Probably so, but that still doesn’t justify it in my view. There are better ways to handle this. For example, they could inform the customer that the issue needs to be addressed before they proceed, offer to mask the control panel themselves for an extra charge, or simply ask if the customer really wants them to paint over it - which they almost certainly don’t.

Doing subpar work under a “not my job” mentality isn’t just unprofessional - it displays poor character.