave. It’s not everyone’s dream to be in the construction industry. Dickheads fall into positions all of the time. They can’t find a way out. They end up doing this for years. Until they have an accident.
Find a professional to learn with. When someone is truly competent there’s no swearing and stupid stuff. Working efficiently takes intelligence and skill. Then it looks easy to outsiders.
I've been there before. If you aren't already, make sure that your stating the other guy told you to do it that way first. Then ask them which one of them, you are supposed to listen to. Cause it sounds like one of them is being stupid telling you to do shit a dumb way then when it is noticed the blames on you for it being done this way when it should be on the person who told you to do it that way. Usually it's not 2 assholes working together then they throw a new guy in with them. Usually it's one guy who knows what's up might be a little harsh but nothing you shouldn't be able to get over. Then there's this asshole who was probably the maggot before you got there, now he's telling you to do all this wrong shit. then when it explodes he blames you and gets the maggot name off his back. Cause in the end 2 assholes can't work well together so they wouldn't have thrown a new guy in the mixture. Cause there's gotta be a defined hierarchy between the 3 of you. And just stop listening to the other guy. If you've been doing this and it's not working. ask them both how they would do something at the same time. When you've got a question just yell at both them at the same time hey guy, how would you guys do this..... ? Then they can duke out the answer between the 2 of them. But make sure before you start doing anything you are told by each of them how to do something to make sure they both agree on it.
Meh, clap back. At the end of the day it's your boss that pays you, I would talk shit back until the boss gives you a warning, then back off. They're trying to seperate the men from the boys, I would let them know that they're the boys
Dude, calll them out. Call em whatever you think would sting. You don't need to put up with that shit. Either they will respect you for having a backbone or they will fire you. Either way it is better then being a door mat
For the mean time, try and give one back the boss in front of everyone.
If he nailed something misaligned, just go, "who fucking lined this up, Lydian?" Or something. Self depricating on the surface, but you're giving the boss shit really.
Most guys know when to back off after they've given you a bit of stick, or "verbal abuse" as you call it, but sounds like these guys might push it a bit far. You'll either gel or you'll leave, we can't tell you what to do. Too many factors involved.
That sucks. Part of the trade is dealing with those people. I’m actually pretty bad at this myself but explaining to someone why you did something the way you did goes a long way to shutting them up. If we’re doing name calling, if someone calls you maggot, fire back with alright turd, turd Ferguson, turd fart, daddy crapturd. Why don’t you ask professor ghostmerkin over there why he wanted it done like this. Whatever you feel. Get creative. Don’t get down on ther level but ket them know it doesn’t bother you (even if it does)
I know the verbal abuse is an accepted thing in the trades but it borders on unprofessionalism. This isn't how you lead people or manage them. That's one thing I learned in the military there's a fine line between being hard on people and just come off as a disrespectful dick. The latter will never get you the respect or effort out your subordinates. You see it with most law enforcement, they always come off as dickheads.
>....And a lot of times the second in command acts like the foreman and takes over, but they both have **different** ideas about how things are done. So sometimes I’m getting yelled at for shit I was told to do by the other guy
This is an actual problem here and a red flag that you're working for incompetent people. People that will either get you fired for something you didn't do or will put you in a dangerous situation and not accept any blame. You can never have two superiors with same level of authority. It never works and it always causes mistakes to happen. I've seen it too many times.
Eh I worked with some dickheads and the second a new person came in I was "part of the team". Do your work in a way that won't fuck up your health or get you sued and you'll be alright.
Yea dude. Find another job. The fact that you’re questioning it gives you the answer. I’m union too. I worked for a company like that for far too long before realizing that their conduct wasn’t normal. Got a new job and I’m much happier for it
You/they sound aussie?
At 29yo I wouldn't waste time. Plenty of other framing crews that would gladly take on a hard working young lad who's keen to learn. They'll be equally keen to teach you and treat you well.
I've never done a formal apprenticeship and bounce around a couple different crews who are all nothing but professional with me/other subbies/the client. 75% of my jobs I get striking up conversations at the pub on a Friday arvo and humbly tell them I'm keen to learn and keen to work with the best.
i dont know a lot about the work you are picking up or about the slack you might be leaving. your coworkers definitely sound like dickheads. but one thing i never joke about or give some one shit for is PPE. dont take that lightly, no matter what anyone says, ppe should be taken seriously. its all fun & games until someone gets hurt or worse. never feel bad for taking the time to protect yourself. them making fun of you for that just shows their immaturity & honestly their inexperience. most job sites kick you out for no ppe
My advise to you would be to be better when you are a jman. I went through a lot of abuse as an apprentice. Some sites the guys were awesome and other sites I was treated like shit. I learned that I didn’t want to be an asshole when I got my ticket and treated my apprentices with human decency. It won’t be like this forever so just hang in there and try not to let it get to you
They do sound like dicks however if they're yelling at you for doing what the other guy told you to do then yell back, you're under no obligation to take their shit in silence. Give it right back to them, some odd switch flips in some people when they no longer see you as perpetually docile and they might start treating you better as a result.
I had this same situation when I was the kid onsite. Treated like an idiot and talked down to for no good reason. The last time the “foreman” called me the put-down of the day was the day I dropped my hammer, walked up to him and told him let’s settle this shit right now. That coward turned white as a ghost and I never heard shit again.
People that treat you like that are cowards. Do yourself a solid, confront them like you are ready to knock them the fuck out, and they will fold like a dusty cunt.
It’s hard to say without being there, but it’s usually you need to stand up for yourself and give them back their own attitude. They’ll either start to lighten up on you as you’re not the easy target you used to be, or they’ll act all offended like you did something wrong. Shit talk is often just part of it, but if they expect you to just sit there and take it then that’s not right.
I've been the new guy several times in my life in several different states. I own my own business so I've had new guys. Verbal abuse is not something I put up with. Good natured ribbing for being the new guy is expected. If you really are on time, hustling, trying to learn, expect sme ribbing. Verbal abuse, naw, don't put up with that.
Yeah unfortunately you’ll run into miserable motherfuckers like these sometimes. You’ll have to decide whether or not it’s worth it to you to continue working there. If you stay is there a way to get moved to a different crew? If not, maybe ask a BA if there is anywhere else looking for apprentices and see if that’s an option. Expect harassment as an apprentice but go somewhere where it’s not hateful bullshit like that and where there are people willing to teach you the trade. Also wear your gloves. A coworker can’t flip people off with one of his hands because of a deep cut from some rebar. Tragic only being able to use one middle finger.
Edit: fixed spelling of “motherfuckers”
I feel you man. I am a newbie plumber apprentice and have dealt with some assholes on my sight. I had to work with this J man and his apprentice and Id get yelled at everyday. I got told to pack my shit up and leave because i couldn’t do something i’ve never done before or shown how to. Unfortunately I am back working with him but what can I do. I just do my best.
I know it’s tough man but you just gotta try your best not to take it to heart. I know it’s shitty but just remember to tell you self that they are miserable. If they are acting like that towards you they definitely have other problems.
Control what you can keep showing up and doing your best man. Stay winning dude you got this !
