Putting the Skills Back In the Trade

[Highplains Drifter]

Naw I'll do it for ya Steve:

All jokes aside and maybe this should go into Union issues or a separate thread on linemen verses company.
But PAR Electric bailed out Capital Line Builders of KS back in about 1983, because of trouble with the hands out of local 1002. PAR send their best hands and also run me down to finish a 161kv H structure line.In two short months about one third of our equipment was reduced to junk.
They had the attitude, that when they broke Capital another company would come and PAR did and they damned well made good on that threat again. When we finished, PAR said they would never enter Oklahoma again and keep that promise about 15 years.
Capital went back in 1991 with a ridiculously high bid that they thought wouldn't win. They just barely got out with their @$$, and they had Grand River Damn Authority throwing work in their direction and Capital kept bidding it high hoping they would pass over the bid. No such luck. Well Oklahoma has cleaned up their act to some extent, and most of those good old boys are gone, but no matter where it is if you have that attitude, you deserve junk equipment to work with.
AS safety director I had a chance to see the other side. Trucks wrecked, Tools lost time and time again. Just little things like Burndy MD-6 tools lost on storm breaks ($700.00) Shotguns Lost. Every Storm break a crew doesn't have a flash light? Why you had one last break??? I DON"T KNOW. Rain Gear missing. Man it went on and on.
That is why some locals make it mandatory for travelers to have a card saying you attended a Code of Excellence class before you can sign the books. That and at least an OSHA 10 class.
That is the reason I am now attending an Internet OSHA approved recertification for instructor in OSHA 10 and 30. There is money to be made here and I am getting bored harassing Sawmpgas and heelb!tch.

By the way. The International Rodeo is coming up in October. Be there and attend the Safety & Training Conference. A lot of good information and good food and prizes.

http://www.linemansrodeokc.com/car.html

http://www.linemansrodeokc.com/

I have been waiting to start this thread and I guess now is right. I have heard this three times in the last four months and I believe in my heart that this is going to happen.. Now we are seeing all this other bull shit going on in the trade. First of all they are trying to kill us with all this FR clothing which isn’t 100% cotton or wool…..go figure. Second fu[k the buck squeeze or any other item that does the same. I was taught Line Work by very proud skilled craftsmen and climbing was a major part of my training. Third is all those certifications, are we starting to act like the rats and carrying a brief case of certs? Come on guys Crane, Boom Truck and now rigging certs…….WTF…..either become skilled or get out!!!!!


So now all we have is a bunch of folks that are certified but not qualified to do what they are suppose to. You don’t think this is a bunch of deaths waiting to happen? Well do you know who is going to make this trade a skilled trade again? It will be the Tramp Lineman, when they finally get fed up with all this BS and put their foot down, the contractors know they need them and are going to listen.

[climbing high]

Yuo are one hundred percent right.

[electric squirrel]

Drifter I'm with you 100%, but unless you get all the belly crawl'n lawyers out of the picture your gonna get new rules put down on you!! Just so everybody knows Par is the next contractor going to fall restraints!! I was told back East they have already implemented it.......

[Highplains Drifter]

Drifter I'm with you 100%, but unless you get all the belly crawl'n lawyers out of the picture your gonna get new rules put down on you!! Just so everybody knows Par is the next contractor going to fall restraints!! I was told back East they have already implemented it.......

electric squirrel, who cares, Par is on a national boycott by the hands...no one will work for em no more....

[bones]

Realize contractors are just the middle man in the giant scheme of things. Contractors could really care less if you used a bucksqueeze or not, it is just the legalities of it has their arm behind their back. The tipping point is now! It is just more profitable for someone to take more time and hassle around with a fall restraint device than to pay the insurance/legals for purely belt use.

Ten years ago they would have been on anyone's back for f'n around so much with such a device. Now, money talks and contractors have a gun to their head held by various institutions if their men do not use one. All about the money.

I think many men are afraid, and rightfully so, that the use of a fall restraint will let many undesirables in. I think many of us remember showing up our first day and seeing half the guys walk simply because they were afraid of falling The most important thing linemen were looking for in potential apprentices were the one's who confronted and overcame their fears!!! This is a trade where men have men's backs. There is a bit of hurt/backlash from the guys already in and are linemen. Kind of like the Army/Marines/SpOps/ what have you suddenly coming out and saying they're doing away with boot camp, hell week, crucible because statistics show so many injuries.

It is a new age I suppose...

[Trbl639]

Gotta agree with ya Drifter!! Not out trampin, but talking to all I used to work with...mostly all damn good hands......they are scared to really do anything cause management has their finger on em pushing all these new damn rules/regs, and it's cause the damn legal eagles are afraid somebody is gonna sue em........and cause management ain't got a freaking clue as to what we do!!!!

[LINEHAND]

http://www.ibew1245.com/news-Outside...rt_8-20-10.pdf



Guess no one has seen this???


Send your feed back to your local!!! This is off 1245 site and it says to send comments to SAfety@1245.org

Or send em to safety@ibew.org


Im sure it will get shoved down our throats anyway!

[Highplains Drifter]

http://www.ibew1245.com/news-Outside...rt_8-20-10.pdf



Guess no one has seen this???


Send your feed back to your local!!! This is off 1245 site and it says to send comments to SAfety@1245.org

Or send em to safety@ibew.org


Im sure it will get shoved down our throats anyway!

Thanks LINEHAND, Guys send your concerns before it is to late to the links in the post above.

[west coast hand]

They all say they use the best practices but it what ever for the golden boys???

[unionhand]

i couldn't agree with you guys any more, and everyone i have this discussion with agrees too. the union is pride and excellence. pride in what not knowing how to climb and you dont have to be excellent at climbing if you have the bucksqueeze. wish that all union members would stand together (like a brotherhood should) and say no. but you know as well as i do that all the kiss asses and company puppets would never agree with the real brothers.
My 3rd day in linework i was told to climb a 90 ft pole to land a crossarm(h structure), when i was up there i was scared shitless and decided when i get down im gonna quit this is crazy. but when i got down-i looked up-and i realized what i did and thought i was to coolest kid in town so instead of quiting i learned to climb better and higher. any joe schmoe of the street can not do what i can do on a pole. but if you would of given me a buck squeeze on day one. i would have no confidence in my climbing just the false confidence in my bucksqueeze. just the same as joe schmoe.

im proud of my speed and ability to climb but you put me in a bucksqueeze and 100% belted off and do pole top rescue
VS
A second step app who can free climb till he gets to the victim and not be messing around with, cable tele service ect.. the kid wins, thats a LIFE.

you put anyone on top that pole about to die and they say screw the bucksqueeze.

ps i would never use a bucksqueeze for pole top rescue, i wouldnt use it to hang a service drop if my scarestrap was on fire.


also what halls are requireing code of ethics to sign. thanks