Campaign for an electrician's licence scheme...Please Read...

[dingledong]

if there was a tradesman court where the cowboys bodgers and other people had to go to if a complaint was made and proven then it would stop some of the cowboys but not all

 

[RexT]

Hi dingledong,

It seems that the current law is not being enforced as the guys who are qualified, notifying the work correctly, being members of the approved body etc and trying to make an honest living are being undercut by guys who are only in it for a 'quick buck'. It is very serious a lots of peoples lives are being put at risk by poor installation practice by the ones who do not really know the trade.

Hopefully it will get sorted out.

Best wishes

Rex

 

[UNG]

just think about all the good bar people who had to stop working in bars and pubs due to the individual licenses that came in.....a lot of money to do the course.....very expensive and few pubs willing to pay...so have to part with cash themselves

Not all bar staff have to hold a Personal Licence to serve alcohol, although you do need one to become a premises licensee so you picked a bad example there

I'm all for it..

If I wanted to be an electrician then I would do all it took to get the licence if this was the career I so badly wanted.

If I was already an electrician then I would take what ever courses I needed to take to be issued with a licence..

If they bring this licence out and your an electrician that would be worried about loosing work because you didn't have a licence then do what is required to gain your licence, simple. if your good at what you do have the knowledge and high standards of work then you will have no worries.

Who is worried about this and why?

Maybe this would put the quick training providers under more scrutiny and start raising the standards to what they were

OK but does the JIB card & their checks on peoples qualifications / competence stop them going out & doing shoddy / dangerous work after they've got it ?: NO the same as Part P has'nt stopped the Cowboys in the domestic side, if anything there are more of them. NIC check peoples work etc but does that stop a lot of NIC registered contractors doing shoddy work ? NO of course it does'nt, so why do people think that a Licence is going to do any better.

In my opinion over the years the standard of training has slipped and so the assessment standards have been lowered in order for the assessment bodies to remain viable

the companies also need to get the apprenticeship scheme back on course,real training over real time regardless of age,

This is what is needed to improve the standards and image of the electrical industry

As I Said the EAWR cover competency

Reg 16. Persons to be competent to prevent danger and injury

No person shall be engaged in any work activity where technical knowledge or experience is necessary to prevent danger or, where appropriate, injury, unless he possesses such knowledge or experience, or is under such degree of supervision as may be appropriate having regard to the nature of the work

We have legislation we need to petition to have it enforced with prosecution for any infringement

I don't see how the Electricity At Work Act could be used to prevent poor installation work that may not necessarily cause danger or injury

if there was a tradesman court where the cowboys bodgers and other people had to go to if a complaint was made and proven then it would stop some of the cowboys but not all

It wouldn't they would do what most criminals do now and not turn up to face the music


Whatever method is used even showing a licence to buy electrical equipment it would probably just create a black market for electrical equipment somewhere

 

[darking]

Well for shoddy but not dangerous work, the Trading Act could be applied as the product (their work) would not be fit for purpose. We have the legislation, we need to have it applied vigorously and if we petition government EVERY time that there is an infringement causing death or damage they will have to act. You know where your local Lib dem or conservative MP lives. Email, write, go to their office and bang the drum

If we don't who will?

 

[billynoband]

It's already too complicated, a licence would turn it into something akin to the Freemasons to get into which it is not far from anyway, don't encourage the regulatory bodies.
Speaking as someone who has been away from the trade for 12 years as a carer I stand aside, watch and tut.
I dismay at the number of training courses available. I applied for a job as NVQ electrical assesor and the college did'nt even recognise my g&g 236, I think they knew what my 2381 was (this was in 2006) but then asked me if I had a level 3 course which is what 2381 is.
The 16 and 17th additions are a good idea regards testing. If they had kept c&g 236 part 1 and 2, added one compulsory testing part for work then you would'nt have all this confusion and spend time policing the trade instead of creating more money grabbing training courses. The brits stand back and take it.
The recent g&g courses are more of the same that we did 20 years ago and the testing is nothing new either. We used to test to similar standards back then with the 15th edition. Surprisingly in the 80s you could buy a circuit breakers and elcb's.
Only thing that has really changed is the training courses have been extended by c&g and the regulation enforcers, split up, made longer and most important of all the cost has rocketed and training has been made into a multi-million pound business that cannot now shrink as there is now money to be printed and huge director wages shared. This is a closed shop instead of a electricians course for people that have the aptitude to do the job and the brits stand back and take it.
They will only make it more expensive to keep your training up to date. Expect a 18th edition soon then the 19th soon after that . Then dna swabs, fingerprint and regular drug testing for all licence holders and the British will open their wallets and say here you are c&g/nvq,regulation bodies and IEE (I know there called something else now), whatever you say. Would'nt happen in the rest of europe.

