Wages for employees

[carlos]

51 minutes ago, Mark J said:

I think my prices are reasonable. They're for subbing people in. I wouldn't pay a climber less than £200 for a job. 

well if you can win well paid work and pay your workers top dollar then thats  great, fair play

[muttley9050]

well if you can win well paid work and pay your workers top dollar then thats  great, fair play [emoji4]

£200 a day is not top dollar.

Tree workers always under value them selves

[JaySmith]

Regional variations will always be there. For Kent where I am, for guys on the books I think you would be looking at something like this:

Groundie who can use chipper and saw, limited experience - £80 - £100 a day
Competent Groundie/2nd climber aerial rescue - £95 - £110 a day
Good climber who can undertake a wide range of duties and also do large trees - £110 - £130 a day
Top draw climber/team leader who can do pretty much everything like crane work, run large jobs, other skills such as fix machines etc - £130 - £160 a day.

I know of guys subbing who are charging between £160 and £200 per day. Obviously there will be exceptions to this but this is just a snap shot and based on three firms in my immediate area.

[carlos]

29 minutes ago, muttley9050 said:

£200 a day is not top dollar.

Tree workers always under value them selves

was he not originally saying 50 an hour ie 400 a day?

[trigger_andy]

2 hours ago, Doug Tait said:

Now now Andy, your Daddy issues are about to bubble to the surface again, don't do a Britney today 

So that’s a yes then. 🤣

[manco]

14 hours ago, maybelateron said:

I am in the unusual and fortunate position that I no longer depend on the business for my sole income. I can therefore pick and choose which jobs I want.

how do you get out of taking on work you dont like the look of/ dont want to do? just price high? and then what happens when you get it anyway?

[Mark Bolam]

It’s pretty easy, you just say you’re not interested in doing it.

[eggsarascal]

21 minutes ago, manco said:

how do you get out of taking on work you dont like the look of/ dont want to do? just price high? and then what happens when you get it anyway?

You do it because the jobs been overpriced, you then walk away smiling.

[Mark J]

36 minutes ago, carlos said:

was he not originally saying 50 an hour ie 400 a day?

If a climber rocks up with a full suite of saws, a decent winch, rigging kit, and the skills to use them, I think that £50 an hour is fair and profitable.

Edited March 13, 2022 by Mark J

[benedmonds]

Discussing rates in here never ends well, I have tried many times over the years..  There seems to be huge variation depending on area.

 

Many are unable to tell the difference between a freelancer and employee and we are never comparing like for like.  

 

Many of the most vocal may not even be actually involved in tree work or do it as a side line where paying a one off climber for a day a large rate is not really comparable to a full time employee. Some of the rates quoted on here sound amazing and I know are unachievable in my area.

 

It is difficult to know how much your competitors charge but I spent all Friday afternoon calling back quotes we didn't win and asking why. Nearly all were because we we too expensive and for many jobs the winning quote was considerably less that ours. 

 

What I do know is that costs are rising, freelancers seem to be doing well at the moment and pushing up rates. As an employer this is making life difficult as it in turn is pushing up what employees expect. the risk is that if the busy times stop freelancers will be dropped and employers with high wage bills are going to struggle.

 

It would be nice if the companies at the bottom pushed up their rates .