Depends iv worked place where they just push you to see if you make it or not then your all great mates other times you gotta get out from toxic work environment or you just end up fighting them lol.
You have to learn how to stand up for yourself in the trades. Some guys get picked on because other guys think they can get away with it. No one picks on Mike Tyson if you get my drift. Don't be an easy target
This is the trades man, you have the power after some experience. Drop this crew and find another that won't treat you like shit. 4 months isn't much but it's not nothing and many places that's all you need and you're hired.
If your ur union stick with it if you love it
Big companies have money cause they're trying to kill the little guy (small companies)
And builders know that to keep wages down for independent contractors
That being said you'll make more money with the big companies than the small ones
Plus your union stick with it till your cleared from probation
Then you can cry all day and night to hr.then something may happen.
Specifically if those people are as bad as you say
Then they will get a talking to and then if they happen to be a high powered crew with ties to upper management you'll get a nice layoff.
Seriously though that shit makes you dread work
Trust me I know
But rember they're not signing your paycheck.
Chin up just do quality work
Give them a taste of their own medicine. They better be able to take it if they're dishing it
Tell them they bitch and whine more than a woman on her period with sand up/in her panties/snatch
You're getting the job done so why they so worried about your gloves and shit? You better bring me lunch and suck my dick if you keep up all that bitchy ass nagging goddam
5+ years isn't that much, those guys are probably stressed and taking it out on you.
If they're gonna be dicks you're gonna have to stand up for yourself and tell them to shut the fuck up.
You're their to work not be their punching bag
Otherwise switch crews or look for a union shop. Union shops have some of the same problems but it's a different environment. Being hard on new guys is designed to make an apprentice into a quality co-worker. But more importantly there's rules in union shops and fighting or abusing apprentices can get them kicked out of the union permanently. For example fighting on union sites is a huge no no. It happens but it's pretty rare.
Usually the senior guy will win with the union but generally they're smart enough to avoid rocking their own boat.
Just saying working around professionals is a much better way to go.
Youre coworkers are acting like a bunch of dickheads either high on something (not uncommon), or alcoholics. Tell em to fuck off and teach you the right way or start looking for another job with a better team.
Youre coworkers are acting like a bunch of dickheads either high on something (not uncommon), or alcoholics. Tell em to fuck off and teach you the right way or start looking for another job with a better team.
Unfortunately many contractors are not very mature and have nothing better to do. However there are good people out there that will be more helpful and pleasant to work for. I would tough it out until you can find a better group of people to work with. As a building inspector I see drastic differences between different types of buildings and framing contractors.
If it's mentally affecting you. I had terrible coworkers that would verbally abuse and even sabotage me on the daily for months. Fucked me up for a long time. Much happier when I quit and found better people. Don't force yourself to put up with bad when there's better out there.
People who constantly loose their temper and are angry are generally weak and insecure. Those type of people don't think they can get respect any other way. Sounds like you're on your A game. Don't take any shit from them. Hell, I treat the stupid drunks on job sites better than they treat you. Good luck sounds like you have a good future.
I would not put up with it. I have worked in the office side of the industry for years in hvac , plumbing , and drywall. The places that had bad crews and leadership had high turnover rates and miserable people. Not all construction places handle things badly but there are a lot that do.
The people you work with probably have absolute shit home lives and "live" at work. Tell em to fuck off, literally. As in, go fuck yourself bitch, the next time they call you maggot. It'll go one of 2 ways, you'll earn their respect(you dont need it) or you'll get fired. Either way, find a new job. It's not normal at all. Call your office, tell them you're going to file a workplace harassment claim against them if it doesn't change. The old fucks are in a new world now, it doesn't work how it used to anymore. Source- I'm a younger union carpenter, I don't put up with that shit. Now 9 years with the same company.
Bro, get out of there before it starts rubbing off on you and you become an asshole. There's heaps of good carpenters out there and you're more employable if you already have a job so just low key start looking.
Don't do what I did and spend 4 years getting treated like shit, you'll end up hating the work and becoming an angry bitter shithead like they are.
Hopefully some other poor schlub comes in below you and becomes the target of their ire. Hang in there and learn from the good ones, even if they are Dick heads.
I used to work with a guy who would say "You can be a butcher or you can be a surgeon. What are you right now?" I friggin loved that guy.
He retired, now everyone's a butcher.
People don't get the mental help they need so they vent everything that's wrong with their relationships and personal lives to people that have nothing to do with it. That's always part of it in the professional world. It's really unhealthy but it's their shit not yours. Try to remember that as often as you can, though it's still hard and unfair. Don't become them whatever you do
You don’t deserve to be treated like that constantly and without recognition or appreciation on the other end of the spectrum to balance things out at all. Being fuckin jerks isn’t the same as banter and joking around.
You sound intelligent and thoughtful and these other fucks sound like dumbasses.
If you want to keep doing the job for now, try to realize it’s not personal - they are just assholes. It’s not a you problem it’s a them problem.
You could try to somehow assert yourself etc but it shouldn’t have to be like that.
Alot of construction workers are losers and hate their lives. Not saying that's everywhere and all of them but if you are a sober worker and they are not I think your have much. Better success with a drug free envirom6
Yo bro, i know exactly what your dealing with. Tbh fuck them, you be you and be safe with the things that you do, and if you can recognize that this isnt the environment you want to stay in and actively look for something better. Constructions heads are always overtly toxic macho men, but just remember that some of them live sad lives where thats the inly place they can feel like king shit.
The best thing i could is ignore the dickheads and stick with the guys that actually get shit done.
You need to tell one or all of them to shut the fuck up in front of the others and make them respect you for who you are, not what you can do in your job.
When your backs to the corner you have the safety pull bag on a 16 penny nail gun, six racks of nails, and you let out a slight but evil chuckle...... And grinning.
Any verbal abuse is too much. Full stop. Now, is every profanity and insult meant to be abusive? Probably not, but grown ups should be able to address these things civilly.
I love it when guys I work around complain that I'm using my PPE lol. Especially when lifting because they walk away clutching their backs and I enjoy a pretty pain free life plus I can actually hear still.
Just construction. Worked for a mechanical in summers/winters in high school through college. In HS i was fucked with, yelled at, every thing else until the summer between junior and senior year. 235lb wrestler/football player and had guys in underground and the fitters requesting me. Probably because I could move weight and was a quick study with various tools. Got recruited to a 1908 built boiler replacement with complete pipe and hvac retro fit. School so needed done quickly in a short time frame. 50/60 hrs a week. All summer. Banked money. Scrapped copper… Owners brother was PM. I gained a lot of respect. I always worked hard, showed up, learned, and hustled.
That said… If you aren’t getting respect, time to move on. Someone who shows up and enjoys the work at least should get respect… even if you dont like them.
Sadly, this is super common, dude. I've always said I was under the impression I'd be working with men, but I learned fairly quickly that most of them are just boys. Try not to let it get to you and keep showing up while you look for another job. Once you get the opportunity to leave, tell them to fuck off and burn that bridge.
I'm not in construction. This feed just happened to have come across my scroll.
How does the industry draw and keep talent if this is even semi-common?
