New research from Local Heroes shows they love keeping fit, literature and politics.
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Nine in ten tradespeople are happy in their career
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Out: bacon sandwiches, fry-ups and pies. In: five-a-day, and visits to the gym
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Tradespeople enjoy eight political discussions each week
New research from Local Heroes, a digital service that helps people to find trusted local tradespeople, has highlighted that while the nation’s tradespeople still enjoy tea, biscuits and a bacon sandwich, most skilled labourers are shrugging off their old-fashioned image and challenging stereotypes.
According to the independent national research*, four in ten tradespeople said the most common misconception about them is that they are sexist; while more a fifth (23%) said people think they do not provide accurate quotes, and nearly half (45%) complained of being pigeon-holed as unreliable. Despite this, the vast majority (90%) of tradespeople said they were happy in their career and more than 80% said they would not choose another career path if they could have their time again.
Challenging the misconception that tradespeople lead an unhealthy lifestyle, nearly two-thirds (64%) said they visit the gym at least once a week and more than a fifth (23%) eat their five-a-day most days. Furthermore, the notion that tradespeople regularly eat bacon sandwiches, fry-ups and pies is questionable– respondents most commonly said they ate these food items just once a week.
When it comes to refreshments, tradespeople are no strangers to a hot drink while on the job. On average, they drink 16 cups of tea and 15 cups of coffee each week. Both are accompanied by 13 biscuits: chocolate digestives are the accompanying snack of choice.
It is no surprise that tradespeople are constantly on the move. The findings show that each week they clock up an average of 85 miles in their van, drop-off or collect children from school five times and, whilst doing these activities, sing along to 15 songs on the radio.
The stereotype of tradespeople discussing only sports, cars and sex is also shown to be unfounded—the survey shows that in fact, tradespeople engage in political discussions on average eight times a week, and read a book as often as 10 times a week.
Mat Moakes, Director of Local Heroes, commented on the survey: “The findings may be surprising to some, but we know from the interaction we have with the 1,900 independent tradespeople in our network that this is the true picture -- it confirms our view that tradespeople in Britain love their jobs, work hard and look after their health.
“For anyone looking to hire a tradesperson to carry out work in their home, you can get peace of mind by making sure that you look for fully qualified and insured professionals, and obtain a full quote before work commences.”
The average tradesperson in weekly figures
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Eats 13 chocolate digestive biscuits
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Drinks 16 cups of tea
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Drinks 15 coffees
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Has 8 political debates
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Drives 85 miles
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Sings along to 15 songs
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Reads a book 10 times
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One in five cleans their vehicle
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Sends 19 texts to the other half
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Spends 8 hours on social media
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90 percent are happy in their career
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85 percent said they would choose the same career if they had their time again
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Spends 4 hours in the pub
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Drinks 11 pints
And finally, 80 percent of tradespeople describe themselves as ‘very’ or ‘quite’ sensitive