Busted: College Pro Painters, A View From The Inside
College Pro, lowering standards since 1971
For the second time in my life, I subjected myself to being hired by College Pro Painting. As a painter with more than 5 years experiences, I figured I could more than easily take on any position they had for me. With their ad’s looking for completely inexperienced young college students, I assumed that I would greatly exceed what they were expecting.
The first time I signed up for the College Pro experience, I assumed they would have a higher wage for experienced painters, or they would only higher inexperienced workers. To my surprise, they were taking experienced painter, but only offering a beginners wage. Yet and still, I was eager to get to work. With promised over time, I figured it could work out the difference.
As I continued to work my way around the house during the prepping phase, I was continually told to step down my level of performance. It wasn’t that I was doing a bad job, but they didn’t have the ‘budget’ to give such quality. This was a ridiculous way to go about things. You can’t cut down on quality just because you don’t have the budget for it.
Throughout the week that this 7 person crew was working, I kept note of more than enough hazards and unethical practices. Anything from the asbestos siding that the crew was not made aware of, to the 40 ft ladders extended all the way up without tie downs to secure them, in the 30+ mph winds. Being that the asbestos siding was old, I watched several pieces getting broken by inexperienced painters. To my surprise, although the franchisee was made aware of the breakages on the siding, he did not see it fit to tell the home owner or to offer to pay for the damages.
By the end of the week, I was more the disgusted enough. Finding out that the Franchisee (the big boss), was only 19 years old, had only painted for 2 summers (8 months). Even though I was only two years older than my boss, I could still tell that the inexperience of life, painting and the stress of trying to hold the world on his shoulders was to much. It was easy to tell that College Pro had taken advantage of this young mans time and energy.
He did not yet know how the rest of the world worked. He also was having a hard time trying to balance his business with the rest of his life, and it was easy to tell he was having issues socially, and it was effecting everything else.
I tried to talk with him about getting other jobs finished up and done right, I had only received complaints about the rest of his life. He was so hopelessly confused by his life that he no longer cared what level of quality his painters put out. College Pro painters had convinced him that he could hold the weight of the world on his own shoulders.
After being yelled at and asked to climb onto a 45* pitch without proper safety gear 50 ft up, in 45 mph hours winds, I swiftly turned in my resignation.
Now, I had told myself that I would never again apply to work for College Pro Painters again. I was very firm on this. Until I was desperate enough to feel the need to consider applying again…
As I called on an ad in the classified for a College Pro unit in Bothell, I asked the franchise owner what his ethics were based around, what the pay would be and what hours he worked his crew. I was assured that safety would be taken care of and provided properly, and that quality would be put in front of speed, I over looked the apprentice wages.
I quickly found that this apple did not fall far from the tree either. The only difference this time, was that I was not the only experienced painter on the job. Lined up next to me was a painter who had painted for several years before I had even started. Yet and still, we were both told that we were to Thorough, and that the budget could not afford for us to do so much. As much as we thought the home owner would be unhappy about this, we brought our level of quality down and continued our work. Through wind, rain and hot sun, we finished the house.
Through the whole operation, the boss must have been confused, because he kept trying to train his two experienced painters. As well and good as each boss likes things done his way, the other experienced painter and I could tell by his intermediate painting skills, that he was so convinced that College Pro had given him their badge because he had some skill above and beyond the years that we had.
We were scheduled to work 4-10’s (4 ten hour days), which would have been all well and good, if it wasn’t that we were expected to work through the day all expect for one 30 minute lunch break. The nearest bathroom was 8 miles away, and the nearest place for food was 10 miles away. Being that the bathroom and lunch was at least a 15 minute drive, that left all of enough time to pee and bring the food back with you, let a lone try to eat it while standing on a ladder with a bucket of paint.
Throughout the week we moved onto to other houses. Continuing to give only a menial effort of each job, and performing the job the way we had been asked by our boss, we were continually being yelled at for providing low quality jobs. Yet when we stepped back up to the higher quality, we were taking to long. The customers were highly dissatisfied with the low quality work that our boss told us to give, and after some time, our boss was left with only his inexperienced painting crew.
I am putting this article out to notify all of you who might in the future consider either hiring College Pro of working for College Pro. As an employee, they pay unbelievably lower than any other painters company, even for apprentices. They don’t provide you with the needed tools that they say they will, and they really need to be reported for their safety practices.
Now, I cannot say I have ever been a customer of College Pro, however, I can say I will never be one. The finished jobs have always looked worse than the house did before they touched it. They leave messes and refuse to own up to their mistakes or to pay for things they broke. They will bid you for a really good price compared to other painting companies, but they give you the worst quality.
Whether you are thinking about working for or hiring on College Pro, Beware! You can take my word for it, or find out for yourself…
