Base pay and commission

[crisp air]

So I just had an interview today at a company in Southeast Michigan that offers base pay and commission for hvac residential service tech. The base pay is hourly, but lower than my current rate. Never working for commission before and being Relatively new to the trade. 2 plus years experiance. I just wanted some insite from someone who has work in a similar situation. Thanks

[monkeyman#1]

My opinion? Run as fast as you can. I strictly do commercial/industrial, however I have known guys that have worked hourly plus commisssion. If you have no scruples, this may be for you. Lots o money to be made swapping out parts. Not saying that all that work on commission are crooked, but in my opinion it lends itself to unscrupulous behavior. Just my opinion.

[crisp air]

Thank you, I was thinking the same thing. It's not for me.

[2141]

I work for a company that pays like this. It is all based on the individual. I hear of a lot of company's that encourage the not so honest approach. My boss says all the time that there is no need to make things up, there is plenty of broken junk out there. You can sell IAQ, parts, service plans, or what ever and get commission. All company's are different some force the issue and some look at it as an incentive. I am 100% honest, show the customer the options and let them make the decision and make an ok living in the mean time.

[Strkout499]

My boss says all the time that there is no need to make things up, there is plenty of broken junk out there.

My company pays the service guys like this too, the installers have a higher hourly. Yes, there is plenty of broken junk in my area, I don't need to be dishonest. If it's a newer system, I fix it. If it's an older system, I'll let the customer decide if he wants it fixed or wants to go with something newer and a warranty. And if we sell the customer something they don't need, we get fired immediately. Our service manager reviews all of our tags once a week and has no problem firing guys on the spot.

[mason]

So I just had an interview today at a company in Southeast Michigan that offers base pay and commission for hvac residential service tech. The base pay is hourly, but lower than my current rate. Never working for commission before and being Relatively new to the trade. 2 plus years experiance. I just wanted some insite from someone who has work in a similar situation. Thanks

This is tough spot to be in when you're in your third year, if it was a good company and you really had your stuff down I could see it working but I wouldn't recommend it until you know your stuff backwards and forwards, then you can focus more on the sales approach. I worked for a straight commission company in my third year and it was a bad experience but I did learn some things about the business.

[2141]

This is tough spot to be in when you're in your third year, if it was a good company and you really had your stuff down I could see it working but I wouldn't recommend it until you know your stuff backwards and forwards, then you can focus more on the sales approach. I worked for a straight commission company in my third year and it was a bad experience but I did learn some things about the business.

Based on my company I would have to disagree to an extent. The company I work for hires guys right out of school regardless of age ( recently a 19 year old and a 58year old) and is focused on training. I will say that I am coming up on 2 years and my bonus check has tripled now that I am more comfortable.

[4 State H & A]

from a point of owning my own hvac business and seeing what alot of guys in my area are doing. This type of thing just isnt a good deal not saying everyone is bad but it really opens the door for the crooks and scammers to do there work. If i were you i would run

[2141]

from a point of owning my own hvac business and seeing what alot of guys in my area are doing. This type of thing just isnt a good deal not saying everyone is bad but it really opens the door for the crooks and scammers to do there work. If i were you i would run

I agree that it opens the door for crooks. I also believe that if you are a crook, you will be a crook no matter how you are paid. I would definitely rather work for a small company that doesn't have the corporate bs and pays a decent wage but that wasn't available to me at the time. I have had it in my head from day one that I went to school to start the process of eventually becoming a great technician NOT a great salesman. If you have other options then go with them but when it comes down to it, base pay plus commission isn't as bad as a lot of people think.

[air1]

I trust commissioned salespersons/Techs about as far as I can spit.

[jnsrose]

I trust commissioned salespersons/Techs about as far as I can spit.

How far can you spit?

[Helioson]

No way for me. Just ask yourself this....what kind of owner/manager would set this policy as a way to pay a technician? It intrinsically sets the tech up to encourage scrupulous behavior. If they REALLY care about you, just pay me the best hourly rate, or just become a salesman, or just become a thief....your choice I guess...