Work Ethics

When I asked GPT to edit my article, it has done a wonderful job. But it missed out on several minute details, which are crucial points in this article highlighting our struggle. So, keeping the original, I am posting the edited version below it.

I often wonder why we Indians, particularly skilled laborers, never have work ethics. When we are ready to pay what they demand for their labor, they are least bothered to deliver according to the money we pay them. This can also be excused. But the worst scenario in it is that they do the work in such a way that we end up doing it again—sometimes using the same person. All the reasons that they give are not only illogical but also always unethical, which irritates me the most.

To extend the hose for the bore well, I consulted the person. He came and asked me to buy extra hose and air pipe. Then I showed him around 400 feet of both of those which I bought previously. But he said that he needs a different size and he noted it on paper. Then I sent one person to Hosur and bought exactly what he asked for. Then the laborer called him and asked him to buy an extra 100 feet plastic rope also to attach with the foot valve. When the material arrived, I was a bit shocked because that person bought exactly the same hose and air pipe which I already showed the worker, which he rejected. So when he came to work, I pointed out but he had no words but took it lightly and began even blaming the person who brought it from Hosur by saying why he didn’t note it when he bought. But I told him that he bought what he wrote on the paper. The same happened with all the other things which he asked us to buy from Hosur. None of them were useful and finally, he went to his own shop at Thalli and brought all the other fittings that were needed for the work. The total loss is around Rs3,500. Finally, when he completed the work, I saw the plastic rope not used. So when I asked him why he didn’t use it, he said that the people who installed the hose previously didn’t use it properly and some other reason rather than accepting his mistake. We paid him exactly what he asked for his labor (Rs 800/-) plus the bill for the extra fittings which he brought from his shop. But the water didn’t come and he began to give some other reasons for it. Finally, I noted the mistake as there was an air leakage, and he came another day to fix it and charged again for that, whereas it was his mistake as he didn’t join the pipe properly.

He is not the first person I am encountering. The same thing happened with several other laborers and even contractors. When we were constructing the dhyanamandapa, the contractor made the window exactly opposite to what we asked for. When he came, I took a paper and even drew the design. But when the windows were delivered along with other materials, I didn’t notice it. So the laborers fixed them and continued the work. As I asked the carpenter to measure the windows to buy glass, he also did it and we ordered for the glass. But when I finally noticed the mistake, the architect again asked to change as we planned. (The contractor gave the order to a subcontractor, who again gave it to some other person, and we ended up not only paying commission to all the three but incurred heavy loss). This ended up in buying glasses for a different size and all the previous glasses which we bought became waste. Added to this problem, when the carpenter measured the size and asked another person to note it, for many windows he told ‘16’ inches but the person who wrote heard it as ‘14’ (In Tamil there is just a slight difference between 16 and 14 as ‘padinaru’ and ‘padinalu’). So finally when he was fixing the glass he asked us to buy them again. When I confronted the carpenter for his mistake, he said, ‘that was not my fault. I told only 16 but he wrote as 14’. So again he ordered new glasses with 16 inches. But this time the shop owner when cutting has done the mistake (again the same 16 vs. 14). Thankfully, the carpenter knowing that I won’t accept his excuses anymore, somehow convinced the shop owner and got the glass changed he threatened that if he won’t change, he won’t buy any more things from his shop. Every skilled laborer gets a 2% discount for any bulk purchase from the shop from which they purchase regularly. Of course, the shop owner is not giving it from his pocket but ultimately we alone are paying that too. Later in order to use the waste glass, I had to make another almirah buying more materials and paying extra labor to the same carpenter.

In the same way, the plumber did the mistake while fixing the pipe and wasted lots of time and material. I told him to fix the pipe in a certain way and specifically ‘not’ to fix it in the opposite way. And when I went to do some other works and came later, he had done what I asked him not to do. In order to correct his mistakes, again he wasted time and lots of material. In the same way, when we were constructing the veranda, while fixing the wood frames for the tails, I insisted on first applying anti-termite oil and then fixing. But the carpenter (he was another person) said the big log will slip from hand when they will lift. So they would apply the oil later. But I told him he cannot do it properly and termites will damage. But he said he has done the work for the last 40 years and he knows better than me. Finally, after a week, as I feared, heavy termite damage occurred to the logs, as he cannot apply the oil where it was touching the wall very closely. Then he noticed it and silently began to apply the anti-termite oil first and leaving the log just for a day to dry, then lifted them up to fix. When I asked him why he cannot do the same before and gave excuses, he had no words. After one year, again I had to replace some part of the log, as termites damaged them again.

