‘Get them out’: Tradie’s viral plea to parents

A routine plumbing job has turned into every tradie’s worst nightmare after a toddler made the task near impossible.

A plumber has urged parents to be more mindful when calling tradespeople to their homes to do work.

Wollongong-based tradie, James Pallone, 26, was called to a rental property last week to fix a sink, but instead found himself sharing the space with a very curious toddler.

“Usually I’m cool with it … this is different. This has a boundary.” Mr Pallone told news.com.au

Mr Pallone arrived at the property after receiving the job order from a real estate agent. He wasn’t in direct contact with the tenant beforehand.

He found the tenant waiting outside with his young son when he arrived. Mr Pallone estimates the child’s age to have been under two.

There would be a language barrier, but the tenant had been very respectful in trying to convey his message, and the plumber used Google Translate to communicate.

“He didn’t speak any English … I just went along with my own thing and started doing the job myself,” he explained.

The plumber got to work under the kitchen sink, expecting a straightforward job fixing a blocked drain and a leaking tap. But within minutes, he realised he’d gained an unofficial apprentice.

“I was under the sink. I was undoing the trap to unblock it, and the child was right under the sink with me, getting under my arm, trying to get in,” he recounted.

He recalls the youngster getting in under his legs, trying to close the cupboard door on him and being disruptive while he was attempting to clear the blockage.

Typically, Mr Pallone loves it when kids show an interest in his work. He thinks it’s cute. But that interest needs to be had safely.

“It’s not the end of the world if a kid’s looking and watching me. I don’t care. It’s a child. He’s interested. I was a kid once upon a time, too. I loved watching people work, but getting in people’s personal spaces is a big no-no,” he explained.

The plumber has urged parents to better supervise their kids around working tradies. Picture: TikTok

The Wollongong based plumber was left frustrated after a toddler got in the way and their parent did nothing. Picture: TikTok

Despite asking the father for help, Mr Pallone claims the parent didn’t intervene.

“I told the father, even though he didn’t understand me, ‘Get him out, please. This is getting in my way’ … He had the kitchen grease on him, and the father didn’t do anything,” he said.

“There’s so much bacteria that you could possibly harm your child, and you’re not caring enough for that, and he’s laughing at the kid going under there.”

What was most concerning for Mr Pallone was the danger and the germs that the boy was getting exposed to.

“It was unsafe … I was dealing with wastewater full of bacteria and grease,” he explained.

“If a kid touches that and puts their hand in their mouth, it could make them really sick”.

He kept his cool, but admitted to becoming increasingly anxious.

“The father was standing there looking at me, laughing and in his broken English saying, ‘Sorry, sorry, sorry,’” Mr Pallone said.

“I don’t want to be in trouble for him getting sick or him getting hurt because it will fall back onto me because I was the person there.”

He believes many tradies share similar frustrations about both kids and animals getting underfoot while a job is underway.

“Put the kid away or they’ll tell the kid to stop or discipline them in the right manner,” he urged.

“[Parents] have to really step in and make sure that the kid is safe.”

Once he was finished up, he took to TikTok to vent and issue a warning for those booking tradespeople.

“If you cannot control your child when I come to your house to do a job, GET HIM OUT!” he starts off the video.

He takes a breather to calm down before continuing.

“The whole time I was under the sink, undoing the trap, trying to unblock this drain for the fellow, his kid was in the sink with me. Grabbing me, grabbing my tools, grabbing my leg, shutting the f**king door on me,” he exclaimed.

“Kitchen grease, fat, s**t, gunk is coming out. The kid is swimming in the gunk! GET OUT!”

Viewers labelled his crash out as ‘valid’. Picture: TikTok

He said the experience was the worst he’s had on a job in a long time. Picture: TikTok

The video has struck a chord with many who agree.

“How are parents this unaware?” one asked.

“Charge them extra for babysitting,” suggested another.

“I felt every part of this,” a third admitted.

“I’m a mum and this crash out is valid,” a fourth replied.

But the chaos was far from over.

When Mr Pallone left the workspace to go to his vehicle for a moment, he returned to find the boy running around the lounge space with his shifter.

“Lord, f**king help you. I yoink the shifter out of the kid’s hand because one, he’s going to hurt himself and two, that’s my shifter!” he exclaims.

“He starts crying at me, squealing at me. It was my shifter! I should be the one crying.”

Originally published as ‘Get them out’: Tradie’s viral plea to parents