Starting up on your own.

[benedmonds]

I have not come accross a 'qualified' sub-contract climber yet in my area. :

 

The trouble I have with these threads is I get "qualified climbers" with a couple of years experience expecting to be paid top dollar, they're often not worth it!

Maybe I just don't work them long enough and should start at 6 and finish at 8.

 

I like to employ newish climbers at a cheaper rate for standard non technical works but if I had to pay over £100 a climber I am not going to be able to win any work.. For sure on difficult jobs a decent climber is worth over £100 but for simple hedges, dead wooding and lifts I want someone cheaper.

[Tony.Price]

The trouble I have with these threads is I get "qualified climbers" with a couple of years experience expecting to be paid top dollar, they're often not worth it!

Maybe I just don't work them long enough and should start at 6 and finish at 8.

 

I like to employ newish climbers at a cheaper rate for standard non technical works but if I had to pay over £100 a climber I am not going to be able to win any work.. For sure on difficult jobs a decent climber is worth over £100 but for simple hedges, dead wooding and lifts I want someone cheaper.

 

Suby's come in when I have a too much work for my full time guys. Yes we dont earn much of them but it is additional income to our normal day and the client gets the job done sooner than we could normally get to it. It is also good to keep the guys on their toes

[Mark Bolam]

Some good and relevant points here.

 

It's refreshing to hear a bit of a debate going on rather than a slanging match.

 

 

I think climbers should get £200 a day, unless they are working for me where I think they should be grateful to get £50.

 

[benedmonds]

Suby's come in when I have a too much work for my full time guys. Yes we dont earn much of them but it is additional income to our normal day and the client gets the job done sooner than we could normally get to it. It is also good to keep the guys on their toes

 

We're the same.. We have a number of freelancers, I normaly ask guys how much they want and then will use who ever is the most cost effective depending on the work. I have some who charge different for ground work and climbing but I don't like that much... If we have a lot of work and I'm booking a climber for a block of ten days or so I'd also expect a cheaper rate..

[hazzygawa]

£100 is a bit tight. I lowest I pay a climber is £120.

[Matthew Burton]

Interesting thread!

 

Best advice i've got (made redundant beginning of june) is whatever you get payed, earn your money and people will keep calling you up to work for them again!

[brothergrim]

Personally if Im pricing a job, I think you can't get a skip for £100 let alone climb

It chip and remove it, whilst maintaing a professional standard.

[Dilz]

I have not come accross a 'qualified' sub-contract climber yet in my area. Top pay I have paid has been £190 plus travel because he was over 40miles away and faultless work! Bottom pay has been a hand shake but no thanks!

 

So many go it alone to soon and do not have the experience, evident in the shortfall of both obtaining all relavant tickets, Kit and also keeping them in date!

They get away with it for a bit untill an accident happens!!

 

If anyone in lincs can prov me wrong. I will stand corrected and will gladly use yours services.

 

Once I have received your tickets and references.

 

I agree a lot of people jump in to subbying too soon but sometimes it s the only option.

 

i'm of the belief that if your a subby you need to be prepared to do any job that is thrown at you with no prior knowledge of it be 2km of confier hedge to top and trim to dealing with dangerous trees. However this reflects in the prise, i know some guys who charge a lot but only get the really tricky stuff because all the easy stuff goes to those who are cheaper and perhaps not as experienced.....

 

When i first started i was told do 5 years on the tools and working for the best companies you can find, then you should be ready to deal with most things, I did nearly 6 years including two part time whilst i studied, now self employed subbying around scandinavia at the mo,

[Dilz]

also i think geography may have a part to play - if i was around london id want a hell of a lot more, i now dislike getting out of bed for less than £200 a day, but have worked for lower rates when needs must or if i have nothing better to do. Also i think its a sign of how more competative the industry is getting A) form the amount of competing companies and b) the amount of subby types available. driving down the prices for both. agood subby is the same as agood employee - the good ones may cost you more but will earn you more, in both production and quality thus good reputation, the bad ones may cost you less but in the long run.....

 

i think one reason alot of people start subbying to soon is the lack of quality jobs on the books, i worked through complete tree care for a company in Newark, fair hourly rate of 12 odd, the company wanted to put me on their books and pay me..........£6.75 this was in 2007 i said what the hell and they replied thats what the guys at the other branches have agreed to work for....i left.

 

I think some newbies have this image of earning their fortune being self employed and to be fair, it has worked very well for me, but then like i said, i have put in many hours on the tools and in the text books before doing so. As for newbies going at it too soon and bodging their way through stuff.....i think most of us can say we have been their, done that, and still make it up as we go along!

[Mike Hill]

I was talking about this with my workmate the other day,I reckon to demand top money as a contract Climber you should offer to bring Saws,Rigging kit and GRCS or the like.

 

That might make you more valuable to one man bands and Landscape Firms who might otherwise pass up large technical jobs.