The same happened while painting. I told him to cover the glasses and other areas with paper or cloth and then do the painting. But not listening to me, finally he ended up spoiling the glasses and walls, for which I had to spend extra material and money to clean them all. I told him to remove the mosquito mesh first and then paint. But not doing it, he completely spoiled the mesh. When I became upset, he tried to clean with oil and did more damage. Finally, I had to change the entire mesh for one window.

In the same way, the first contractor, after putting red color on the floor, did the white washing, without covering the floor. Finally, the whole floor in the main building and other rooms got spoiled. All our efforts to clean the white spots on the floor didn’t work and the damage still remains as a witness for his mistake. When I confronted him for this he blamed the laborers who didn’t follow his instruction to cover the floor before doing the white washing. Then he recommended us to do the painting for the floor, which according to him won’t last for long. However, I told him several times before putting red color on the floor first to paint the walls and then do this work. But not listening to me by saying, he will tell them to cover the entire floor with paper so that any paint that,

In the same way, the first contractor, after putting red color on the floor, did the whitewashing without covering the floor. Finally, the whole floor in the main building and other rooms got spoiled. All our efforts to clean the white spots on the floor didn’t work, and the damage still remains as a witness to his mistake. When I confronted him for this, he blamed the laborers who didn’t follow his instruction to cover the floor before doing the whitewashing. Then he recommended us to do the painting for the floor, which according to him won’t last for long. However, I told him several times before putting red color on the floor first to paint the walls and then do this work. But not listening to me, he said he will tell them to cover the entire floor with paper so that any paint that even fell on the floor while painting the wall won’t damage the floor. But exactly the opposite happened to what I feared. Just it will take half an hour to spread paper or other material like a plastic sheet to cover the floor. But the laborers have neither patience nor time to do it as it is not their worry or responsibility to safeguard our painted floor.

One final example will help us to understand how sometimes our ignorance and lack of technical knowledge are also used by the skilled laborers to exploit us. One time the mixy grinder which I was using stopped working. When one electrician came (engaged by the contractor) to do some work, I asked him to check it. After checking it, he said that he can take it to his shop and get it repaired. So I gave it to him. After two days, he returned with the mixy and charged Rs. 200/- (two hundred). Four years ago, (in 2007) it was big money for such a minor work. When I questioned him about it, he began to explain so many complications in the mixy which took a lot of his time to fix. But his assistant was smiling. Then I asked why he is smiling. For this, the electrician said, ‘he smiles for everything I say. Never mind about it’. So I gave him what he asked. After two weeks, again I faced a similar problem. But this time, fortunately, his assistant came for some other works. And when I asked him why this happened again, he simply turned the mixy and showed a red button there and said, ‘When there is overload, the mixy will automatically stop. You have to push the button again and it will work. Last time also this was the problem. That electrician has done no repair. I too was with him in the shop. He just turned the mixy and pushed the button and it worked and he returned it back to you by telling all lies to take the money from you. That is why I smiled when he gave all kinds of complications to you. But never tell him that I told this to you. In the future, if you face a similar problem, remember this’.

There is no point in giving so many examples. One can even write a book on this, sharing all their experience. In all this, I noticed one thing: the skilled laborers have one point agenda, complete the work at the earliest and easiest way and get their money and go. Whatever damage that we face or will face in the future is not their concern. If they do by mistake or by accident, we can accept. But they do it wantonly, as the extra caution that we ask them to take will give them extra trouble and take more time. But the crime in it is that several times they ‘do not do’ what we ask them to do but ‘do’ what we specifically ask them ‘not to do’.

I don’t want to paint a bleak picture about the skilled laborers. There are genuine and good among them too. For example, the electrician (this is a different one) whom I engaged has done a wonderful job. He honestly returned back the extra materials and deducted from the final bill. Later when he came to install the inverter, he has made some mistakes. If we touch the refrigerator door, we get a mild shock. So when I contacted him, he came from Hosur (around 25 kms away from here) and checked all the connections and found a mistake done by him. He not only rectified it but also refused to take any money for it. Maybe, as he is my shishya, he refused to accept money. Anyhow, I insisted him to accept at least petrol charge.

The main reason for me to share this is to show the way middle-class people also were exploited in every way in their life, which is never noticed. People are ready to raise their voice against the exploitation of the weak and suppressed, with which I too agree. But the way middle-class people were exploited by all, remains unnoticed and no one bothered about it, including the middle class, as they are trained and forced to accept such atrocities done against them silently—as they don’t have time, money, and energy to fight against it.

