So I currently live in colorado doing line clearence but I'm hoping to possibly move to california to be near family and I. Really want to move into residential or municipal work out there. Anyone no if its hard or easy to find work out there and how much I could hope to make with 2 1/2 years expearience
how is california
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jeff tells us EVERYTHING is beautiful there.
beastmaster
Addicted to ArboristSite
PM me. I know several people looking for climbers in So. Calif. But your not going to get rich, but not to bad either. You have a good drivers lic.?
Sayheymj
ArboristSite Member
Cali is a long state....
North, South, East or West ?
North, South, East or West ?
muni work will probably be better in SoCal if you work for a good city. Good pay and bennies. Residential trimmers don't make a ton and there is lots of competition. You'll want to work for a smaller city rather than a large one. The quality of life working for Burbank, for example, is going to be way better than LA city.
Or you can start your own biz but you will need to prove 4 years of journeyman level experience to get a license.
Or you can start your own biz but you will need to prove 4 years of journeyman level experience to get a license.
How's your Spanish?
Sayheymj
ArboristSite Member
Don't forget the utilities
The electric utilities do a lot of work although mostly contracted to Davey and others. Some smaller muni utilities like SMUD in Sacramento have their own tree dept and their crews are utility employed at prevailing wage (or atleast used to be last time I checked). Trimming for power lines is much different that for a homeowner as it's purely about clearance from the lines...but it's still good work in the industry. Sacramento by the way labels themselves the tree capital city. There is a lot of trees in that town...for an urban area in the valley at least....
The electric utilities do a lot of work although mostly contracted to Davey and others. Some smaller muni utilities like SMUD in Sacramento have their own tree dept and their crews are utility employed at prevailing wage (or atleast used to be last time I checked). Trimming for power lines is much different that for a homeowner as it's purely about clearance from the lines...but it's still good work in the industry. Sacramento by the way labels themselves the tree capital city. There is a lot of trees in that town...for an urban area in the valley at least....
Ya I'm trying for some where near central like sacremento. Or something. I put a call into davey see what they pay for a trimmer with 2 1/2 years experience both bucket. and climbiming. Does anyone know approx what they pay
An experienced groundman who applied for a job with me in Socal was previously making 15 an hour with them. I would guess a climber with your experience would make 16-20. Just a guess though. I haven't met many Davey guys. They don't have a great rep out here as they butcher a lot of trees doing line clearance. The outfit down here is pretty big though, I bet over a dozen chip trucks.
Thanks for the the info bro
mattfr12
The Bulldog
It usually takes a while to get the pay you deserve. If your actually good you will get it in time, but they usually start at the bottom of the barrel and a foreman after so much time decides how good you are. Then that classifies what your gonna get paid.
StrataTree
ArboristSite Operative
I think trimmers in the Humboldt area make about $20/hr.:msp_biggrin:
experienced climbers were getting in the mid $20s/hr about 12-15yrs ago in the SF bay area. Sac will be less but not that much less. Things have gone up quite a bit since then.
CalTreeEquip
ArboristSite Guru
Davey is at the bottom of the pay scale and all hispanic crews at this point. Most the industry in Cal is hispanic and that really keeps the wages down and the work load up so be prepared to work your ass off 6 days a week. SMUD along with a lot of other muni's and city's have closed down their tree crews and are now contracting out to private. There may be an edge there but there are plenty of established companies competing for that work now. State regs are crazy, taxes are high, cost of living is high. Plan on buying a new chipper and probably new truck because all the old chipper are illegal to use now and most of the older diesel trucks as well. If you do come bring with you a truck under 14,000 GVW and a chipper below 50 hp, both are exempt from the regs and real hard to find here now. Your best bet is to stay close to the coast, like Santa Cruz and stay small. Lots of money on the coast and that money doesn't mind being spent of craftsmanship. Regardless you will alway be competing against hispanics and if not them then old loggers and they lover their spikes and felling big trees between houses. Oh and then theres the cops, cops everywhere. Last ticket, doing 37 in a 25 cost $275. Before that, towing a log splitter behind my car on a 70 mph hiway, doing 72mph, cost $450. That's were they get you.
sadly, all true. Cali is NOT business friendly and is getting worse almost daily. With the new Dem super majority it will get even worse, reg and tax wise. I can't wait to retire and get out of this state.
beastmaster
Addicted to ArboristSite
Though a lot of what's being said is true to a point, it not all bad. A person with 2 1/2 years experience is looking at 15.00 dollars an hour if you can do production work. Find a good company that is known for doing excellent work, and learn fine pruning or difficult removals and you can make 20.00 an hour. If you're a leader and can take responsibility you can make 25.00 an hour as a Leadman or Formen.
There are a few fine companies in every city, that are above the bullcrap. Pick your shots and seek out the best, and you can make a decent living. Ive lived in So. Calif. My whole life and have a lot of years experience. I do alright,but I drive a old truck, and I live from job to job but I manage to pay my mortgage each month and I'm putting my daughter through college.
