I can understand both viewpoints. I don't buy into the idealistic vision that the government can protect consumers from thievery or unscrupulous activity. At best it can do what the UAMCC does.. ask to see proof of insurance. Any fool can buy an insurance policy. It doesn't make the holder honest, it doesn't prove integrity and it certainly doesn't prove work quality. So, ultimately, the obligation of due diligence comes back to the person hiring the contractor. Check experience, references, current insurances. If a person chooses not to do that, that's on them. I'm still failing to see where the government and a piece of paper called a license provides any type of security blanket. The real result is often what happens when people let others (ie the government) do for them what they should be doing themselves... complacency, dependance and ultimately, laziness.
The system of capitalism weeds out bad products, bad service and bad management. I'm not sure what makes me sit on the fence with this issue. I guess a license makes people warm and fuzzy and that is a marketing edge. I am for licensing if it includes spot checks for valid insurances, OSHA log auditing, field agents checking for violations, random truck inspections for safety equipment and MSDS sheets, consistent public awareness campaigns, and enough field agents to enforce the standards. Anything less is just a gesture. This gesture does little for the public and is another excuse for the government to collect some money from my company.
Here's the problem.. the public. All of the above makes a company more expensive to operate. Me, Beth, Henry, Roger, Jim.. we have to pass that cost on. Here comes cheapskate homeowner that gets a bid for far less from a contractor that has no one to answer to. A friend of mine just had his basement completely rewired by an unlicensed handyman. This is a guy with a wife and two children in his home. His justification to me was that he inspected all the handyman's work before the walls were buttoned up. So there you go.. an educated, well off guy that circumvented the sytem to save a few thousand bucks. Idiocy.