macrocarpa
Branched out member
- Location
- Midwest
Just listened to this two-part most recent discovering forestry podcast. The arborist they interviewed was brutally honest in a way that made me chuckle talking about his experience in the trade. It’s always irritated me growing up in the skilled trades when so many people these days say things like “you can easily make six figures in the skilled trades”. Having been in high school in the 90s we were basically told if you don’t go to college you’re a loser and now they’re telling kids if you go to college, go into massive debt and live at your parents house because you can’t find a job you’re a loser and you should’ve gone into the skilled trades where you can make “six figures” (talking to you mike rowe
I think telling kids they can make six figures in the skilled trades is like telling them they can make six figures baking cupcakes. Sure some are able to do it, especially if you have your own business, but you can also do it if you have a super successful cupcake business. Does that mean we should tell kids they can make six figures in the cupcake business?
I worked construction for four years out of high school, saved up money and went to a two year trade school for forestry and came out making $11/hour working for a large tree care company. I thought I would be in the forestry business in some capacity and had no idea I would get into tree care. It was kind of by default. It was either tree care or $5.25 an hour as a seasonal employee for the forest service if you’re lucky enough to get your foot in the door. I’ll never forget the top climber at that company told me on my first day “if my son went to college and came out working for _______tree experts, I would kick his ass”.
Don’t get me wrong, there are so many things I love about being an arborist, #1 trees/nature #2 the “industrial athlete” side of the trade, but I would say the biggest challenge I have faced is the salary and benefits side of the equation. The best opportunity from a compensation perspective I have had outside of self-employment was working for a wealthy municipality. I tried that for a number of years and honestly wish it would have worked out, but could not find a healthy work environment with a team of professional arborists. I blame that on upper management for not knowing how to attract and retain quality arborists. If you’re reading this and you have found both good compensation and a team of quality arborists where there is a healthy team environment, from my perspective you have something very special.
Anyway, I just thought it was refreshing to hear someone be so honest on an arborist podcast.
Please take into consideration this winter has been slow and within a month macrocarpa will be back in action and won’t have time to contemplate such things.
I think telling kids they can make six figures in the skilled trades is like telling them they can make six figures baking cupcakes. Sure some are able to do it, especially if you have your own business, but you can also do it if you have a super successful cupcake business. Does that mean we should tell kids they can make six figures in the cupcake business? I worked construction for four years out of high school, saved up money and went to a two year trade school for forestry and came out making $11/hour working for a large tree care company. I thought I would be in the forestry business in some capacity and had no idea I would get into tree care. It was kind of by default. It was either tree care or $5.25 an hour as a seasonal employee for the forest service if you’re lucky enough to get your foot in the door. I’ll never forget the top climber at that company told me on my first day “if my son went to college and came out working for _______tree experts, I would kick his ass”.
Don’t get me wrong, there are so many things I love about being an arborist, #1 trees/nature #2 the “industrial athlete” side of the trade, but I would say the biggest challenge I have faced is the salary and benefits side of the equation. The best opportunity from a compensation perspective I have had outside of self-employment was working for a wealthy municipality. I tried that for a number of years and honestly wish it would have worked out, but could not find a healthy work environment with a team of professional arborists. I blame that on upper management for not knowing how to attract and retain quality arborists. If you’re reading this and you have found both good compensation and a team of quality arborists where there is a healthy team environment, from my perspective you have something very special.
Anyway, I just thought it was refreshing to hear someone be so honest on an arborist podcast.
Please take into consideration this winter has been slow and within a month macrocarpa will be back in action and won’t have time to contemplate such things.
