CSCS card for tree work?

[Mark Bolam]

I've now got a worrying image in my head involving Mick, a queue of blokes, and a blow up doll, sorry, dummy.

[LGP Eddie]

The problem with tickets is they absolutely don’t sort the wheat from the chaff.

 

All you end up with is a Carded workforce and when everyone lays their cards on the table at the Induction, the absolute base starting point of that Site is that All present have managed to gain a card of some form.

 

How they managed to gain them is another story altogether!

Everyone knows that from simply turning up paying some cash for a few photos and signatures with ticket arriving in the post, to going the whole hog and being properly trained/ assessed by a professional is out there, and the guys around the table will have used varying methods.

 

The Card is simply a Ticket to get you on site, nothing more, absolutely no relevance to your skills in my eyes until you’ve proved your worth on site.

That goes for Managers, Black Hats etc too. I don’t care what colour your card is, if you bought it dodgy and couldn’t run a bath, you’re going to get found out real quick!
 

The one thing that lacks in nearly every project I get called into is an old school Foreman.

They were the guys who decided if you were any good or not, took the youngsters under their wing, allocating them tasks to suit their experience and ability, allowed experienced guys to get on with it and put any chancers up the road.

 

How you ever get an Independent way of providing realistic assessments for guys to work towards, then finally achieve to prove their worth and hopefully reap a higher reward is the hard bit?

 

You could for example get Steve to start an Arbtalk Scheme, then build a set of skill levels/tickets to achieve.

Run assessments with a group of experienced guys from the Industry and make it bloody hard to pass so the Ticket has some worth.

 

I’d rather a couple of experienced guys I respected from the industry came out to watch me Operate a machine on site. Sat down and told me where I needed to brush up on my skills, and then book myself on a proper assessment by a selected group of my peers if I was deemed ready to take a shot at it.

It would give me some goals to work towards with the hope that prospective employers can see I’m trying to be the best I can be and hopefully achieve more reward.

 

If only smaller percentage ever pass because they actually have the skills to achieve it, and it’s recognised as the absolute industry benchmark, start throwing that down on the table at the Induction and you’ll get a nod of recognition.

 

Eddie.

 

[monkeybusiness]

NPTC assessments aren’t a bad gauge, particularly when you get into dismantling/windblow/large trees/UA tickets etc. You need to be half decent to pass any of those IMO, but they aren’t actually necessary outside certain client’s requirements (utilities mostly) so not many bother with them. The BALI/CSCS bollocks wouldn’t recognise any of that though.

 

Basic chainsaw tickets don’t tell you anything mind - even digger drivers could probably pass them!!! 

[Jcarbor]

Which sites are these?, we've had numerous lads on Kier, Persimmons etc sites and never been asked for a supervisors card. Again I'm not arguing, just never come across it.

A skilled worker card should be sufficient on any site/highway.
I’ve been running my business for 20 years and in a previous career was educated to NVQ level 6, I tried to get a supervisors card but BALI don’t take in to account my education level as a paramedic supervisor.

[Talha Riaz]

For tree work what you need is a diploma in (Arborist Supervisor Diploma Level 3)and also a blue card.