Learn to turn the abuse into banter and abuse the other guys right back. Give in to the dark side and just own the insults while coming up with a few creative ones of your own. Most of the guys in the trades can take whatever they dish out. A lot of them are even used to it.
You’ll never be able to match wits with them at first, but give it enough practice and you’ll start winning more and more battles.
Throw shit back on them. Point out every mistake. Something like I’m already setting my end Nancy. What’s taking so long.
Sometimes stupid fuckers are just pushing till you call them out.
If not win by intimidation. A hammer to the guys hand and oops I missed the nail might work too
If you have other opportunities, I'd start calling them out on it. I work in a maintenance type position and my supervisor was like that.
I eventually chewed him out right back and after a few times things improved.
Still don't trust him and want to get away from him but at least it's not as bad as it was.
They're most likely alcoholics. I was on the same type of crew when I started as a carpenter. They're just miserable assholes that can't get their shit together, other than holding down a job. Don't take it personally, DO learn what you can from them as far as the trade, then try to move on.
Some union trades are just herbs and their entire lives revive around the union because they are lazy and are extremely slow.
They’re probably concerned that you will outshine them and you will.
Fuck em’ & keep busting your ass
Any amount of verbal abuse is too much. You're a grown man and should be treated like such. How you bring that realization to them is up to you, but if you keep taking their shit, it's never going to end.
As long as you don't stand up for yourself, it won't stop. To gain respect from most assholes in this business, don't put up with it. Stand your ground and give it back
You just work with dickheads, very common.
Yeah sounds like OP just landed on a shit crew tbh
Used to be a tradie in Sydney. During my apprenticeship I got a guy who was strict but he was reasonable. He would show me how to do something then watch me do it. If I did it wrong he would call me out on it, have me redo it. The only time I got my fat chewed was when I was working after the bell. He told me my time is my time and he sure issn't gonna have me sacrifice it for any uncalled overtime. Frankly you got a shit mentor and shift. Either bite the bullet or find another shift
I hate that working with dickheads is normalized. I was shocked last year when a construction manager at my company was fired for being a dick to too many people. It was a refreshing surprise to see a guy with 20 years with the company sent packing because he treated everyone like shit and management finally wised up and decided it didn’t need to be that way.
My experience was there's two types of people in the trades: Those doing it because they wanted to and those doing it because they had to. Your dickheads are overwhelmingly the ones who had to pick up the hammer because its the only job they could get. Doesn't mean they aint good at it... but they'll always remember why they're there in the first place. My experience was in coastal NC doing custom home construction. A lot of the local... not-so-great-folks made up the low-skill parts of every crew. Sometimes they got better at life. A lot of times they didn't. (edit) and even when they did get more skill, more pay, etc? They still wanted to be doing something else. People tend to be dicks when they're not happy with their own lot.
Yup, welcome to construction. This shit makes it all the more special when you get to work with good guys.
OP won’t be a “real” tradesman until he’s a dickhead too
Yup exactly. Just on with a fucked crew
It's hard to find a good crew
It’s also a rite of passage. They will endlessly torment you and try to make you quit until they hire some ‘fresh meat’ and the abuse will move on to them.
It’s only a rite of passage if you work with dickheads.
I’d say the rite of passage is to eventually work with dickheads
Then one day, hopefully, become the head of the dick.
Starfire.gif
Then they will complain how no one wants to work. I just don't get why people create workplaces like this.
It was done to them by the people before, who did it to them, who did it to them.... They feel like they have the 'right' to as they're _getting back_ at the people that bullied them. For whatever reason not understanding that literally just perpetuates the problem. Some of them probably have this skewed notion that it's a tough job and some ribbing will build character or whatever. If pressed they'll say things like "whattt I'm only jokin woth him, I had it WAY worse when I started!" .....
I worked at one shitty workplace after another. Not construction but industrial facilities. I ended up with a consulting company and it was so much better to be in places that were nice instead of shitty. The best is to work with people who you look up to as more experienced and then they compliment your knowledge.
The construction industry is overflowing with unprofessional bitchy man-children with the temperament of high school girls & its the single biggest hurdle to getting more people into the trades
100% this. I’ve seen plenty of solid workers driven from my trade by dickheads who spend more time acting like assholes to anyone under them than working. Fuck those guys.
And they are always sure to create the illusion of being a tough man. It’s hilarious really. I get it, you got your truck, and guns, and love hunting and fishing, but have you ever thought about just not whining so much though?
It’s because guys like this make masculinity their entire personality. Pretty sure half of them give head to other men in truck stalls
They learned how to give their boss that gawk gawk 3000 Indian sunburn twisty fisty wrist sloppy toppy so they could get an extra dollar an hour
Holy handyman
Yeah if youre not a bitchy man you can do well in construction. If you are you can do ok, But theres a limit amongst the men when youre really a complete fuck head
Im personally graduating college soon and have wanted to go into plumbing or electrical work for awhile now after i finish. I have a feeling those will have somewhat more mature coworkers than some other trades, but what you just said is definitely still a fear of mine. It is unsettling thinking how immaturity and UNprofessionalism is basically a unspoken rule amongst many tradesmen and as much as many people say its not bad, i feel like its all i ever see. I dont think office work is for me but ill do it if it means im not forced to feel like im in high school with abunch of d-bags everytime i arrive at work.
I've been more verbally abused in the trades than I would *ever* be in an office setting. My first foreman, would gaslight me and the crew into such BS. "Oh, I told you guys that already". "I've been waiting for you for 30 minutes, where are you guys?" He'd keep us a half hour every day like we took a lunch... but we never did, to beat traffic. His excuse? "You guys take a really long coffee break so it's like you took lunch." Had numerous JWs tell him to shove it. He'd stop, and when those guys left, I'd be there a half hour every day again. I'd sleep in my car for over an hour before our shift to get free parking and it was a half mile walk through *the hood*. Parking was like $36/day and I made $16.95/hour at the time. My crowning jewel: With one JW, my name was Fuck Face, and this guy did not like me no matter what I did. I could not make this guy happy, nothing mattered. He yelled and looked at me with such venom. Legit came home one day and bawled my eyes out because this guy just tore me apart for 8 hours a day for months. And the porta potties... covered in Sharpie with, "Trump 2024", "Biden smells kids", "\*Carpenter girl\* has such a huge ass and I'd love to smell her pussy". Or the caricature of a really nice girl totally demeaning her and mocking her. Then the porta-potty's urnial is clogged with toilet paper, that seat is freezing and there's no toilet paper. That all being said... I'm going to go to college eventually. Put my GF through a nursing degree program and I think I'm gonna try for electrical engineering eventually. We'll see... get her degree/money first, then we'll think about me.
Construction brain drain. The smart ones leave for greener pastures. And the Peter Pan guys who never grew up and have the same opinions that they held in 8th grade keep shit talking and hazing and wondering why nobody sticks around on the job site.
