dodger

i been a climber for 30 years plus now, about 20 years ago a climber was on £75 to £90 aday, about 10 years ago most firms would pay £100 to £120s aday, these days it depends anything to £80 to rarely £100 aday, its a demanding and very dangerous job , that take years to be a skill climber, but theses days you can be a delivery driver 8am to 4 pm finnish , dont get wet and knacked , and get more money, really tree surgery when you look at all the risk and other fators, its poorly paid job

i been doing climbing now for 35 plus, for the last 23 years i been on price, i wont mention their prices but just say a london plane, 15 years ago with a 3 man crew myself climbing and two groundsmen, i would do 4 medium planes to earn myself £130 aday and groundsmen £80, that was 15 years ago, over the years as more and more large firms were completeing against each other the prices has drop, for us climbers we had to do 5 then 6 planes to earn the same money, and now in some boroughs one have to do 6 large planes that takes all day climbing, but if your lucky you might just earn day rate £90 to £100 aday, but over the years i seen many many climbing just wreck their bodies ie falls or caple tunneling eg, not one was look after just throw on the scrap heap, i also seen these companies turn a blind eye on health and safety just to meet their demands, personaly i think the councils have a big part to blame also, as they are looking at the cheapest quotes. my mate phoned me he works on price in a london borough, two years ago on lime repollards he had to do 8 to earn £120 plus, this year he has to do 16 for the same money, it means more pressure on ones body, and turning a blind eye on the crews health and saftey, its not a plesure anymore to climb, one feels like a machine that pressure to meet demands and every couple of years the prices are dropping, and ones bodies are slowly getting messed up. over the the 23 plus years of price work i seen many accidents because off price work, and few of them will never be able to work again, the companies, the council, and hse should take a hard look at what effects price work has on its employers, and to the public too and its going to take a death before they wake up theres alot more i like to say but have to pop out

just giveing advice after 24 years working for price with such companys, they have good points, but price work has many questions that should be look at within the councils themselfs and the hse,

ioooo

your on price and you will work you nuts off to earn £100 aday, with city and surban putting in cheap prices, it has effect gristwood and toms big deal, over the years the prices has drop by half, you get paid per tree , depending what borough your in also makes a difference also, some boroughs you dont earn your money, city and surban well they are just a joke, you better off in the salt mines

Avoid gristwood and toms and city and surban, my advice go for a smaller company, avoid price work unless you want to take risk, can give some horror storys on both companys

i think connaugt are looking for climbers and groundman in the norfolk area

most firms work illegal these days its profits over health and safety

, lot of the big firms that give you price work from 10 to 15 years ago the prices has drop to nearly half, with more and more firms now that can complete with them now the prices will full even more, a few weeks ago i started work for one large firm and they were paying some immergrants £60 a week for ground work, they live on site at the yard. going back on price with one large firm one could earn £700 to £900 a week but these day with the same firm your luckly to earn £400 to £550 aweek and thats going flat out,and breaking many rules. i hate to think what the wages will be like in ten years times, as in the last twenty years they have drop or just even out, but as more and more cheap labour are avaiable the wages are only going to get worst. its a hard and dangerous job you can earn more money now driveing a 7.5 lorry delivering goods

after being in the tree game 30 years plus i can see many Controversial Issues with training , health and safety, and employers, and pricework,

wages hasnt gone up much , 20 years ago a climber would get £75 to £90 aday and a groundsmen £45 to £60 depending which company you work for

if you could go back in time , would you have a career change, i been doing tree work for 35 to 40 years now and have seen many changes most are for the good in health and safety for the blokes and new ropes, chainsaws ect, but when you put you egg in one basket and you get older its differcult to have a career change if one wants too. tree work is a hard game in all weathers and its hard work too. can you see yourself doing tree work when your in your 50s and 60s. do you want to or have you other plans for your future.

we live in a capitalism world cheap labour make money to these companies and in the same time make the poor poorer

i did a few weeks with this firm and the immergrants didnt have their tickets but they work their socks off, couple of them had their basic climbing and ground work tickets and they were on £50 to £60 a day and i have to admit they were good climbers and they will do well in the future, but this firm is not going to take on uk born climbers who want £90 to £120 aday . like i said there two major arborist firms going down this route and many other arborist firm will follow to complete with them, and no they didnt cut a tree badly they were quit good , but the firms are on thin ice with the ones that havent got tickets if theres a bad accident

yes he more than feel lucky to be earning, but what yous have to remember as more and more firms take on cheap labour and abuse it, it will have a effect on many arborist and thier wages, firms will lower their quotes on jobs and have a major effects on lots of tree firms, its nothing about race, but it is about companys abuseing cheap labour in return effects everyone in the tree games in the future, as most of you will be under cut. then you day some of you will be abused through your wages and then you feel what these poor people going through. there two major tree companies that are going down this route that i know off, just have a look at the building game you wont see many uk born working now its all eastern europeans, and this is how the tree work will go in the future,

it abuseing people,

not lucky for him, and not lucky to the firm if this bloke had a serious accident he has no tickets, this firm is a large firm that has many council contracts. why risk loseing one work that taken years to build up

i done some work for a large firm that paid a immergrant £80 a week, as soon i found out i left, i been in this game now for 35 to 40 years and notice more and more tree firms abuseing this form of cheap labour

i work on london plane for appox 12 years on and off in london, i wish i didnt as now i suffer from my breathing sometimes real bad, in the long run it doesnt do your health any good that dust, my doctor said one should write to the health and safety and they should look at what long term effect there are i refuse to do them till the winter and when its raining,

thank you

i been just looking at my chainsaw tickets which i past in 1998, the law is for ever changing are they out of date thanks

i havent a link but was told at work by a workmate that friends with him, but i shel get more information about this case during the week for yous all

i glad your white finger is getting better, two old mates of mine that been in the game for years have totaly mess themself up to the point that the doctors have urge them to never use any tools that can give them white finger, trouble with it their boss said they can stay on as groundmen that means a big drop in wages, both are going to sue as they never been told by their company and have had in controls for white finger, havs. i heard one climber in the south reading way was rewarded £64,000, with no wins no payments Solicitor.

been in the game for many years and over that time i seen many end their careers with many types of injuires, but the main one are white finger and carpal tunnel. i not to sure what the hse rules are on the lenth of time on useing chainsaws it was i think 40 minutes on and a 20 minutes rest, but nearly all the climbers i meet havent been given this imformation or the prices are so cheap these days that they got to meet the demands ie earning money for their boss. but these days we are at a stage everywere you look theres law firms looking to sue on your behalf for such type injuirs. the question i want to ask are for the ones that employes climbers do you ever take this into consideration the rules on Hand-arm vibration, to your work force and a question to climbers that are employed to tree firms 1 do you know the rule 2 if so do you feel the pressure to get the work done and break the rules my own Experiencedis that 90% of climber i know dont now the rules but their bosses do, but they got targets to meet and this information is not given to them your thoughts please

it really piss me off hearing when six gutless blokes try a ruin someone livelihood and not happy that they got caught in the act give him a good beating, if i witness it i would run a saw through the cowards