The skilled laborers, in several cases, never do the work as we expect or pay for them. But the crime in it is that, instead of accepting their mistake, they began to blame someone else and never showed any kind of remorse and came forward and reduced the amount which they asked for. Their work ethics seem to be like this: ALL THE MISTAKES THEY DO AND DAMAGES THEY MAKE US FACE ARE PART OF THE CONSTRUCTION WHICH WE HAVE TO ACCEPT. In this one area, we Indians completely lack work ethics.

Dayanand Bharati. February 8, 2012

Work Ethics

Edited by Chatgpt

I often wonder why we Indians, particularly skilled laborers, never adhere to work ethics. When we are willing to pay what they demand for their labor, they are least bothered about delivering according to the value of the money we pay them. This can be excused to some extent, but the worst scenario is when they perform the work in such a way that we end up having to redo it—sometimes with the same person. The reasons they provide are not only illogical but also consistently unethical, which is extremely irritating.

To extend the hose for the bore well, I consulted with a worker. He came and asked me to purchase extra hose and an air pipe. I then showed him approximately 400 feet of both that I had bought previously. However, he insisted on a different size and noted it down on paper. Subsequently, I sent someone to Hosur to procure exactly what he had asked for. However, upon the material’s arrival, I was surprised to find that person had bought exactly the same hose and air pipe which I had previously shown the worker and which he had rejected. When confronted, he had no explanation but took it lightly and even began blaming the person who brought it from Hosur, questioning why he hadn’t noted it when purchasing. However, I reminded him that he bought what he had written on the paper. The same situation arose with all the other items he asked us to buy from Hosur—none of them were useful. Finally, he went to his own shop in Thalli and brought all the necessary fittings for the work. The total loss amounted to around Rs3,500. When the work was completed, I noticed that the plastic rope he had asked for was not used. Upon inquiry, he provided excuses rather than accepting his mistake. We paid him exactly what he had asked for his labor (Rs 800/-), plus the bill for the extra fittings he brought from his shop. However, the water did not flow, and he began giving other reasons for the issue. I eventually identified the mistake: there was an air leakage, and he returned another day to fix it, charging again for the repair, despite it being his mistake due to improper pipe connection.

He is not the first person I have encountered with such behavior. Similar incidents occurred with several other laborers and even contractors. During the construction of the dhyanamandapa, the contractor installed the window opposite to our specifications. Despite providing a detailed design, the windows were delivered incorrectly. As a result, the laborers proceeded to fix them as instructed. When I instructed the carpenter to measure the windows for glass, he did so, and we ordered the glass accordingly. However, upon noticing the mistake later, the architect requested a change. The contractor had subcontracted the job, resulting in additional commissions and significant losses. Moreover, due to a miscommunication in measurements, we had to reorder glass for many windows. When confronted about the mistake, the carpenter shifted blame, exacerbating the situation. Eventually, the carpenter rectified the error, but not without further inconvenience and expense.

Similar instances occurred with the plumber, who disregarded my instructions and wasted both time and materials by incorrectly installing pipes. Additionally, during the construction of the veranda, another carpenter ignored my advice to apply anti-termite oil before fixing wood frames, leading to extensive termite damage. Despite his experience, he failed to prevent the damage, necessitating costly repairs. Similarly, the painter’s negligence resulted in damaged walls and glasses, necessitating additional expenditure to rectify.

Furthermore, the first contractor’s failure to cover the floor before whitewashing led to significant damage. Despite his attempts to shift blame, the damage remained unresolved, highlighting the lack of accountability among skilled laborers. These incidents exemplify a prevalent trend among skilled laborers to prioritize completing tasks quickly and easily, disregarding potential consequences for the client.

However, it is important to acknowledge that not all skilled laborers exhibit such behavior. Some, like the electrician I engaged, demonstrate professionalism and honesty in their work. This electrician rectified his mistakes at no extra cost and refused payment for additional repairs. His exemplary conduct contrasts sharply with the unethical practices of others in the industry.

In conclusion, the experiences outlined above illustrate the exploitation faced by middle-class individuals at the hands of skilled laborers. Despite paying for quality workmanship, clients often encounter negligence, incompetence, and a lack of accountability. The prevailing work ethic among many skilled laborers prioritizes expediency over quality, resulting in substandard outcomes and financial losses for clients. It is imperative that such issues are addressed to ensure fair and transparent practices within the construction industry.