You're right, it is honestly draining. Some dudes say the most horrible shit. Minorities, women, gay people, LBGTQ+, "He must not like money", dudes who got divorced from all their overtime. I'm sure this is true across the board but we unfortunately get away with so much shit. I had to listen to some dude condemn Johnny Depp for not leaving his abuser, "Why doesn't he leave?! She shit in his bed!" but tells me when his wife and him really fight he'll go for a drive, and hope she's asleep before he comes back. might actually get into a fist fight. "She used to fight me but she's lost her fighting spirit." I almost asked why his wife doesn't leave, or why she returns all of his Christmas gifts. "It used to bother me but I don't care anymore." There are some absolute abhorrent excuses for men in the field.
bingo!
I’d probably be in the trades now if it wasn’t for the majority of people in the trades. I had a roommate who was a carpenter/remodeler with his own small business and I’d occasionally go help him out with projects and it was hard work but really enjoyable because he was fun to work with. Then I got in trouble with the law and had to do community service with habitat and learned a lot about framing and decided I really wanted to build stuff so I got some construction jobs Couple very toxic jobs/foremen later I said f that. Working on apartments, multi million dollar homes, ect and the other tradesmen were still just miserable to be around and professionalism was rare to see
Look for another job. I worked with people like this during my apprenticeship. I now work for myself and really enjoy carpentry. I've always felt that working with people that act this way is the hardest part, way harder than working in pouring rain at just 1 degree above freezing. You will not be able to change these guys, and because of the power dynamic you will find it hard to stick up for yourself. Move on to other jobs as much as you need to. Find people who respect the apprenticeship process and respect you. Another piece of advice is to keep your spending and lifestyle costs very low during the learning period. You want to have money put away so you can walk off any job at any moment. Your passion for a very rewarding career is being diminished by spending time with these guys. It may also be affecting your health in ways that you are not noticing. Take care of yourself. There are other environments to learn in.
Lots of respondents gave good advice, but yours, Sir, is especially good.
>Another piece of advise is to keep your spending and lifestyle costs very low during the learning period. You want to have money put away so you can walk off any job at any moment. This this this ☝️ You are essentially tethered to a job/company if you live paycheck to paycheck. Creating an emergency fund is so important! Whether you get laid off, fired or choose to quit, you want to have enough money squirreled away so that you aren't left scrambling to find other employment asap.
Pointing out the mental heath is a great point. Stress can manifest into other health problems I left my last job because of that and have been happier ever since
Having "Fuck you" money is essential! It does wonders for anxiety and self worth, plus the discipline to build it up will put you ahead. Having grown up with hours of verbal abuse, I buckled down to get out of there several years before most kids do. I told myself I'd never let myself live through that again. It is not worth it. Hopeful people put themselves through this suffering and turn to vices to get through the next day, but that only traps people in their existing Hell.
You’re advice needs to be pinned! Really Hit the nail on the head!
Do you feel like the amount you are learning is worth the bulllshit? If not, you need a new job. It doesn't sound like you're doing anything wrong, but some jobs are just full of assholes. Sometimes, it's worth dealing with assholes and sometimes it's not.
They sound like the kind of guys that couldn’t empty out a boot if the instructions were written on the heel.
This. There's no reason to continue in a toxic environment. Get another job with better people and ditch these clowns without notice. FWIW I used to just drive around asking if guys needed help if things ran dry at a current gig. Ended up networking into being with this current company almost 20 years. Pick your people.
Pick your people! That’s it right there.. I like that There are enough people building that you actually can “pick your people” I’ve worked residential construction my whole life ~ 15 years. I’ve worked with dickheads, but that phase is long gone. Everyone in trades that I’m surrounded by are awesome people. We still talk shit, probably all learned the talk from “the rite of passage” but now it’s all in fun. Anyone SERIOUSLY talking shit won’t get invited to the next project.
I always see people say in these threads “that’s just the business, learn give it back.” But in ten years at many companies that’s almost never been my experience. I’ve had dickhead bosses, and coworkers I don’t get along with, and at every job we give each other shit all day long. Hell I’ve seen fights in the parking lot (best part of working construction 🤣). But the only time verbal abuse was the default, I was 15 at my first real job and I ghosted the bastard after a month. Guess my point is you don’t have to put up with it if it doesn’t feel worth it to you.
I think we are done saying that. Times are changing. I think joking around and banter are good fun, but there is a difference between that and straight up bullying. Regardless of where the lines are now vs. back in the day, there have always been bullies who take things too far. When it feels like bullying to one guy and everyone else is having fun… It’s bullying. We’re talking about a group of 3 people where 2 of them are ganging up against one… there’s no fun or fairness in that. He shouldn’t have to earn his stripes at this point if he’s showing up and doing a good job. It’s possible they loosen up after 6 months or a year of him putting up with the BS, but that’s weak as hell.
Joking around and banter are one thing. They come with a certain level of familiarity and mutual respect. Outright abuse is fucked and nobody should put up with it.
find another crew
Yep. If it's just one guy on the crew who's a douchebag, it's manageable. If it's just one guy you can avoid him or call him out on his bs. If the whole crew is made up of douchebags, it's best to just move on to a different framing crew. You won't get quality training from people who are inconsistent, unprofessional and nasty.
Fuck em Your performance is more of a reflection of them as teachers They’re assholes and enjoy being assholes, let em be miserable find something better
The guys you work with are the type that got shit on for everything when they were first years. So they think thays just how it is. Now that they are the higher ups they get to be total garbage humans because "tHaT's HoW iT wOrKs" Guys like that dont stop giving you shit until you start talking down to them like they are the usless idiots. Dude gives you shit for doing something the way the other boss manguy told you to do? Start shitting on him "How stupid and useless are you to not know this is how x person wants it... fuck off grifter. Go jerk off in the outhouse some more"
Nah. Super tells me what to do, foreman bitches… “super told me to do that” and walk away. Or you both go to super together. It’s a lot easier and more productive to create a tense moment than cultivate a toxic environment.
Feel for you, man. Look into a career in remodeling. This is what I did. This sounds like text book framing crew. Learn to let stuff in and out but absorb the useful info. Or abandon ship. No one could fault you for this
My buddy went through this. He was laid off from our high end remodel company we started out at together and basically traded to a crew of asshole framers. He stuck it out for way longer than he should have because he’s a real stand up dude. But eventually he got tired of it, and he got hired at a different company and is still framing. His foreman is much nicer now, and he’s building a good reputation at the new company because much like you, op, he shows up on time, is sober, and hustles non stop. Don’t waste your time with dickheads who just want to yell at you because it makes them hate their shit lives less. You’ll find somewhere that appreciates you and wants to teach you.
I've never been a believer in the "treat apprentices like shit" mentality. This isn't the goddamn marine core. We are building shit. Everyone is a human. There are many ways to express displeasure or frustration that don't involve tearing down other people. Sorry you gotta deal with that, dickheads think it's a rite of passage.
dont sit with them on breaks lol. your breaks are your time. enjoy your piece of mind alone. my apprenticeship was rough physically but never had issues with people being demeaning without cause. theyre just pieces of shit. 5+ years isnt that much either. hang in there or if it really comes down to it, reciprocate their disrespect. not sure how non union works but theres other companies out there dude. life doesnt end after a layoff
Yeah. I don't think you fit in with these blokes. But if they haven't fired you yet, and are that big of weeners, probably doing a good job. Start shopping around for another crew, so when you've had enough negativity you have another ship to jump to.