 

[michael0766]

If C&G are cutting some of their electrical courses - whats left 17th edition and part p - not required in scotland - I wonder ???

 

[bibzo]

You can get a lorry licence for £1500 ,sit on your --- all day, heater on £13 ph

 

[jharrington]

You can get a lorry licence for £1500 ,sit on your --- all day, heater on £13 ph

Train drivers earn £15 p/h lol

 

[costarepairs]

Hi all new here, but thought I'd give my tupence worth seeing as its relevant..!
I currently work, for the district council repairing and installing commercial and domestic equipment, in homes, schools, hospitals, anything council owned..However!! I am not qualified to do so..I am very competent, I trained as an electrical/mechanical engineer and had my 16th. But currently I am just a competent person. But I do, single and 3 phase installation and repair, I repair heavy plant machinery and my work is NEVER inspected. Surely this can't be right!
Not trying to get myself in trouble, but I often wonder if what I'm doing is legal.
Will be interested to see what you guys think..

 

[Dillon148]

the thing that relly gets on my t*ts is the fact that joiners and plumbers that have done a 17th edition and have an idea how to wire a boiler /kitchen but has no idea why it needs to be done this way or even what any of the readings they get mean can become part p , i aint gas safe if i am on a job that needs any gas doing i get one in why cant they get an electrician in ? electricians seem to have the p**s taken from all angles , i mean how many home owners no about notifiable jobs in fact how many polish no ?

rant over

 

[Lazzyshot]

agreed

 

[grantr37]

read the posts about cowboy sparks

 

[garrywatters]

Seriously doubt that a licence for Electricians will stop the Cowboys or Joe blogs down the road from doing Electrical work. No matter what license you have there will still be Cowboys doing work, they have Licensed Electricians in America & it sure has'nt stopped the butchers doing Electrics. Not only that but how is this Licence going to work to stop the Qualified Cowboy ? Don't know about you but i've seen many bad / dangerous jobs carried out by fully qualified Electricians, how is any License going to stop them ?.

In Australia mate the licencing works fine! If your house burns down and it's proven to be electrical then the insurance pay out....provided the work is registered to a licenced sparky! If not then no pay out, surprising how many people won't use a an unlicensed spark over here! And by licensed I mean fully qualified and competent, having passed the exams and tests required and renewing every 5 years!

 

[grantr37]

In Australia mate the licencing works fine! If your house burns down and it's proven to be electrical then the insurance pay out....provided the work is registered to a licenced sparky! If not then no pay out, surprising how many people won't use a an unlicensed spark over here! And by licensed I mean fully qualified and competent, having passed the exams and tests required and renewing every 5 years!

THIS IS NOT AUSTRALIA, IT IS VERY DIFFERENT OVER HERE, this place is a lot more expensive for everything and the standards of living and employment are quite a bit lower.

If the Licence comes in here, a lot of UK sparks (providing access is allowed with immigration quotas) will end up moving to Australia......then there will be less work for your lot.....but I don't think they will allow that many more people in, unlike here where it is an open door with hundreds of thousands of new people coming in every year and mostly staying long term...sending their wages abroad...

 

[garrywatters]

THIS IS NOT AUSTRALIA, IT IS VERY DIFFERENT OVER HERE, this place is a lot more expensive for everything and the standards of living and employment are quite a bit lower.

If the Licence comes in here, a lot of UK sparks (providing access is allowed with immigration quotas) will end up moving to Australia......then there will be less work for your lot.....but I don't think they will allow that many more people in, unlike here where it is an open door with hundreds of thousands of new people coming in every year and mostly staying long term...sending their wages abroad...

I know it's not Australia where you are! I am an immigrant myself over here, came over about 5 years ago from UK as I could see how low the country had got and see it still hadn't bottomed out even then! The whole point of the licence system is to act as a deterrent for those who are not qualified! You have to have your quals verified over here and then go through the mill of testing your knowledge and skills! Unlike UK they won't just let any dross in, still you've always got the choice of going across the water and working in the EU(SSR)!

 

[austinwardill]

I tend to agree with that