Dayanand Bharati 

February 8, 2012

When I asked GPT to edit my article, it has done a wonderful job. But it missed out on several minute details, which are crucial points in this article highlighting our struggle. So, keeping the original, I am posting the edited version below it.

I often wonder why we Indians, particularly skilled laborers, never have work ethics. When we are ready to pay what they demand for their labor, they are least bothered to deliver according to the money we pay them. This can also be excused. But the worst scenario in it is that they do the work in such a way that we end up doing it again—sometimes using the same person. All the reasons that they give are not only illogical but also always unethical, which irritates me the most.

To extend the hose for the bore well, I consulted the person. He came and asked me to buy extra hose and air pipe. Then I showed him around 400 feet of both of those which I bought previously. But he said that he needs a different size and he noted it on paper. Then I sent one person to Hosur and bought exactly what he asked for. Then the laborer called him and asked him to buy an extra 100 feet plastic rope also to attach with the foot valve. When the material arrived, I was a bit shocked because that person bought exactly the same hose and air pipe which I already showed the worker, which he rejected. So when he came to work, I pointed out but he had no words but took it lightly and began even blaming the person who brought it from Hosur by saying why he didn’t note it when he bought. But I told him that he bought what he wrote on the paper. The same happened with all the other things which he asked us to buy from Hosur. None of them were useful and finally, he went to his own shop at Thalli and brought all the other fittings that were needed for the work. The total loss is around Rs3,500. Finally, when he completed the work, I saw the plastic rope not used. So when I asked him why he didn’t use it, he said that the people who installed the hose previously didn’t use it properly and some other reason rather than accepting his mistake. We paid him exactly what he asked for his labor (Rs 800/-) plus the bill for the extra fittings which he brought from his shop. But the water didn’t come and he began to give some other reasons for it. Finally, I noted the mistake as there was an air leakage, and he came another day to fix it and charged again for that, whereas it was his mistake as he didn’t join the pipe properly.

He is not the first person I am encountering. The same thing happened with several other laborers and even contractors. When we were constructing the dhyanamandapa, the contractor made the window exactly opposite to what we asked for. When he came, I took a paper and even drew the design. But when the windows were delivered along with other materials, I didn’t notice it. So the laborers fixed them and continued the work. As I asked the carpenter to measure the windows to buy glass, he also did it and we ordered for the glass. But when I finally noticed the mistake, the architect again asked to change as we planned. (The contractor gave the order to a subcontractor, who again gave it to some other person, and we ended up not only paying commission to all the three but incurred heavy loss). This ended up in buying glasses for a different size and all the previous glasses which we bought became waste. Added to this problem, when the carpenter measured the size and asked another person to note it, for many windows he told ‘16’ inches but the person who wrote heard it as ‘14’ (In Tamil there is just a slight difference between 16 and 14 as ‘padinaru’ and ‘padinalu’). So finally when he was fixing the glass he asked us to buy them again. When I confronted the carpenter for his mistake, he said, ‘that was not my fault. I told only 16 but he wrote as 14’. So again he ordered new glasses with 16 inches. But this time the shop owner when cutting has done the mistake (again the same 16 vs. 14). Thankfully, the carpenter knowing that I won’t accept his excuses anymore, somehow convinced the shop owner and got the glass changed he threatened that if he won’t change, he won’t buy any more things from his shop. Every skilled laborer gets a 2% discount for any bulk purchase from the shop from which they purchase regularly. Of course, the shop owner is not giving it from his pocket but ultimately we alone are paying that too. Later in order to use the waste glass, I had to make another almirah buying more materials and paying extra labor to the same carpenter.

In the same way, the plumber did the mistake while fixing the pipe and wasted lots of time and material. I told him to fix the pipe in a certain way and specifically ‘not’ to fix it in the opposite way. And when I went to do some other works and came later, he had done what I asked him not to do. In order to correct his mistakes, again he wasted time and lots of material. In the same way, when we were constructing the veranda, while fixing the wood frames for the tails, I insisted on first applying anti-termite oil and then fixing. But the carpenter (he was another person) said the big log will slip from hand when they will lift. So they would apply the oil later. But I told him he cannot do it properly and termites will damage. But he said he has done the work for the last 40 years and he knows better than me. Finally, after a week, as I feared, heavy termite damage occurred to the logs, as he cannot apply the oil where it was touching the wall very closely. Then he noticed it and silently began to apply the anti-termite oil first and leaving the log just for a day to dry, then lifted them up to fix. When I asked him why he cannot do the same before and gave excuses, he had no words. After one year, again I had to replace some part of the log, as termites damaged them again.