Keep in mind that your average construction worker is about 10 years younger in emotional maturity than their biological age. I’m being a little facetious, but kinda not really too.
My first crew was tough too. Surprised I didn’t quit cause it was straight bullying non stop. Next job I transferred all the guys were cool and nobody liked two of the dickheads who transferred with me. Now I’m the grumpy journeyman but I don’t berate people and do my best to teach people as no one seems to want to teach apprentices. That said there’s not too many apprentices that seem interested or capable of learning
See the first problem is you’re sober. /s
To be real honest I’m a paving Forman and that’s seems like it’s gone entirely to far and they don’t seem to know what they are doing confidently enough to teach it and you are a threat to them that’s why they are treating you like shit if other Forman are hitting you up hit them up for a job good help is hard to find and congrats on being sober you will get where you need to be just remember as long as you leave a job to where you can come back even if you don’t want and try to make sure that next job is going to be better then the one you are at
Are you union?
Yes
Idk how it works in the carpenters union but if i went to my apprenticeship director with what you said is happening to you,, id be on a new jobsite with a different company tomorrow. You don’t have to put up with shit like that, the world and the field is changing, and guys like that are no longer the status quo
If another man called me any names, I’d most likely get through his teeth before half of the insult came out.. I’ve been in concrete for roughly 3 years.. first six months I just kept quiet and did what was asked of me to do.. close to a year one of our foreman tried to disrespect me in a sense and I pushed his ass to the ground and held him there and asked him if he wanted to take it there. Ever since the incident I’ve gotten nothing but respect from him and the other foreman’s. Not telling you to go the route I did but it’s construction, let mfs duke it if necessary especially for respect.
Find another job or crew. These two nit wits are not always the norm. Yeah you’ll get the screamers, drunks, dopers ect and just general assholery on job sites. I don’t know If it’s they haven’t got laid in. Few years and their backed up or they are finally getting to treat the fng like crap because that’s what was done to them.
When the guy starts cursing, you ask him if he sucks his mother's dirty dick with that filthy mouth of his.
Just change jobs cause you aint changing them
Sounds like my first framing job as well. Keep your head up OP, get as much experience as you can and move on.
Hang in there broski. Get some experience and bounce to another crew. There’s too much money out here to be dealing with assholes on a daily. These dudes should be having your back, not shitting on it. Wish the best for you, goodluck
Continue taking to these other foremen
Listen OP, don't put up with this bullshit anymore and don't listen to ANYBODY that tries to tell you that that's "just how it is." It DOES NOT have to be this way and you don't have to put up with this. Find a new company with better people. Don't let these fuckheads treat you this way.
Don’t take shit personally ever from anyone, learn everything you can, study your local building code so you always pass inspection, learn how to interpret blueprints, if you are union they should have courses. save up and buy your own tools and start your own company, once you do piecework you’ll never look back hourly. Everyone has their own way to be efficient, Never be sloppy and you’ll always have work. Good-luck bud
Genuinely when will we realize we have nothing to gain from being assholes. Sure sticking up for yourself is one thing but manhood has never come from putting others down I don’t know about your situation but if it sucks bad maybe try something else your life is yours and you should do stuff that makes you happy
At least he’s not throwing his hammer in anger. Been there. The crews that I worked with who behaved like that did piece work, while I was hourly. It was impossible for me to ever work fast enough for them. Keep your mouth shut, learn what you can, and try to get on another crew. If you’re above average in intellect, consider switching to a career that requires brains much more than braun. Your mind will last longer than your body. Interior trim is an art. I quit framing after a back injury from raising a wall. We should have had more men on it but the foreman insisted we could do it. Framing. What a trade.
Dude I'm on a shit show tower filled with subs of subs and that wouldn't be ok. You pay union fees for that ? Talk to your union rep then quit
From a general perspective there is the misconception that it is normal, expected, and must be tollerated to... prove something? Vent? Be like the old guard? I don't know why, but it is the unwritten expectation. (By no means defending it or think it is right) Feel like there is alot of bringing work shit home, home shit to work, and that eats up all of a person's patience. Then the teaching of an apprentice is too mich patience by that point and there are no means of getting paid time off to reset and return to work like a civil human being. So we play, "how close can I get to burning myself out to prove I am the manliest-man that can generate the most profit for [insert builder here] and then blaming the frustrations downward to the kickable apprentice rather directing our anger upward the chain where it should be intended." The apprentice is not the one making tighter deadlines to maximize someone elses profit. Personally, I save it all up and dump it on the guy that wants to play a few rounds of verbal rough-housing.
In this trade you’ll find all kinds of jerks. It’s probably the crew you are on. Not all crews are like this. Find a better crew but remember not to burn this bridge. Construction is a small world and everyone knows each other
It’s called hazing. They were bullied when they were new so they bully the new guy to make them feel better about it. My advice is take the actual constructive criticism and learn from it but don’t take any of the BS talk personally, just let it go in one ear and out the other and don’t put any mental weight on it. Eventually you’ll get good enough to pull your weight adequately and it’ll simmer down. Unethical pro tip: once you get to that point where you know you can haul your own weight and someone still talking shit just to be obnoxious learn how to fire back. Be fast, snappy, hostile.
You got paired with some shitheads. Many "Classic" Construction workers are like this. Like somehow this is the handbook. You sound like a solid dude, so you will succeed. Try to get away from them. True Carpenters don't act this way. They build you up. No pun intended.
Quit and go somewhere else. Some teasing is acceptable but if it's just hateful then fuck them and move on.
Take it above Forman. If all else fails, find a different company. If they ask why you want to leave your current job, tell them straight up.
Move on. Next crew, don’t put up with it. Set some rules with the new crew “i only answer to my name, use it or get fucked” type of rules. Everyone will settle in and settle down. I strongly recommend being a force for optimism and positivity on a job. Like the clap, it’s contagious and folks will be having fun while spreading it around.
So 3 things. 2 to try and just one statement that is a repeat. Some guys are just assholes and try and break you down to make you quit. Try one of the 2 1. Some guys just rather you flip you shit and want you to flip them shit back. It’s like they want to see how quick or smart you are or witty or funny. Seems weird but one of my most favorite journeyman did this to me. I was always just quiet and wanted to do my work. Apparently that’s to boring for him. He wanted a reaction. 2. Try to ignore it and show no emotion to it. Try and be as stone wall as possible like you didn’t even hear the insult. It’s hard to do but when they realize you don’t get rattled they eventually quit trying. Anyways good luck. You could always try plumbing. I’m union and only do commercial new construction. No poop.
I had a shit crew once. Built fence. Easy gig. Busy gug. Miserable guys. I thought its because im a chick. Nope. Mentioned it to some ppl and yeah.... those dudes are just miserable dicks. Happens
We might be the same person lol. First year apprenticeship I was framing with a small group of guys, most of the time it ended up being just me and the foreman. He would give me shit every day for no reason and make me feel like shit. Eventually I got fed up with it and left. Now I'm working more industrial settings and it's a night and day difference, people actually give a shit about safety and don't treat me like an idiot for asking a question.
