Looking to start a career in tree work

a rule of thumb about dressing for an interview is to wear clothes that are one step up from the job you're applying for. A jacket and tie might be a few too many steps up. A shirt with anything but a chest pocket embroidered logo might be too much. Polish your shoes.

My Dad taught me how to shake hands. That's worked well for me many times. Don't get sucked into manly hand squeezes. Firm and a couple of pumps is plenty.

YOu should 'interview/inventory' the company too. How does their equipment look? Old is less an issue as being tidy and maintained. If you're at their office or home base take a look in the parking lot at the personal vehicles that the production as well as management drive. Are the cars/trucks clean and tidy? There is a correlation between our vehicles and our wages. Don't get bogged down on this but don't miss the info.

If any part of your job search is over the phone wear 'interview' clothes and stand up. Yup..it puts you in a different place. My BIL was a head hunter for a while and shared that with me.

Welcome to arborculture
 
at one job I had I did the first face to face interview with applicants. I had a really simple four question quiz. Fifth was to tie some knots. One was a running bowline. If someone was new to ropework they got a pass if they couldn't tie knots. I had cocky applicants with claimed years of experience that couldn't tie a bowline much less running. The knot point wasn't necessarily a deal breaker. It did allow me to find answers that had depth to them.
 
Fortunately I don’t have to worry about knots. I’m pretty familiar with all the knots they use except the ‘quick hitch’. I can thank a few years of recreational climbing and about a decade of boating for that. However I think it would be silly not to borrow the book and take the opportunity to learn more.
They did mention former hires that didn’t work out that sounded like what you described. Talked themselves up but didn’t have the skills to back up what they were saying about themselves. Honesty probably could have saved their jobs for them. But then I might not have been given the opportunity, so I should be grateful for them :LOL:
I’ve got to get on the road, but I will check out that hot weather thread on lunch. Thank you guys for the continuing flow of excellent advice!!
 
Another thing I learned really quickly within my first two days. Good boots. The only pair of boots I had were my Harley Davison boots which are heavy and have a flexible but very hard sole (for better wear in the event of an accident) and my back was absolutely wrecked last night. My boss gave me a new pair of red wing “lumber jack” boots (I don’t know what they’re called but that’s what he called them, he said guys usually wear them when they’re using gaffs) at the end of the day yesterday to wear instead of my riding boots. My back is still really sore but it feels like it’s getting better and just a residual soreness from the previous day. Moving forward I’m going to consider purpose built footwear an essential piece of equipment.
 
Lord Baby Arm said:
Moving forward I’m going to consider purpose built footwear an essential piece of equipment.
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Look in the Archives for boot discussions.

A hiking/mountaineering style boot served my feet well for years. Depending on safety regs you might have to get cut-resistant boots. They are built well and are comfy...from what I read.
 
RedWing logger boots?

A lot of folks around here that don’t do tree work wear them all day long. I don’t think they’re comfortable for everyday wear, but to each their own.
Decent boot for spur climbing. Or at least they used to be. I hear quality has suffered since production moved to China.

That’s awesome though, sounds like a great boss considering it’s so early in the position.
 
Jonny said:
RedWing logger boots?

A lot of folks around here that don’t do tree work wear them all day long. I don’t think they’re comfortable for everyday wear, but to each their own.
Decent boot for spur climbing. Or at least they used to be. I hear quality has suffered since production moved to China.

That’s awesome though, sounds like a great boss considering it’s so early in the position.
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They’re really nice. These ones say made in USA. I don’t know how old they are but they’re brand new except the two days I’ve worn them. I’m doubtful they’ll get used with gaffs as he really doesn’t like to remove trees unless he has to. Plus it’ll be a while before I get the opportunity to start climbing at work.0DFC9E9D-8792-4E31-9954-A549D9C255CD.jpeg9B10636E-E123-47D2-A79D-E8A4DCB9B8EE.jpeg


southsoundtree said:
Low heels for ground pounding.
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Once I save up a bit I’ll probably buy a pair of hiking boots like Tom suggested. It may be a little, but for now I’m just extremely grateful that the boss man was so quick to give me a pair of anything that wasn’t my Harley boots
 
Lord Baby Arm said:
Once I save up a bit I’ll probably buy a pair of hiking boots like Tom suggested. It may be a little, but for now I’m just extremely grateful that the boss man was so quick to give me a pair of anything that wasn’t my Harley boots
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Not sure your size but here's an example of some of the deals you can find on treebay. Thread 'Red Wing logger boots' https://www.treebuzz.com/forum/threads/red-wing-logger-boots.44601/

I bought a pair of chainsaw boots on here a couple of years ago for very little that are just now getting ready to be retired.
 
