By Talal Al-Qashqari
Al-Madina
SOME expatriate construction workers use crooked tricks and easily deceive citizens. In fact, a large number of citizens fall for the tricks except those who have already become victims to the tricks earlier. Let me explain some of these tricks.
Most non-Saudi construction workers claim that they provided their services to well-known figures in society when they did not. They only say that in order to convince the customer of their capability and make them agree to the price of service offered by them, which is of course very high.
If you agree with the construction worker on finishing a certain task within a certain time, you will discover that the worker will never honor the deadline. He might skip work a day or two then claim that he has had a problem with his sponsor and has not been able to show up on time. He will say he did not have any option but had to do what his sponsor asked him.
The truth is that he did not have any problem with his sponsor; he simply was working somewhere else to earn more money. He is working at your home and someone else’s home at the same time. The sponsor has nothing to do with it.
If the construction worker brings another expatriate worker with him at your home and claims him to be his assistant, you should not believe him. The second worker is most probably subcontracted by the first one. Sub-contracted workers are used a lot in the construction market and it is profitable. You sign a contract with a company to implement a certain project for one million Saudi riyals. The company will go and sign a sub-contract with another company for SR700,000 and this company might sign a similar subcontract with a third company for SR500,000. It goes on like that.
If the construction worker brings another worker and recommends him to you, you should know that the second had agreed to come with the first one against a commission. My advice to you is to drive the price down so that they do not overcharge you.