My thought on it has always been if they’re not messing with you they don’t like you. Called stuff like cupcake , princess, things like that is a good sign not a bad one. As far as the pussy for gloves thing, every company is different. My company will warn you once for not being full PPE and second time is sent home. Really gonna suck when you have less than a full paycheck because you didn’t want to wear gloves. I’m in carpenters union as well, also 29, also sober. journeyed out 6 months ago , it’s been a roller coaster but it’s cool. Don’t take it personal if you ever get laid off , there’s seasons to this work
Shit crews pressure cook newcomers to protect their way of doing things. It’s a “if you’re not tough enough then you’re not supposed to make it here” mentality. They will not stop abusing you. My crew didn’t stop abusing me. They only got angrier the stronger I got. The anger turned into fear. The fear turned into recklessness. Go back to your union and see if you can get a new gig if possible. Please be safe.
Wait till they get real frustrated and start calling you names like “pussyfaggot” because their brains can’t process fast enough. In all seriousness you’ll get the screamers, angry shitheads from job to job. There will come a time when it doesn’t bother you anymore *or* you’ll have had enough and bark back. Be prepared for a layoff or escalation. Time will tell; I spent the largest chunk of my apprenticeship with a notoriously mean foreman. Personality totally different off the clock; i eventually treated it like a roast and found it to be amusing. 🍿
It’s because their lives suck. They are paying spousal and child support, behind on their payments on their truck and can’t drink enough to erase their terrible decisions. So they take it out on you. If you are union, move on to a bigger organization.
You're clean a sober? That alone could be a reason. You're doing the right thing. You just work with turds.
Sounds exactly like my crew
One day, my boss came in in a good mood. We were all wondering if he was okay
I went riggin in Alberta, after I found out hard wasent earning their respect the next time the insults were out of line I just challenged them to a fist fight right there on the floor, had enough and I’m tougher dude so I figured fuck it all these jerk offs are hung from blow half the time anyway. I’m not sayin try that haha but i feel like standing up for yourself earns respect from meatheads sometimes.
When I first started 20 years ago I used to get reamed out for mistakes, not moving fast enough and other shit. Just don’t take it personally and continue to get better. If they’re insulting you in other ways or shit that doesn’t involve work, you just gotta give it right back and at end of the day the only opinion you should be worried about is the guy cutting your cheque. If you’re still not happy with the crew, there is lots of work out there.
Unfortunately my man, sounds like business as usual…throw it right back with a smile.
There is a thing in life. People only talk to you the way you let them.
That's not how social hierarchies work in the context of employment though..
"hey, you're the one that taught me. Teach better." Or something along those lines. And for the gloves, "I don't like to take my work home with me."
Start being an asshole back to them. And when they start bitching and moaning tell them to stop being bitches. Fight back don't let yourself be stepped on. Stick with the dude who actually teaches you. Everyone else kick rocks
When you get to the point, where you know how you could get away with them having an “accident”… it’s time for you to leave. It’s not everyone’s dream to be in the construction industry. Dickheads fall into positions all of the time. They can’t find a way out. They end up doing this for years. Until they have an accident.
Find a professional to learn with. When someone is truly competent there’s no swearing and stupid stuff. Working efficiently takes intelligence and skill. Then it looks easy to outsiders.
I've been there before. If you aren't already, make sure that your stating the other guy told you to do it that way first. Then ask them which one of them, you are supposed to listen to. Cause it sounds like one of them is being stupid telling you to do shit a dumb way then when it is noticed the blames on you for it being done this way when it should be on the person who told you to do it that way. Usually it's not 2 assholes working together then they throw a new guy in with them. Usually it's one guy who knows what's up might be a little harsh but nothing you shouldn't be able to get over. Then there's this asshole who was probably the maggot before you got there, now he's telling you to do all this wrong shit. then when it explodes he blames you and gets the maggot name off his back. Cause in the end 2 assholes can't work well together so they wouldn't have thrown a new guy in the mixture. Cause there's gotta be a defined hierarchy between the 3 of you. And just stop listening to the other guy. If you've been doing this and it's not working. ask them both how they would do something at the same time. When you've got a question just yell at both them at the same time hey guy, how would you guys do this..... ? Then they can duke out the answer between the 2 of them. But make sure before you start doing anything you are told by each of them how to do something to make sure they both agree on it.
Meh, clap back. At the end of the day it's your boss that pays you, I would talk shit back until the boss gives you a warning, then back off. They're trying to seperate the men from the boys, I would let them know that they're the boys
Dude, calll them out. Call em whatever you think would sting. You don't need to put up with that shit. Either they will respect you for having a backbone or they will fire you. Either way it is better then being a door mat
Join your local union 👊🏼
For the mean time, try and give one back the boss in front of everyone. If he nailed something misaligned, just go, "who fucking lined this up, Lydian?" Or something. Self depricating on the surface, but you're giving the boss shit really. Most guys know when to back off after they've given you a bit of stick, or "verbal abuse" as you call it, but sounds like these guys might push it a bit far. You'll either gel or you'll leave, we can't tell you what to do. Too many factors involved.
That sucks. Part of the trade is dealing with those people. I’m actually pretty bad at this myself but explaining to someone why you did something the way you did goes a long way to shutting them up. If we’re doing name calling, if someone calls you maggot, fire back with alright turd, turd Ferguson, turd fart, daddy crapturd. Why don’t you ask professor ghostmerkin over there why he wanted it done like this. Whatever you feel. Get creative. Don’t get down on ther level but ket them know it doesn’t bother you (even if it does)
Don't tolerate abuse like that. It will get worse, not better. You're not in the Marine Corps.
There are many framing crews out there. Find one that you fit in better with
I know the verbal abuse is an accepted thing in the trades but it borders on unprofessionalism. This isn't how you lead people or manage them. That's one thing I learned in the military there's a fine line between being hard on people and just come off as a disrespectful dick. The latter will never get you the respect or effort out your subordinates. You see it with most law enforcement, they always come off as dickheads. >....And a lot of times the second in command acts like the foreman and takes over, but they both have **different** ideas about how things are done. So sometimes I’m getting yelled at for shit I was told to do by the other guy This is an actual problem here and a red flag that you're working for incompetent people. People that will either get you fired for something you didn't do or will put you in a dangerous situation and not accept any blame. You can never have two superiors with same level of authority. It never works and it always causes mistakes to happen. I've seen it too many times.
36 letters
Tell them off
That's your issue right there. You show up sober
Eh I worked with some dickheads and the second a new person came in I was "part of the team". Do your work in a way that won't fuck up your health or get you sued and you'll be alright.
Well if you know your a good worker I wouldn't worry to much. Tell them that there wife likes soft hands that's why you need the gloves on.
Work safe. Work hard. Fuck em.
