The age-old stereotypes of the blue collar tradie taking a smoko and wolf whistling are quickly changing in 2017. No longer does the modern tradesman leave a mess or have a Four N Twenty Pie and an OAK choccy milk for lunch. According to results from a recent survey, most of these stereotypes are redundant.
The survey was conducted by trades and services jobs site ServiceSeeking.com.au, with over 1700 local businesses and customers responding with their true attitudes towards tradies. Some surprising results indicate that the modern tradie is more health conscious, sophisticated and courteous than you might think.
When tradies were asked about the frequency of their “smoko” breaks, 75 per cent said they didn’t actually smoke. For lunch they have ditched the take-away schnitties, with 84 per cent preferring a healthy packed lunch. When it comes to entertainment 29 per cent of Millennials listen to podcasts on the job instead of talkback radio.
Punctuality is on the rise too with 57 per cent of respondents having never turned up late to a job. Baby boomers lead the pack at 61 per cent always on time. This may seem like an underwhelming statistic, but it’s not so easy when your work office is at a different location every week.
Customers seem to have noticed the improvements too. Out of a list of common tradie stereotypes only 10 per cent of respondents said their tradie had left a mess and two per cent had experienced wolf whistling. Yet the majority of respondents (56 per cent) said they had never experienced any of these stereotypes. Customers described their tradies as either very friendly and chatty (49 per cent) or friendly and quiet (48 per cent). In fact, two thirds of respondents have been so impressed that they have used the same person for multiple jobs.
The change in stereotypes can largely be put down to the internet and social media, which has democratised the process of hiring a tradie, allowing customers to rate and review trades and service businesses online.
Jeremy Levitt, CEO of ServiceSeeking.com.au, says, “Tradies can no longer get away with bad behaviour. The secret to winning more jobs is positive word of mouth and generating lots of reviews online.”
Online trades and services sites create trust in businesses by following a review system which rewards quality and eliminates tradies with negative feedback. The requirement of an ABN and appropriate licences also helps to promote safety.