The same happened while painting. I told him to cover the glasses and other areas with paper or cloth and then do the painting. But not listening to me, finally he ended up spoiling the glasses and walls, for which I had to spend extra material and money to clean them all. I told him to remove the mosquito mesh first and then paint. But not doing it, he completely spoiled the mesh. When I became upset, he tried to clean with oil and did more damage. Finally, I had to change the entire mesh for one window.

In the same way, the first contractor, after putting red color on the floor, did the white washing, without covering the floor. Finally, the whole floor in the main building and other rooms got spoiled. All our efforts to clean the white spots on the floor didn’t work and the damage still remains as a witness for his mistake. When I confronted him for this he blamed the laborers who didn’t follow his instruction to cover the floor before doing the white washing. Then he recommended us to do the painting for the floor, which according to him won’t last for long. However, I told him several times before putting red color on the floor first to paint the walls and then do this work. But not listening to me by saying, he will tell them to cover the entire floor with paper so that any paint that,

In the same way, the first contractor, after putting red color on the floor, did the whitewashing without covering the floor. Finally, the whole floor in the main building and other rooms got spoiled. All our efforts to clean the white spots on the floor didn’t work, and the damage still remains as a witness to his mistake. When I confronted him for this, he blamed the laborers who didn’t follow his instruction to cover the floor before doing the whitewashing. Then he recommended us to do the painting for the floor, which according to him won’t last for long. However, I told him several times before putting red color on the floor first to paint the walls and then do this work. But not listening to me, he said he will tell them to cover the entire floor with paper so that any paint that even fell on the floor while painting the wall won’t damage the floor. But exactly the opposite happened to what I feared. Just it will take half an hour to spread paper or other material like a plastic sheet to cover the floor. But the laborers have neither patience nor time to do it as it is not their worry or responsibility to safeguard our painted floor.

One final example will help us to understand how sometimes our ignorance and lack of technical knowledge are also used by the skilled laborers to exploit us. One time the mixy grinder which I was using stopped working. When one electrician came (engaged by the contractor) to do some work, I asked him to check it. After checking it, he said that he can take it to his shop and get it repaired. So I gave it to him. After two days, he returned with the mixy and charged Rs. 200/- (two hundred). Four years ago, (in 2007) it was big money for such a minor work. When I questioned him about it, he began to explain so many complications in the mixy which took a lot of his time to fix. But his assistant was smiling. Then I asked why he is smiling. For this, the electrician said, ‘he smiles for everything I say. Never mind about it’. So I gave him what he asked. After two weeks, again I faced a similar problem. But this time, fortunately, his assistant came for some other works. And when I asked him why this happened again, he simply turned the mixy and showed a red button there and said, ‘When there is overload, the mixy will automatically stop. You have to push the button again and it will work. Last time also this was the problem. That electrician has done no repair. I too was with him in the shop. He just turned the mixy and pushed the button and it worked and he returned it back to you by telling all lies to take the money from you. That is why I smiled when he gave all kinds of complications to you. But never tell him that I told this to you. In the future, if you face a similar problem, remember this’.

There is no point in giving so many examples. One can even write a book on this, sharing all their experience. In all this, I noticed one thing: the skilled laborers have one point agenda, complete the work at the earliest and easiest way and get their money and go. Whatever damage that we face or will face in the future is not their concern. If they do by mistake or by accident, we can accept. But they do it wantonly, as the extra caution that we ask them to take will give them extra trouble and take more time. But the crime in it is that several times they ‘do not do’ what we ask them to do but ‘do’ what we specifically ask them ‘not to do’.

I don’t want to paint a bleak picture about the skilled laborers. There are genuine and good among them too. For example, the electrician (this is a different one) whom I engaged has done a wonderful job. He honestly returned back the extra materials and deducted from the final bill. Later when he came to install the inverter, he has made some mistakes. If we touch the refrigerator door, we get a mild shock. So when I contacted him, he came from Hosur (around 25 kms away from here) and checked all the connections and found a mistake done by him. He not only rectified it but also refused to take any money for it. Maybe, as he is my shishya, he refused to accept money. Anyhow, I insisted him to accept at least petrol charge.

The main reason for me to share this is to show the way middle-class people also were exploited in every way in their life, which is never noticed. People are ready to raise their voice against the exploitation of the weak and suppressed, with which I too agree. But the way middle-class people were exploited by all, remains unnoticed and no one bothered about it, including the middle class, as they are trained and forced to accept such atrocities done against them silently—as they don’t have time, money, and energy to fight against it.