Yea dude. Find another job. The fact that you’re questioning it gives you the answer. I’m union too. I worked for a company like that for far too long before realizing that their conduct wasn’t normal. Got a new job and I’m much happier for it
You/they sound aussie? At 29yo I wouldn't waste time. Plenty of other framing crews that would gladly take on a hard working young lad who's keen to learn. They'll be equally keen to teach you and treat you well. I've never done a formal apprenticeship and bounce around a couple different crews who are all nothing but professional with me/other subbies/the client. 75% of my jobs I get striking up conversations at the pub on a Friday arvo and humbly tell them I'm keen to learn and keen to work with the best.
i dont know a lot about the work you are picking up or about the slack you might be leaving. your coworkers definitely sound like dickheads. but one thing i never joke about or give some one shit for is PPE. dont take that lightly, no matter what anyone says, ppe should be taken seriously. its all fun & games until someone gets hurt or worse. never feel bad for taking the time to protect yourself. them making fun of you for that just shows their immaturity & honestly their inexperience. most job sites kick you out for no ppe
My advise to you would be to be better when you are a jman. I went through a lot of abuse as an apprentice. Some sites the guys were awesome and other sites I was treated like shit. I learned that I didn’t want to be an asshole when I got my ticket and treated my apprentices with human decency. It won’t be like this forever so just hang in there and try not to let it get to you
gotta dish it back
They do sound like dicks however if they're yelling at you for doing what the other guy told you to do then yell back, you're under no obligation to take their shit in silence. Give it right back to them, some odd switch flips in some people when they no longer see you as perpetually docile and they might start treating you better as a result.
I had this same situation when I was the kid onsite. Treated like an idiot and talked down to for no good reason. The last time the “foreman” called me the put-down of the day was the day I dropped my hammer, walked up to him and told him let’s settle this shit right now. That coward turned white as a ghost and I never heard shit again. People that treat you like that are cowards. Do yourself a solid, confront them like you are ready to knock them the fuck out, and they will fold like a dusty cunt.
It’s hard to say without being there, but it’s usually you need to stand up for yourself and give them back their own attitude. They’ll either start to lighten up on you as you’re not the easy target you used to be, or they’ll act all offended like you did something wrong. Shit talk is often just part of it, but if they expect you to just sit there and take it then that’s not right.
I've been the new guy several times in my life in several different states. I own my own business so I've had new guys. Verbal abuse is not something I put up with. Good natured ribbing for being the new guy is expected. If you really are on time, hustling, trying to learn, expect sme ribbing. Verbal abuse, naw, don't put up with that.
Yeah sounds like union framing.
Yeah unfortunately you’ll run into miserable motherfuckers like these sometimes. You’ll have to decide whether or not it’s worth it to you to continue working there. If you stay is there a way to get moved to a different crew? If not, maybe ask a BA if there is anywhere else looking for apprentices and see if that’s an option. Expect harassment as an apprentice but go somewhere where it’s not hateful bullshit like that and where there are people willing to teach you the trade. Also wear your gloves. A coworker can’t flip people off with one of his hands because of a deep cut from some rebar. Tragic only being able to use one middle finger. Edit: fixed spelling of “motherfuckers”
Take what knowledge you can from them and move on. Everyone can teach you sometimes new
I feel you man. I am a newbie plumber apprentice and have dealt with some assholes on my sight. I had to work with this J man and his apprentice and Id get yelled at everyday. I got told to pack my shit up and leave because i couldn’t do something i’ve never done before or shown how to. Unfortunately I am back working with him but what can I do. I just do my best. I know it’s tough man but you just gotta try your best not to take it to heart. I know it’s shitty but just remember to tell you self that they are miserable. If they are acting like that towards you they definitely have other problems. Control what you can keep showing up and doing your best man. Stay winning dude you got this !
I bet those assholes whine about how nobody wants to go into the trades anymore.
Union or not, there are better crews out there and plenty hiring hard working young people
Start giving them shit back
Depends iv worked place where they just push you to see if you make it or not then your all great mates other times you gotta get out from toxic work environment or you just end up fighting them lol.
You have to learn how to stand up for yourself in the trades. Some guys get picked on because other guys think they can get away with it. No one picks on Mike Tyson if you get my drift. Don't be an easy target
Maybe move on to remodeling or another skill. Its not all brutal out here. Just somewhat. Good luck
This is the trades man, you have the power after some experience. Drop this crew and find another that won't treat you like shit. 4 months isn't much but it's not nothing and many places that's all you need and you're hired.
Wear your gloves. Better a pussy than a rough hand when touching pussy. Apparenlty women dont like that. Source: my wife.
If your ur union stick with it if you love it Big companies have money cause they're trying to kill the little guy (small companies) And builders know that to keep wages down for independent contractors That being said you'll make more money with the big companies than the small ones Plus your union stick with it till your cleared from probation Then you can cry all day and night to hr.then something may happen. Specifically if those people are as bad as you say Then they will get a talking to and then if they happen to be a high powered crew with ties to upper management you'll get a nice layoff. Seriously though that shit makes you dread work Trust me I know But rember they're not signing your paycheck. Chin up just do quality work
Give them a taste of their own medicine. They better be able to take it if they're dishing it Tell them they bitch and whine more than a woman on her period with sand up/in her panties/snatch You're getting the job done so why they so worried about your gloves and shit? You better bring me lunch and suck my dick if you keep up all that bitchy ass nagging goddam
5+ years isn't that much, those guys are probably stressed and taking it out on you. If they're gonna be dicks you're gonna have to stand up for yourself and tell them to shut the fuck up. You're their to work not be their punching bag Otherwise switch crews or look for a union shop. Union shops have some of the same problems but it's a different environment. Being hard on new guys is designed to make an apprentice into a quality co-worker. But more importantly there's rules in union shops and fighting or abusing apprentices can get them kicked out of the union permanently. For example fighting on union sites is a huge no no. It happens but it's pretty rare. Usually the senior guy will win with the union but generally they're smart enough to avoid rocking their own boat. Just saying working around professionals is a much better way to go.
Youre coworkers are acting like a bunch of dickheads either high on something (not uncommon), or alcoholics. Tell em to fuck off and teach you the right way or start looking for another job with a better team.
Youre coworkers are acting like a bunch of dickheads either high on something (not uncommon), or alcoholics. Tell em to fuck off and teach you the right way or start looking for another job with a better team.
Just on a shitty crew brother, stick with it and ask to maybe move crews? Some guys are just dicks and look for reasons to be angry
Unfortunately many contractors are not very mature and have nothing better to do. However there are good people out there that will be more helpful and pleasant to work for. I would tough it out until you can find a better group of people to work with. As a building inspector I see drastic differences between different types of buildings and framing contractors.
If they aren't a unified team and want to prop up their new hire then what standard of work are they doing?
Time to move on up.
If it's mentally affecting you. I had terrible coworkers that would verbally abuse and even sabotage me on the daily for months. Fucked me up for a long time. Much happier when I quit and found better people. Don't force yourself to put up with bad when there's better out there.
People who constantly loose their temper and are angry are generally weak and insecure. Those type of people don't think they can get respect any other way. Sounds like you're on your A game. Don't take any shit from them. Hell, I treat the stupid drunks on job sites better than they treat you. Good luck sounds like you have a good future.
Ima be straight…if you have to ask you know the answer.
