Author: Dan Stout | March 14, 2023

Any roofing crew or business owner knows there's a distinction between the roofer's craft and the roofing business. Craft is all about doing the job well and providing a secure, dry covering safely and efficiently. But the business of roofing is about learning how to do that same work while also turning a profit.

Too many excellent roofers go out of business when their expenses spiral out of control. One key step to avoiding this fate is learning how to reduce labor costs.

The First Defense: Quality Workers

It's important to not confuse reducing labor costs with reducing labor wages. Lower-wage workers are traditionally less experienced, and in a tight labor market (like the one we're currently experiencing), pinching pennies today will cost you dollars tomorrow.

Workers who are paid a fair market wage are more likely to stick with you for a longer period, reducing turnover and increasing experience and institutional memory. That's not to say that you need to overspend on wages. Many workers will be just as interested in benefits such as vacations, tool allowances or training. Structured properly, these benefits can have a lower net cost than simply paying higher wages.

In fact, having a few key veterans on your team allows you to bring in less experienced (and less highly-paid) workers who can learn through on-the-job training and become exceptional workers in their own right.

The same attitude also applies to subcontractors. You should absolutely negotiate contracts and costs, but if you consistently beat up your subs over pricing, you'll soon find that only the most desperate subcontractors will take your jobs.

Proper Planning and Organization

It can be tempting to underestimate the cost of materials when planning a job, especially if a customer is pressuring you to come in lower on a bid. But is it really worth signing a job if you're going to end up paying the crew to sit idle, waiting for additional materials to arrive?

Similarly, an organized job site can make a world of difference in terms of labor costs. If your workers spend more time stacking and unstacking materials instead of actually laying down a roof, it's hard to be profitable. The crew lead (whether that's you or an employee) needs to ensure workers can do their job with a minimum of obstacles. That organization beings with material delivery.

There's nothing more frustrating than delayed or inaccurate materials. Organizing delivery logistics can be a headache, so seek out a quality vendor who'll keep things running smoothly, from delivery to returns. In a way, a trusted vendor is like a salary-free employee.

Trust but Verify

In the roofing business, trust is essential, including bringing on trusted workers and vendors. But it's one thing to trust, and it's another thing to trust blindly. Employees and vendors should understand you'll be checking to make sure a job is done properly and that there will be ramifications if you're not satisfied.

Reduce Labor Costs, Not Quality

It's imperative not to pressure workers to work faster or to thin out crews too much. Often the "faster with fewer" mindset overtakes roofing companies, and it almost never ends well. While there's nothing wrong with running lean, running too lean forces crew members to take shortcuts in terms of quality and safety. Shortchanging craft results in excess warranty calls — and shortchanging safety can result in serious injury, workers comp claims and high employee turnover. It's just not worth it!

No matter the size of your roofing business, learning to control costs is an essential step on the road to success. By investing in trusted workers and working with quality vendors and subcontractors, you can lower your overall labor costs and maintain a healthy profit margin.

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