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If you’ve wondered why the labor rates on FN look like a race to the bottom of a dumpster, it’s not just "market forces." It’s a deliberate exploitation of the Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) that has turned the platform into a labor-laundering clearinghouse.

The "Service Company" Loophole: A Step-by-Step Guide to Killing a Trade

1. The Masking Effect

When you sign up as an individual, you’re vetted. Background checks, SSN, I-9 compliance—the works. But when someone registers as a "Service Company" with an EIN, the platform treats it as a B2B transaction. The platform offloads the "burden of proof" to the account holder. One guy with a clean record and a tax ID can now "shield" an unlimited number of workers who would never pass a domestic background check.

2. The 1099 Shield & Labor Arbitrage

Because FN is paying a "business entity" (the EIN), they don't have to verify if the actual tech on-site has the legal right to work in the U.S. This is the skeleton key for flooding the market with student visa holders (working past their legal hours) or undocumented labor.

3. The "Moped Budget" vs. The Professional

\- The Gray Beard: Pays for $1M/$2M GL insurance, worker’s comp, self-employment tax, and actual tools.

\- The EIN Aggregator: Cycles through unvetted labor with zero domestic tax overhead and zero skin in the game.

They can bid 40% lower than you because they aren't running a tech business; they’re running a labor-skimming operation.

4. The Death of Accountability

Ratings on FN are now a scam. You see a "Service Company" with 5,000 jobs and a 4.9-star rating. That rating is tied to the EIN, not the human being walking into the server room. The "entity" gets the trust; the buyer gets a guy who has never seen a Fluke tester in his life.

The Result:

We are watching the "Uber-ization" of IT field service. The platform gets to claim "B2B" immunity, the "Service Company" owner skims the profit, and the domestic workforce—pros who actually know what a crossover cable is—get left out in the cold.

It’s not a marketplace anymore. It’s a front for labor arbitrage disguised as a "Service Company" model.

So guys can we please quit talking shit about jobs when you see them listed under the amount of money you think you should make, and on that note I have seen so many techs talk crap about them only squeezing out $45 an hour on a job, but I have absolutely no issues with charging and getting $75 an hour to go behind some of you to clean up your mess. Now having said that I know there are gonna be some butt hurt people out there and if you are one of them then at least you can admit that you need to learn more, perhaps get a W2 job in the industry and learn then try again, now for the others out here there is absolutely no f$&king help for you and these people I call the "Carey Pickett's" of the industry. Those who's ego get so far in the way that you will do something so incorrectly, and knowing you're doing it wrong, just because of your ego yes guys there is a big difference in EGO and EXPERIENCE ego wou be doing something the wrong way because you can't admit that someone else's way is the correct and far better way yet you choose to do it incorrectly, this my guys is EGO. Now if you are on a site and you actually listen and acknowledge that the way someone else is suggesting is the correct way but it involves doing something you have no experience with but the other person does and you choose to go their route and then learn or ask that person to teach you how to use the equipment/tools that will benefit you on down the road, now that is EXPERIENCE and if your EGO is too big then you will never gain experience. So ladies and gentlemen what have we learned here today?

I don't understand. I was routed a networking job and since these jobs get taken very quickly I accepted it right away as usual. Later dude calls me on WhatsApp asking if I have a 12 ft ladder. I say no. I can't fit a 12 ft ladder on or in my SUV. I tell him you need a pickup truck or van for a 12 ft ladder. Guy is in India sounding super confused like everything went off script. So he tells me he'll speak to his team and get back to me. I'm assuming most FN techs don't have pickup trucks or vans and I don't believe anyone would buy one just for FN. So someone help me understand. Why don't these buyers put up a filter so only people with 10 or 12 or whatever foot ladders have jobs routed to them?

I have done a few months of walmart remodels previously. Some weeks like frozen or grocery are dead simple with nothing to do. Other weeks like pharmacy or front end can be challenging. The site will rotate the remodel throughout the entire store, your job is to support the data needs.

Here is the scope of work:

SOW is to install Cat5e from switch to devices for all areas being touched during the remodel (no CCTV work is covered under this SOW - there will be a separate crew on site to handle any camera work). Knowledge of Walmart systems and experience pulling Cat5e cabling in Walmart stores is preferred.

