What's the pay like in Scotland?

[Ignis]

Hi all,

 

My partner and I are moving to Scotland in March and going to be looking for work.

 

I was wondering what the pay is like in forestry and arb in south west Scotland (on average)?

 

New to forestry but have 4 years Arb experience. Cs30/31/38/39, plus by then I will be driving and would have done FAW+F.

 

When we get there I'm hoping to do cs32/41 etc and am doing a level 2 cert. in Arb in September.

 

Any insight would be appreciated as I've been told the wages up there tend to reflect the low housing costs etc.

[ArbMish]

I can only speak for the North East and North, where I wouldn’t say pay’s that great but it does depend who you work for. Mostly it’s small companies up here and subbies.

Out of interest what would you consider low housing costs?

[Ignis]

Cheers for your reply. Where I am at the moment, to rent a property we would pay £550+ per month for the smallest of places. We have had a little look at rental prices in places like Dumfries and could find 2 or even 3 bed places for less than that. Hence the decision to move up there.

[stihlmadasever]

Central scotland groundie around 8-10 quid an hour,climbers are around 12-15,with an exceptional few companies offering day rates for subbies 150 mark.

Subbing is patchy work though there are some really good cimpanies and some bad-ive walked away from jobs as i got messed about or just blatantly lied too.

You will need all your own kit to sub aswell.

Ive never taken the forestry route so i couldnt comment on that side of things mate.

Local authority climbers are usually well looked after and the work is varied,its where im at and it beats

"the real world "   hands down.

[Ignis]

I have also walked away from firms after being lied to so I know what you mean. Trouble was I hadn't made a plan b so I was left without a paddle for a while. There seems to be firms like that all over and nowadays I'm fairly picky about who I work for. Perhaps that will hold me back somewhat. Thanks for the info.

[Big J]

Where in Scotland are you planning to move to and where are you presently?

 

House rents vary wildly according to where you are. We're around Edinburgh and it's really expensive here, and the wages don't match the cost of living. The reason why Dumfries and Galloway is so cheap is because no one wants to live there.

 

Keep in mind that the weather is usually somewhere between unpleasant and awful, and that will mean more lost days to weather and the associated loss of income. If you don't want to be eaten alive my midges and soaked constantly, keep east. 

[Matthew Storrs]

I lived in Lochabriggs nr Dumfries for a bit  working for an arborist on and off whilst at Barony. Big Js right, it’s pretty wet round there, but no worse than down here on Dartmoor. I didn’t find it a hugely inspiring area, but gets nicer the more north you go. Pay- no idea- this was 15 years ago nearly.!

[htb]

Also bear in mind that the Miss Krankies thinks shes running the country up here are you ready for her

[phcb92]

Not a massive amount of work around Dumfries for Arb workers unless you’re into utility or railway stuff! It’s luck of the draw though - find the right company at the right time and you’re sorted!