Anything that should be added?@thunderdeacon wrote:
I agree with you 100%. My experience so far with bringing this to the attention of the schedulers is that they simply don't care. Maybe they will learn they are going to need to be more flexible after the first few cycles backfire on them. Again, I agree with you. That said, I have little faith that it will do any good.
@bmttinman wrote:
I see from googling you that you are based in France and I hope that you are aware of the travel distances of your shops in the western US.
@KA047 wrote:
@bmttinman wrote:
I see from googling you that you are based in France and I hope that you are aware of the travel distances of your shops in the western US.
We are working for the US division. The France element does not apply to the decisions being made at the scheduler/shopper level.
@bmttinman wrote:
@KA047 wrote:
@bmttinman wrote:
I see from googling you that you are based in France and I hope that you are aware of the travel distances of your shops in the western US.
We are working for the US division. The France element does not apply to the decisions being made at the scheduler/shopper level.
@bmttinman wrote:
@ceasesmith When I was in business, YES I worried about my employees. Yes, I made sure that they had the right tools. I made sure that Vehicles, gas, and in some cases Hotel. It does not make sense to have lots of work if you can't get the people to do the work. Read the news and you will see that there is a shortage of skilled labor and construction labor.
I am a 1099 contractor only because the MSC does not want to pay minimum wage, pay for workers comp, Liability insurance, or anything that will take away from their bottom line.
@krattner is being paid hopefully hourly, salary, and not my commission of how many jobs that she gets done each month.
Go listen to this three-part program on labor [www.marketplace.org] and this will open your eyes to what I am trying to do.
Mystery shopping is not skilled labor. Different shops require different skill levels, but calling taking photos of gas pumps, "Skilled labor," is laughable. Is it sometimes difficult? Sure. Having the ability to read directions and follow instructions is hardly skilled labor.@bmttinman wrote:
@ceasesmith When I was in business, YES I worried about my employees. Yes, I made sure that they had the right tools. I made sure that Vehicles, gas, and in some cases Hotel. It does not make sense to have lots of work if you can't get the people to do the work. Read the news and you will see that there is a shortage of skilled labor and construction labor.
100% correct@bmttinman wrote:
I am a 1099 contractor only because the MSC does not want to pay minimum wage, pay for workers comp, Liability insurance, or anything that will take away from their bottom line.
@bmttinman wrote:
@krattner is being paid hopefully hourly, salary, and not my commission of how many jobs that she gets done each month.
@bmttinman wrote:
I put in for a route of one hundred gas shops that could be done in three weeks covering 4 states with the same pricing as previously paid and was told thru the scheduler that PM said the price was too high and would not even counter offer.
@CoolMusic wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but expecting an MSC to cover expenses which are tax-deductible seems unrealistic.
I never factor driving stats into my decision to take on a project.
I'm all about racking up as many miles as possible in order to offset as much IC income as possible.
During the early days of COVID I took a $5 job requiring an 80-mile roundtrip just to have a reason to get out of the crib for awhile.
@CoolMusic wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but expecting an MSC to cover expenses which are tax-deductible seems unrealistic.
I never factor driving stats into my decision to take on a project.
I'm all about racking up as many miles as possible in order to offset as much IC income as possible.
During the early days of COVID I took a $5 job requiring an 80-mile roundtrip just to have a reason to get out of the crib for awhile.
@CoolMusic wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but expecting an MSC to cover expenses which are tax-deductible seems unrealistic.
I never factor driving stats into my decision to take on a project.
I'm all about racking up as many miles as possible in order to offset as much IC income as possible.
During the early days of COVID I took a $5 job requiring an 80-mile roundtrip just to have a reason to get out of the crib for awhile.
@Mousegal wrote:
@CoolMusic wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but expecting an MSC to cover expenses which are tax-deductible seems unrealistic.
I never factor driving stats into my decision to take on a project.
I'm all about racking up as many miles as possible in order to offset as much IC income as possible.
During the early days of COVID I took a $5 job requiring an 80-mile roundtrip just to have a reason to get out of the crib for awhile.
I manage my tax-deductible mileage just fine, but we route shop - that is, 10-12 stations a day, on a route that will run 200-250 miles round trip. So, 10 shops at 12.50, is 125.00. 250 miles, at 57.5 cents a mile...143.75. I would be LOSING money, in realtime. Yes, I can deduct that mileage. 90% of our mileage every year is business mileage.
Taking a route that is a money-losing proposition... doesn’t make any sense. At $20 per shop, I make a small profit, and that’s a minimum for me.
@bmttinman wrote:
I am going to assume that the way you think this is one way milage. So I see 500 miles. Let us round up to $. 60.that is $ 300. You have wear on the tires, oil change, maybe a room. Let say you do 50 routes like this a year, that's $1500 that you have in tax benefits. You made $150 on the route x 50 = $7500. You changed the oil every 6000 miles at $ 75 a pop which is not tax deductible. You bought a set of tires for $1500. You have liability insurance for $750 a year. Now run the numbers and you made $5000. Divide that by $7.50 round up 667 hours you got paid for. Figure you spend 30 minutes per shop with report time that is 6 hrs x 50 equals 300 hours.plus drive time. It seems that I could make more at McDonald's working part-time in Moab UT which is paying $ 15 per hour and make more than you. I too do routes (this year is being the hardest) of 30 to 65 shops covering 4 states with 5 to 7 nights on the road and about 1500 miles per route and about 24 in a year. With my SS and my mystery shopping I made a living wage and just filed 2020 taxes and I did a Donald Trump in paying.
@Mousegal wrote:
@CoolMusic wrote:
1. No, I did mean 200-250 round trip. This is a single day route, 10 stations, all reports in after my husband gets home that night. (Mystery shopping is his primary job, along with his SS. I have a full-time job)
2. We made 17,000 from mystery shopping alone last year. While he *might* could make that working at McDonald’s, lol, he isn’t going to.
3. We write off all of our expenses, both travel, and all other business expenses - home office, etc. I’ve had this business for more than 10 years, so I have the tax issues covered. We get a refund, since I have the max held out of my check at my job. (Don’t @ me with “it’s a free loan to the gov’t”...our MS income is variable, and I don’t EVER want to end up paying in April. Whatever we make, it’s covered)
4. Liability at $750 a year? Hardly. Full coverage at $3000 a year.
5. I still don’t think it makes sense to take an 80 mile round trip shop for $5. I understand your point about balancing out the mileage over the year. I just don’t agree.
@boridi wrote:
$1500 for a set of tires? Don't use an 18-wheeler for shops.