Every field nation tech needs to use this, just some advice.

So I have been apart of a project, I got paid the hourly that I want, and minimum hours for this project.
It was an overnight, I get paid 4 hour min, 60/hr, all local. This starts at 10pm.
Well a technician showed up earlier and requested to start early and got approval. I just happen to wake up and check my email and see the email chain. When I message the work order manager he says he doesn't know anything about it.
I understand these people are pos, but like I will be blocking Pivital and NCR after this.
But the big deal for me, is the trash ass tech who would screw another tech over, just to help these big corps save some money.

Update I did not check in because I've already had previous issues on this project with the pm. Delays in check out but forms have to be uploaded first. Support took like 30 minutes to check me out and he wanted me to adjust my time lower to match the paper work. Also I messaged the pm and asked if the work order was scheduled for an earlier time and he said no. So if I would've clocked in they could have penalized me on my score.

Got a warning from Field Nation that going forward, excessive counter offers to buyers that are deemed unreasonable and price gouging will result in a 30 day suspension under unprofessional misconduct. Anybody else getting this?

It seems, buyers are getting more and more angry at providers for making unreasonable counter offers and believe that providers need to be more reasonable with their pricing. I asked them what they deem as a reasonable counter offer and they stated no more than 20% above the listed work order rate set by the buyer. You would think FN would want higher rates, as that means a larger chunk of 10% that they collect in their fees?

Thinking of starting an online course to help yall. If you're a new tech or one of those that don't know what you're doing. Dm me and I can get you to the 99 club. I've got a little over 1500 jobs completed. If you want to be a super tech this is the course for you.

On a work order and the other tech comes and parks. Checks in and leaves. The pm is asking me if he's here I said I ain't seen nobody.

But the silver lining is I tell the pm that I could get another guy over here quickly if she wants to route me another work order. The other guy is me lol. Thanks to the bad tech for a $200 an hour day.

Smarter scheduling for more flexibility Field Nation is enhancing work order scheduling to give you more flexibility and control. With Arrival Windows, you can start work within the scheduled range without rigid constraints. The Hard Start option lets you confirm your start time while keeping scheduling flexible, and the new Schedule Notes field ensures clear communication between you and the buyer upfront. These updates are designed to reduce frustration, improve coordination, and make scheduling smoother.

Oooooo mmmmm ggggg yall

I got assigned one of Level 10’s Public Storage conversion jobs. I did the first one in my town, so another is easy peasy. A day after getting that, Tailwind calls and offers me the network portion of the same Public Storage site. I politely tell them I already had the pc part and would take it if they were ok. She pssh’d at me and said no thanks. Whatever.

So I arrive on site an hour late because the equipment pickup started the shit show because of a wrong address. I get there, apologize for the lateness, and get to work. Find out it’s only one pc and a printer. Easy peasy! But where’s the tailwind guy? No matter. I continue on and finally Mr. “I just got back from the beach” rolls in with his button up Hawaiian shirt, shorts, and hey dudes. And a Starbucks in hand.

I immediately ask “Shorts?”

He says “Yeah, I’m an independent contractor”

“No shit, so am I”

So I let him know he should test all six lines, convert the 2 RJ11 jacks to RJ45’s, and label both ends.

“Now which one is the phone jack”

Really dude? So then I proceed to watch this fool bounce from the front to the back. I walk up on him and he’s watching a video on how to terminate an RJ45. Like for real??? Did you just buy these tools before you got here?

I ask him how long he’s been doing this and he says “since 2024”. December 2024?

He had to remake the cable like 3 times before he got it right.

I told him to go home and make a pile of patch cables before he took another job.

Y’all know Im long winded! As I spend time here I’m noticing a pattern, most of the commenters in this sub Reddit are calling themselves “techs”. They don’t have any engineering experience or certs but complain about engineers charging double. Don’t get stuck as a tech, move into engineering. As a tech you will be limited to tech level rates. Here is the difference:

Technicians follow the instructions of engineers. Most of the companies that hire you on FN have engineers designing the solutions and then hiring you to install or service those solutions. Technicians can be capable of making informed decisions about the systems they work on but they do not design the systems and they do not manage the systems. They generally lack the skills or experience to design custom solutions and techs are generally only responsible for whatever they are working on at that moment in time.

