Grounds ToolkitLabor and Crews
What Does a Callback or Redo Actually Cost Against an Already-Priced Job?
Enter crew size, rework time, wage, and the original job's price and cost. This shows the rework cost and how much it drops effective margin.
How this is calculated
Rework cost is crew size times rework hours, priced at the loaded labor rate (see Loaded Labor Rate). New effective cost adds that to the original job cost, without changing the price already charged. New margin recalculates against the same price and the higher cost.
Worked example
A 2-person crew spends 1 hour on a redo at a $22 wage (28.60 loaded), costing $57.20. A job originally priced at $150 with $100 cost (33.3% margin) now has an effective cost of $157.20, a negative margin of -4.8%, a 38.1 percentage point loss from the redo alone.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the original price not increased for the redo?
A callback or redo happens because the original work needs fixing, customers do not expect to pay again for that. This calculator treats the rework as unpaid time against the price already charged.
What if the redo also uses materials?
This calculator covers labor only. Add material cost for the redo to the original job cost figure before entering it, if materials were also consumed.
Can margin go negative here?
Yes, if the rework cost is large enough relative to the original price, the effective margin can go negative, meaning this job lost money once the redo is counted.
How is this useful if it does not change future pricing?
Tracking actual callback cost shows the real cost of quality issues, useful for deciding where to invest in training, equipment, or process to reduce redos.