The skilled laborers, in several cases, never do the work as we expect or pay for them. But the crime in it is that, instead of accepting their mistake, they began to blame someone else and never showed any kind of remorse and came forward and reduced the amount which they asked for. Their work ethics seem to be like this: ALL THE MISTAKES THEY DO AND DAMAGES THEY MAKE US FACE ARE PART OF THE CONSTRUCTION WHICH WE HAVE TO ACCEPT. In this one area, we Indians completely lack work ethics.

Dayanand Bharati. February 8, 2012

Work Ethics

Edited by Chatgpt

I often wonder why we Indians, particularly skilled laborers, never adhere to work ethics. When we are willing to pay what they demand for their labor, they are least bothered about delivering according to the value of the money we pay them. This can be excused to some extent, but the worst scenario is when they perform the work in such a way that we end up having to redo it—sometimes with the same person. The reasons they provide are not only illogical but also consistently unethical, which is extremely irritating.

To extend the hose for the bore well, I consulted with a worker. He came and asked me to purchase extra hose and an air pipe. I then showed him approximately 400 feet of both that I had bought previously. However, he insisted on a different size and noted it down on paper. Subsequently, I sent someone to Hosur to procure exactly what he had asked for. However, upon the material’s arrival, I was surprised to find that person had bought exactly the same hose and air pipe which I had previously shown the worker and which he had rejected. When confronted, he had no explanation but took it lightly and even began blaming the person who brought it from Hosur, questioning why he hadn’t noted it when purchasing. However, I reminded him that he bought what he had written on the paper. The same situation arose with all the other items he asked us to buy from Hosur—none of them were useful. Finally, he went to his own shop in Thalli and brought all the necessary fittings for the work. The total loss amounted to around Rs3,500. When the work was completed, I noticed that the plastic rope he had asked for was not used. Upon inquiry, he provided excuses rather than accepting his mistake. We paid him exactly what he had asked for his labor (Rs 800/-), plus the bill for the extra fittings he brought from his shop. However, the water did not flow, and he began giving other reasons for the issue. I eventually identified the mistake: there was an air leakage, and he returned another day to fix it, charging again for the repair, despite it being his mistake due to improper pipe connection.

He is not the first person I have encountered with such behavior. Similar incidents occurred with several other laborers and even contractors. During the construction of the dhyanamandapa, the contractor installed the window opposite to our specifications. Despite providing a detailed design, the windows were delivered incorrectly. As a result, the laborers proceeded to fix them as instructed. When I instructed the carpenter to measure the windows for glass, he did so, and we ordered the glass accordingly. However, upon noticing the mistake later, the architect requested a change. The contractor had subcontracted the job, resulting in additional commissions and significant losses. Moreover, due to a miscommunication in measurements, we had to reorder glass for many windows. When confronted about the mistake, the carpenter shifted blame, exacerbating the situation. Eventually, the carpenter rectified the error, but not without further inconvenience and expense.

Similar instances occurred with the plumber, who disregarded my instructions and wasted both time and materials by incorrectly installing pipes. Additionally, during the construction of the veranda, another carpenter ignored my advice to apply anti-termite oil before fixing wood frames, leading to extensive termite damage. Despite his experience, he failed to prevent the damage, necessitating costly repairs. Similarly, the painter’s negligence resulted in damaged walls and glasses, necessitating additional expenditure to rectify.

Furthermore, the first contractor’s failure to cover the floor before whitewashing led to significant damage. Despite his attempts to shift blame, the damage remained unresolved, highlighting the lack of accountability among skilled laborers. These incidents exemplify a prevalent trend among skilled laborers to prioritize completing tasks quickly and easily, disregarding potential consequences for the client.

However, it is important to acknowledge that not all skilled laborers exhibit such behavior. Some, like the electrician I engaged, demonstrate professionalism and honesty in their work. This electrician rectified his mistakes at no extra cost and refused payment for additional repairs. His exemplary conduct contrasts sharply with the unethical practices of others in the industry.

In conclusion, the experiences outlined above illustrate the exploitation faced by middle-class individuals at the hands of skilled laborers. Despite paying for quality workmanship, clients often encounter negligence, incompetence, and a lack of accountability. The prevailing work ethic among many skilled laborers prioritizes expediency over quality, resulting in substandard outcomes and financial losses for clients. It is imperative that such issues are addressed to ensure fair and transparent practices within the construction industry.

Dayanand Bharati 

February 8, 2012