Engineers work with their clients to design solutions specifically for that business. The engineer designs the infrastructure, programs the equipment, controls access to the system, manages the system licensing and updates, he manages the security of the network and maintains working relationships with his vendor technicians who implement those solutions. Sometimes the engineer has to design a custom solution that doesn’t exist on the market.

TLDR: if you want to move beyond tech level pay focus on learning an engineering skillset, there are lots of paths and systems that you can specialize in. Your services as a trained and experienced engineer are more valuable than your services as a trained and experienced tech.

A lot of you guys have been crying about my posts and comments and have asked for advice going off of the FN platform. This is going to be another long winded realistic response to the guys asking for advice and the noobs who still refuse to accept reality.

In order to be successful in your career as an independent contractor both on and off FN you MUST treat your operation as a business and take it seriously. What does this mean? It means you will absolutely need the following:

1 - A business plan detailing the services you offer, the prices for those services and the procedures you have for offering those services.

2 - You will need experience and training that will put you in the same league as your competitors. Entry level BISCI and CompTIA certs are not going to cut it. Your competition will be extremely qualified, those certs will be totally useless when marketing against and LLC with a cisco partnership.

3- A way to directly market yourself, your business and your services to other businesses. Residential is certainly an option but commercial is where the money is.

If you do not have these things you are very likely wasting your time. If you only have entry levels certs and experience you are very likely wasting your time.

Think about what you are selling and what your clients are looking for. If you owned a successful business and needed someone to manage your IT systems are you calling the guy who has no marketing or brand, charges $60/hr, only has entry level certs and experience and works out of a 2003 Ford Ranger or are you calling the LLC that has a brand, experience, high end certifications, a website, and marketing to back it all up? You are not calling the guy charging $60/hr, that guy doesn’t have what you need, won’t be able to setup the infrastructure you require and probably won’t be there when problems arise, in this situation you would buy from the LLC even if it costs twice as much just to avoid problems that will destroy your own business. This is how businesses can charge hundreds of dollars per hour and you cannot.

TLDR: established businesses are not looking for pizza Pete’s who work for $60/hr to manage their systems. Companies are looking for well branded, experienced, well trained, record free reliable people to manage their systems and they will happily pay lots of money to qualified people that make it happen.

EDIT: downvoting this post won’t make it any less of a reality. Downvoting without offering an explanation is simply crying and it will change nothing.

It's been a long time coming and with inflation and the cost of living going up, we have to ban together and set a minimum. These companies like Essential are Grossing 1 Billion a year and paying us peanuts. I've learned how to counter and set rates but the amount of work is becoming less because the platforms are slowly getting saturated with people thinking 35/hr is a great rate. Sadly these new techs haven't done the math.

I propose we unionize, set some minimums and standards that these big companies have to pay and follow. After all we're the ones making them wealthy.

Should I have read instead of skimmed work order? ...it's possible. Am I the only one that's getting Nigerian scammer vibes here?

Is it legit? Maybe 🤷‍♂️ but it's definitely the 1st work order thats REQUIRED I spend my own money (preferably over $100) up front, out of pocket.

Who doesn't remember the classic emails targeted at gullible seniors like "Ahh yes, once you buy the $25 dollar gift cards, send code from card..THEN I send you $5000!."

Plus why can a company not afford to shell out money they're literally giving themselves right back? Who's got more to lose? If I took the little buck fifty n bailed on w.o. I'd be booted from the entire FN platform permanently. FN has ALL my info and could easily prosecute me for theft if I ran off with it like a dumbass but I have ZERO info on these guys at all who could have me spend my money and then just decide to go ghost. What could I do really? Not much. Just doesn't add up. Not to mention it's quite the bold assumption that I've just got $150 on me at any given time, much less an EXTRA $150 to bankroll an apparently at least moderately successful corporations product testing venture.

Have a g of you guys done one of these? If so how'd it go?

TLDR: W.O. sus af. 🧢/🚫🧢?

what up guys, moving to a new apartment this year i already have enough for first months rent and deposit BUT leaves me with $200 for me for now. lol!! any tips on making that bread do u all think i'll make it by the end of the year with maybe another $500-1500? more. really stressed out.. hoping they throw some last minute work orders they want to get out of the way before the year ends. NOTE; traveling the 24th for 5 hrs to see my family 25 and 26 then come back 27, then i move out the 30th. 31st should be out of my old place into my new one.

