Another unforgettable and bloody experience of owner builder
Home builder by law it is home owner who have knowledge on building homes, and have ability to build, and he will do the work himself. But the silly California law have another explanation to issue building permit by as long as owner declare he or she will hire license contractor to do the work.
The reason to have this clause because government authority want to make sure either owner do the work himself with worker’s compensation insurance exemption, or owner get some license contractor to cover worker’s compensation insurance
Some owner builder some time like us, we are professional builder and contractor. We can do everything ourselves, and we have all the tool and equipment. During business slow time, we do most of our work really by ourselves. Even when we are very busy we have a few project together, then we start hiring sub contractor. Even this case, most our subcontractor are sole preparatory which means the owner of those subcontractor work himself without and employee. So they are exempt from worker’s compensation insurance. But in resent years. Many owners try to cut corner by save all contractor’s overhead, which include worker’s compensation insurance, employee payroll tax, cooperation company income tax …. By pull out owner permit, the go to Homedepo, hire some temporary labor with or without working permit in United State. Pay every one in cash and try to pretend all work being done by them. Actually not doing themselves.
In California bay area a lot of realtor, high tech engineer, some new immigration. With deep pocket from other country. They enjoy the risk taking and bigger money profit.
Couple of month ago, in Fremont California. One Mexican worker was killed by land slide during unlawful construction work.
Owner hired bought a land up on the hill, try to build a big custom house. They hired a realtor who some owner built house in this area this few years to be a construction management. And this realtor construction manager hired another superintendent who has not enough knowledge to manage construction to do the job site watching for him.
Build home up on the hill site is not an easy and same job as home alternation or home addition in flat lot.
As a professional builder, we will pay extra money on top of our regular construction general liability insurance and also pay higher premium on worker’s compensation if any worker working under deep dirt cut below 3 feet. And on the other hand we will spent a lot extra money on doing preset safety shoring and site safety training and watch for the crew.
As of all construction insurance requirements, the whole system tie on the payroll and California occupational safety association requirement to get benefit paid if any unexpected thing happens.
Unfortunately this owner has nothing to prevent this sad thing happen. The cut about nine feet high dirt on the hill without any shoring, and start build foundation under the dirt cut. And they have no any safety program to watch it Suring construction, the worker come form temporary labor who looking for job in front of Homedepo. The superintendent and construction manage all cutting corner habit guy.
God give them a chance because there is one city inspector drive through their project during other inspection duty time, and see this job site just nothing look professional, so the inspector went back this construction site and drop stop work notice to that superintendent. Guess what? The guy didn’t notice owner and his realtor boss. And rush up his crew work Saturday and Sunday since city office closed during the weekend.
What a sad drama happened. Even this winter hardly had some rain in bay area; it is rain in that weekend, the big chunk of dirt slide down from hill buried on worker. They have no heavy equipment on the site, and the superintendent have no sense to deal this kind of emergency, by the time they dig the worker’s head out of the dirt, he already pass out. A Young life, during the economic down turn, just tries to work hard and get some money for him and his family lost his life. He just a worker, a hard working worker willing to work in the weekend. And deep pocket owner try to use him to make more money for themselves and the none professional realtor construction manager try to get some side job money out side being a realtor during housing recession.
Now what? During this happen, the realtor construction manager out of country in his home town country, and won’t come back. Even he come back he is just a manager as owner employee. Unless he have construction contract with owner as a licensed contractor, and he did provide all insurance to the owner before the project start. Other wise the owner will have to cover him for all the liability as well.
And now this owner will face the entire multiple
Lawsuit on braking up labor law, safety law, tax law and criminal law…..and this owner financially have unlimited liability form his entire asset. And no matter what, the young life can not be back
