you need to get longer screws and add-a-depth rings r fill in between the box and the surface.

With the receps, you will also want to insert spacers (on the screws) so the recep is not dependent upon the ears to hold the recep against the sheetrock.

with switches, you can get away without the spacers since there is no push inward when using them.

There are box spacers available to bring the face of a box up to the finished surface.
The big box stores have single gang sizes, and an electrical supply house will have larger ones.

Thanks! We certainly can't be the only people who've experienced this....so, I'm glad to know there's a remedy!

I appreciate it.
Tracey

The parts you want are called box extensions. They extend the box to the surface of the drywall.

Yopu do mnot have to get the face of the box dead even with the surface all the time.
The NEC allows the face of the box to be up to 1/4 inch recessed in non-flammable surfaces (like drywall), but it must be flush in flammable surfaces (like wood).
It is allowed to be proud of the surface ifyou want, but this can cause the plate to not sit tight against the wall. Most plates only have about a 1/16 depth (and some even less).

This might help.

Here is a link that might be useful: An example

Thank you for all the replies. Finally one less thing to stress about in this basement project.