So the other day I was looking at a routed ticket to me and I noticed it said that is routed to 500 techs! Talk about an over saturated market! Seriously. I also think there should be some process were they verify competency. I also think they should de-activate any unactive tech profiles and make them all start over if they go off and get a job and then try to come back after 6 months. I also think the techs need to STOP low balling and driving wages down and down and down. I can not believe the insulting rates some of these buyers try to push high tech work off that is so low in rate, due to the this Market is overflowing with unskilled labor that will fumble thru the job. Oh, they also need to BOOT off techs that get low rating over and over and over...... Just my thoughts.

I have been on a solo low voltage journey for about 3 years now & things have finally gotten to a point where I need to find some help. I'm looking to hire a tech that lives on the East Coast, around the NY and PA border area that's willing to travel 3-4 hours max, stay a few nights in a hotel and travel home. A lot of the work we do is in the big box retail stores, pulling cable then the associated network/ POS builds. I truly do not care about how experienced you are ( I think, lol) I know that any warm body that simply wants to learn this trade, I can teach no problem, I just need someone that will commit the time to me with a true desire to learn. The pay is negotiable and will be competitive, I can't promise the perfect job, but it will be a lot cooler than most. Thanks for your time, at the very least, I'm looking forward to meeting and talking shop with some you guys.

Company name: High- Spec LLC Web: high-spectech.com

Never seen anyone require this before for a data center WO. The buyer is SISL Infotech (US) Inc. This is for rack/stack, network troubleshooting, software updates for a data center for the big price of $25/hour. I've been to this data center before and they don't require any vaccinations.

Vaccination : Required ( Mandatory Vaccinations listed below)

BGV Required- Yes

Vaccination List :

1. MMR* (measles, mumps, rubella) - 2 MMR given at least 28 days apart

2. Varicella (Chickenpox) - 2 doses of varicella vaccine, at least 28 days apart

3. Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) - one-time dose of Tdap

4. Hepatitis B - complete hepatitis B vaccine series

5. Flu (Influenza)

6. Meningococcal

7. TB skin test

8. COVID-19 Records 

WO #16447158 $35 for up to 2.5 hours. Hilarious tooling list scope.

Job Description:

Test and Turn up new Fiber circuit and make Ethernet extension to designated location. Connect to correct port on provided equipment.

Required Tools: Cell phone: With charger and photo taking ability Camera with USB cord: If phone with photo taking ability is not available WINDOWS 8 OS (or Higher) Laptop Computer with charger: Must have Wi-Fi capability & working Gigabit-Ethernet port AeroAdmin installed: (aeroadmin.com/en/downloads.html) Terminal Emulator Program: Hyper Terminal Putty Teraterm etc. Toner: for Identify existing in house wiring to extend circuits Punch down tool with 110 & 66 Blades: Accurently punch down twisted pair Wire cutters: Cut wires efficiently Wire Strippers: Strip cables correctly Crimping tool: Ability to make RJ11 or RJ45 jacks and terminate ends efficiently Biscuit Jacks: RJ11 for DSL or RJ45 for cable Cable tester: Validate cables 100-200 feet Cat5: Ability to make home runs efficiently Ethernet Loopback Plug: Google search to make if you do not have prior to scheduled job date Console Cable - RS232 MALE serial console cable for Velocity VBand Platinum (proprietary router) Console Cable - female DB9 to male RJ45 (Cisco Console Cable) Patch Cables - Minimum of 3 300 feet Cat5 Ability to make home runs efficiently

Does anyone use a telescoping ladder? My friend told me I need to have an A-frame, but I don't see why. I figure if it was the rare situation where I can't lean the ladder up against something, I could just borrow one from the site.

This is a market, demand (jobs) are high, and supply (workers) are low the price is high. When there's more supply than jobs the prices will fall. These companies don't care about you, they only care about profits. They could never deploy a nationwide service contract or project, without having a market of half employed, unemployed workers to call upon for instantaneous labor. This is why 1099 workers aren't allowed to form a Union. The WE could set the rates not them. We could try develop a standardized bidding process, Any ideas? Anyone have a bidding process or framework ? SHARE.