Working Under a General Contractor: The Pecking Order

Why this matters

Working as a sub under a general contractor (GC) is a different game than working direct for a homeowner. The money is bigger and steadier, but you are no longer the top of the chain. You sequence around other trades, you bill on someone else's terms, and you can do perfect work and still get burned if you do not understand the order of operations. Shops that learn the pecking order keep the relationship and the repeat work. Shops that treat a GC job like a residential service call lose both.

Know who outranks whom on site

On a GC-run job there is a chain of authority, and stepping outside it causes friction every time.

• The GC runs the schedule and the site. They decide who works when, who has access, and how the trades stack. You take direction from them, not from the homeowner.
• The owner is the GC's customer, not yours. Going around the GC to the owner, even to be helpful, undercuts the GC and is remembered.
• Other subs are peers, not subordinates. You coordinate with them; you do not command them. The GC settles conflicts between trades.

The simplest rule: the GC is your customer on this job. Treat their authority the way you would treat a paying homeowner's wishes on a direct job.

Get the scope in writing before you lift a tool

Verbal scope on a GC job is where money disappears. The GC remembers the cheap version, you remember the full version, and the gap is your loss.

• Get a written scope that names what is included and, just as important, what is not.
• Define the boundaries with adjacent trades. Who sets the sleeve, who patches the wall, who hauls the debris. Unowned tasks become arguments.
• Confirm the spec, not just the quantity. A GC bidding tight will assume the cheapest compliant option. Price what is specified, and flag in writing anything the spec leaves open.

A clear written scope is also your shield when the GC later says "I thought that was included." Without it, you eat the difference.

Sequence around the other trades

A GC job is a relay, not a solo. Your work has a slot, and being early or late both cause problems.

• Know what has to be done before you can start (the wall framed, the slab poured, the rough power available) and what cannot proceed until you finish (drywall waiting on your rough-in).
• Hit your window. Show up when the GC schedules you, ready to work. A sub who no-shows their slot throws every trade behind them and earns a reputation fast.
• Protect the trades behind you. Leave your rough clean, labeled, and inspection-ready so the next trade is not slowed by your mess.

Understand how and when you get paid

GC payment runs on construction terms, which are slower and more conditional than residential.

• Progress billing and retainage are normal. The GC may hold back a percentage of each invoice (retainage) until the whole project closes out. Price knowing a slice of your money arrives last.
• Pay-when-paid clauses are common. Many GC contracts say the GC pays you after the owner pays them. Read for it; it changes your cash timing.
• Lien rights protect you. Know the notice and deadline rules in your area for preserving the right to file a lien. Missing a preliminary-notice window can cost you the leverage you would need if payment goes sideways. (See the related decision tree on a GC who will not pay.)

Protect the relationship and yourself at once

The two goals are not in conflict if you handle paperwork up front and people well throughout.

• Document changes the moment they happen, not at the end. (See the related decision tree on changed scope.)
• Communicate problems early. A GC can absorb a heads-up about a delay or a conflict. A GC cannot absorb a surprise on the day the next trade shows up.
• Be the easy sub. GCs rebid the trades that make their job harder. The sub who hits the window, leaves it clean, bills clean, and flags problems early gets called for the next ten projects.

The mental model to keep

On a direct job you are the contractor. On a GC job you are a link in a chain, and the chain only pays if every link holds. Take direction from the GC, get the scope in writing, hit your window, leave it clean, and protect your payment rights from day one. Do that and the GC becomes a steady customer instead of a one-time gamble.

References

• American Institute of Architects (AIA) standard subcontract concepts
• Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America subcontracting practices
• State mechanics-lien and preliminary-notice statutes (vary by jurisdiction)
• See related: The GC Who Won't Pay Decision Tree; The GC Changed the Scope Decision Tree