It's what you make it. I could go somewhere else and make a lot more money, but living here in So Cal. is worth a lot to me. It's pretty great if you ask me. I got to have that Ocean on mines.
There are a few fine companies in every city, that are above the bullcrap. Pick your shots and seek out the best, and you can make a decent living. Ive lived in So. Calif. My whole life and have a lot of years experience. I do alright,but I drive a old truck, and I live from job to job but I manage to pay my mortgage each month and I'm putting my daughter through college.
It's what you make it. I could go somewhere else and make a lot more money, but living here in So Cal. is worth a lot to me. It's pretty great if you ask me. I got to have that Ocean on mines.
sgreanbeans
Treeaculterologist
Not true. I have several guys over the 20 mark and a few around the 25-27, one even more. Mixed crews, white, black and brown. All English speaking and I am the closest territory to the border in the company, in San Diego. I start ground men at 14. Entry level climber 16, provable experience, 18 and up. My GF, who is a BCMA,QAL, and about a 100 other certs and quals, makes more than me. I am on the res/comm side not utility. We do lots of prevailing wage, where they end up making much more. A Davis Bacon job, they will make 43 a hour. All of them, even the ground worker.
Now speaking on Cali, from the outside looking in. Coming from a hillbilly from Iowa. There are many things that are cool. But there are also many things that suck. Most of the people are rude as hell. But the beach is awesome. The traffic sucks but bikinis don't. Gas is outrageous but food literally grows on trees......everywhere. You may turn a corner and think you just pulled into Pakistan, the Philippines or China. Awesome parks and trails. Lots of homeless wandering the streets. The ultra rich act as if they are above all customs and courteousness. U have 50 y/o guys that dress like a 15 y/o skater. Always got somebody shooting somebody. Cops shooting cops, you all seen it, I was in the middle of it, when they where looking for him down here. Not a good feeling to be around a bunch of trigger happy cops. So basically what I am saying. Its a trade. Everything you hate at home, will be great here. Everything you love there, will suck here.
and Jeff is right, it is absolutely beautiful here!
If you are interested in us, PM me your info. I can put u in touch with the right person
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sgreanbeans
Treeaculterologist
True, the utility side is not liked, this has been a battle for me as they think we do the same thing. We are the Expert side, They are the Surgery side, they have over 90 crews in the S.D. area. I have 5, with a full time PHC tech. When people call to complain, they look in the phone book and get my number, as they (Surgery) are not for hire, they only work for the utility. People don't see the differences, we are after all, one big company. So then, we get the beat down. We try to explain, but most are so mad, they just don't want to hear it, which can be frustrating. Those that will listen, leave understanding that it is a necessary, thankless job. Then they are cool with the idea, or the mission rather. But some just don't care. I have told people, that some old guy needs that power on for his ventilator, some mom needs the power on for her sick child's chemo pump. The complainers, they tell me "let them f'ing die, I don't care, don't touch my f'ing tree" .......... pretty sad. The utility guys are not in the business of tree care. They are in the business of line clearing. Although we all would rather they do full and proper pruning, believe me, they do too, they try to do the best they can, but they don't have time. Keeping the power on is the priority. If they stopped and pruned out each tree, they would be so behind that none of us would have any power. No matter the location, or the company. ROW work will always be mis-understood. It affects me greatly, as peeps wont hire my side, as they think we, as a whole, are evil. We are not.
When you have a large group of guys, there will always be those who suck and do a bad job, no matter the industry. The manager on that side takes it seriously and try's to remove all the deadwood as quick as he can. But when ya hire guys, they don't tell ya upfront that they will do a bad job and just don't care.
Whats funny is, the same people who complain about us doing it, are the same ones who call and complain when their power gets knocked out by the branch they DIDN'T want us to remove. Then we get threatened with lawsuits for NOT doing it :bang:
Working on doing a public service announcement/commercial, to try and get the word out on why it is needed. Kinda like the bee and the power line commercial they use to play, when we where kids
CalTreeEquip
ArboristSite Guru
This is true, I was referring to the utility side not "Davey Tree Experts", who I have little experience with. Line clearance is a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario.
And its true we take the whole of Davey's as one big company that butchers trees.
But the public and peer perception is a making problem for corporate. They really should have completely separate the company by name years ago.
By the way, I worked for Davey's back in 84, that's how I got my start in this business.
Boy we caught a lot of flak from people, still do for that matter.
Do you happen to know what "Surgery" is paying these days.
I think I started at $7.40 an hour with no benefits.
And its true we take the whole of Davey's as one big company that butchers trees.
But the public and peer perception is a making problem for corporate. They really should have completely separate the company by name years ago.
By the way, I worked for Davey's back in 84, that's how I got my start in this business.
Boy we caught a lot of flak from people, still do for that matter.
Do you happen to know what "Surgery" is paying these days.
I think I started at $7.40 an hour with no benefits.
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