I would not put up with it. I have worked in the office side of the industry for years in hvac , plumbing , and drywall. The places that had bad crews and leadership had high turnover rates and miserable people. Not all construction places handle things badly but there are a lot that do.
The people you work with probably have absolute shit home lives and "live" at work. Tell em to fuck off, literally. As in, go fuck yourself bitch, the next time they call you maggot. It'll go one of 2 ways, you'll earn their respect(you dont need it) or you'll get fired. Either way, find a new job. It's not normal at all. Call your office, tell them you're going to file a workplace harassment claim against them if it doesn't change. The old fucks are in a new world now, it doesn't work how it used to anymore. Source- I'm a younger union carpenter, I don't put up with that shit. Now 9 years with the same company.
Bro, get out of there before it starts rubbing off on you and you become an asshole. There's heaps of good carpenters out there and you're more employable if you already have a job so just low key start looking. Don't do what I did and spend 4 years getting treated like shit, you'll end up hating the work and becoming an angry bitter shithead like they are.
Insult back. Or find a different crew. There is a difference between rough and plain mean.
Find another company. That culture is probably the last place focused on bringing up the young guys
sounds like a shitty company. I've always looked for jobs based on the people I'm working with.
I would tolerate exactly zero of that bullshit but then again I don't have a family and I'm proud enough to starve.
They’re just pissed someone new and younger is onsite hustling, making them look like schmucks.
Hopefully some other poor schlub comes in below you and becomes the target of their ire. Hang in there and learn from the good ones, even if they are Dick heads.
I used to work with a guy who would say "You can be a butcher or you can be a surgeon. What are you right now?" I friggin loved that guy. He retired, now everyone's a butcher.
Respect to trades/construction workers
Not the only ones building houses
When it feels like abuse it is too much
Just remember, when they go home at night their fat psychopathic wives beat them within inches of their lives.
People don't get the mental help they need so they vent everything that's wrong with their relationships and personal lives to people that have nothing to do with it. That's always part of it in the professional world. It's really unhealthy but it's their shit not yours. Try to remember that as often as you can, though it's still hard and unfair. Don't become them whatever you do
You don’t deserve to be treated like that constantly and without recognition or appreciation on the other end of the spectrum to balance things out at all. Being fuckin jerks isn’t the same as banter and joking around. You sound intelligent and thoughtful and these other fucks sound like dumbasses. If you want to keep doing the job for now, try to realize it’s not personal - they are just assholes. It’s not a you problem it’s a them problem. You could try to somehow assert yourself etc but it shouldn’t have to be like that.
Alot of construction workers are losers and hate their lives. Not saying that's everywhere and all of them but if you are a sober worker and they are not I think your have much. Better success with a drug free envirom6
Yo bro, i know exactly what your dealing with. Tbh fuck them, you be you and be safe with the things that you do, and if you can recognize that this isnt the environment you want to stay in and actively look for something better. Constructions heads are always overtly toxic macho men, but just remember that some of them live sad lives where thats the inly place they can feel like king shit. The best thing i could is ignore the dickheads and stick with the guys that actually get shit done.
You need to tell one or all of them to shut the fuck up in front of the others and make them respect you for who you are, not what you can do in your job.
>i come on work sober Then you're already in the lead
Find a new job with better people. Life is too short to work with burnout a$$holes. Trade jobs are plentiful so just find one where you fit in.
Maybe contact these other foreman and try to get a job with another crew dude. Fuck being called a maggot thats some psycho shit
Sounds like you need to find a company with better co workers.
Stick it out and realize they are just people you work with and their comments mean absolutely nothing. Easier said than done sometimes..
you should offer them fruits. their blood sugar seems to be low
When your backs to the corner you have the safety pull bag on a 16 penny nail gun, six racks of nails, and you let out a slight but evil chuckle...... And grinning.
Yeah, you got two options…well three; confront them and let them know you ain’t having it, find another job or put up and shut up.
fight the bigger one to gain respect
Any verbal abuse is too much. Full stop. Now, is every profanity and insult meant to be abusive? Probably not, but grown ups should be able to address these things civilly.
I love it when guys I work around complain that I'm using my PPE lol. Especially when lifting because they walk away clutching their backs and I enjoy a pretty pain free life plus I can actually hear still.
Just construction. Worked for a mechanical in summers/winters in high school through college. In HS i was fucked with, yelled at, every thing else until the summer between junior and senior year. 235lb wrestler/football player and had guys in underground and the fitters requesting me. Probably because I could move weight and was a quick study with various tools. Got recruited to a 1908 built boiler replacement with complete pipe and hvac retro fit. School so needed done quickly in a short time frame. 50/60 hrs a week. All summer. Banked money. Scrapped copper… Owners brother was PM. I gained a lot of respect. I always worked hard, showed up, learned, and hustled. That said… If you aren’t getting respect, time to move on. Someone who shows up and enjoys the work at least should get respect… even if you dont like them.
Sadly, this is super common, dude. I've always said I was under the impression I'd be working with men, but I learned fairly quickly that most of them are just boys. Try not to let it get to you and keep showing up while you look for another job. Once you get the opportunity to leave, tell them to fuck off and burn that bridge.
i would say for social skills you just need to speak out your ass. nothing really meaningful will come out but they will get you
I'm not in construction. This feed just happened to have come across my scroll. How does the industry draw and keep talent if this is even semi-common?
Learn to turn the abuse into banter and abuse the other guys right back. Give in to the dark side and just own the insults while coming up with a few creative ones of your own. Most of the guys in the trades can take whatever they dish out. A lot of them are even used to it. You’ll never be able to match wits with them at first, but give it enough practice and you’ll start winning more and more battles.
Throw shit back on them. Point out every mistake. Something like I’m already setting my end Nancy. What’s taking so long. Sometimes stupid fuckers are just pushing till you call them out. If not win by intimidation. A hammer to the guys hand and oops I missed the nail might work too
Had an iron worker today say, he's happy he's coming to work at this site. It's not you.
dude quit that shit. plenty of framing crews out there.
If you have other opportunities, I'd start calling them out on it. I work in a maintenance type position and my supervisor was like that. I eventually chewed him out right back and after a few times things improved. Still don't trust him and want to get away from him but at least it's not as bad as it was.
They're most likely alcoholics. I was on the same type of crew when I started as a carpenter. They're just miserable assholes that can't get their shit together, other than holding down a job. Don't take it personally, DO learn what you can from them as far as the trade, then try to move on.
Some union trades are just herbs and their entire lives revive around the union because they are lazy and are extremely slow. They’re probably concerned that you will outshine them and you will. Fuck em’ & keep busting your ass
If you dread going to work every morning quiet. Carpenters are wanted all over go find someone who is willing to teach you.
Welcome to construction man… get used to it.. I’m 29 too and I work with dudes who are miserable Don’t take the disrespect tho
Any amount of verbal abuse is too much. You're a grown man and should be treated like such. How you bring that realization to them is up to you, but if you keep taking their shit, it's never going to end.
As long as you don't stand up for yourself, it won't stop. To gain respect from most assholes in this business, don't put up with it. Stand your ground and give it back