FWIW, I've twice gotten in a bind for boots and grabbed a cheap pair at Wal-Mart. First pair didn't last long, as expected. However the last pair has held up extremely well and are very comfortable. Just popped a few stitches in one spot recently. Not bad for about a year of abuse, including wearing them caving several times. They're Interceptor duty boots, steel toe, $30. I may be done with pricey boots.
 
I used to have those exact boots with steel toes. They held up well for a couple years and are comfortable for spur climbing, and I got used to them on the ground.
The older Redwing are about as good as machine made logger boots get in my opinion. There’s better boots out there, but they’re gonna be handmade and expensive.

I got a couple good pairs of other makes. Since I got a pair or Karakorums and two pairs of Makalus, those loggers just collect dust.
 
Lord Baby Arm said:
This is so much tougher than it looks. Even in the companies with good reviews, I’ll look through customer photos on Google and no one is wearing hard hats, safety colors, and all the equipment is in rough shape; like the rusted up chipper that appeared to be strapped to a trailer that had a sheet of plywood as the trailer deck. Am I being overly critical in my search or are these things to genuinely be concerned about? There is one Bartlett location a little over an hour from me but they don’t have any job listings posted. I’m strongly considering giving them a call anyway but the pay would have to be at least fair (providing they did have an opening at all) to justify driving 2-1/2 hours every day
Click to expand...
It’s a very legitimate cause for alarm. However, I’ve seen and used some old sketchy equipment (earsted change their name to hyster sometime in the 1920’ or earlier). But this was while working for the most safety conscious person I have ever worked with. His climbing saddle was made in the 70’s and literally had throw line holding his leg loops (vrs the tree mo slap you in the ass bungee), but how it was rigged it was bombproof where all the critical components were replaced as needed or made of steel.
It’s hard to judge a book by its cover, and it doesn’t have to be a protos helmet, a pair of $300 chainsaw pants, and a waxed chipper. But a company who uses photos in a advertisement of tree work done without the most basic safety equipment will have a hell of a time defending themselves in a court on when a significant incident occurs.
Point is don’t judge a book by its cover, but do so to those who are either too dumb or don’t give a fuck to present themselves as such in self promotioned advertising (paid for by).
 
great to read this whole thread here. I am working with a new young ground guy with my primary crew, it's been great the fact that he is engaged, wants to learn, pays attention, keeps active, and asks questions.

I worked with a secondary crew this week, and my main ground help was on his phone, while my tail was tangled in branches, and had to walk halfway across the yard (from a chair in the shade) as I shouted him "line is set, get that porty tight" holding an awkward position while he lazily got sticks out of the lines... at least he did stellar running lines and letting it run...

both of these guys have told me they want to learn climbing. who is going to learn from me? the first guy who was on the ground practicing a bowline while I repositioned a few weeks ago. This is the type of guy who we slow down the show for a few minutes to teach them how to do it on their own, another time.

there are so many things to pick up, it sounds like you have the right approach. dragging brush can be magnified by staying focused on efficiency and body awareness, like @SeanRuel said, keep attentive to the positioning and motions of your body. After my first two months of solid ground work, my entire upper body was noticeably changed, stronger.
keep at it bro
 
That’s excellent! I wonder if it’s just a good work ethic and brains or if he’s got that passion for tree work. It’s pretty cool to be around and be involved when a new guy discovers that passion and love for the work. Not very common, sometimes it feels like a revolving door of new employees, but every now and then someone really connects and strives to get better and better.
 
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