need so advice please

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a little change of pace

my cousin runs a landscape/snow plow company and his string trimmers start at $12.50/hr. you are risking your life for nothing. If he doesn't value you drivers license or not..leave him. last I checked you don't have to have a drivers license to climb a tree. If you get to the job..do the job..you are due the money..the money you deserve. think about it this way..you could call a cab everyday if you make another $5 an hour. the way I see it..shi* happens..if you show up and do a good job..find a better boss. Don't let yourself get taken advantage of any longer. There is work out there..maybe not tree work..easier..better money..and you can always use tree work with the best groundie from where you are for the weekends for tax free money..word of mouth makes dreams come true.
 
i think you should get more.

i also think since you're in Michigan you may want to be thankful you have a job.when things turn around,i'd ask for a raise.
 
Scott,

When I was full-time in the biz, I paid my groundies 15 bucks an hour.

When I started I was a one-man show. Eventually I forced my younger sister into indentured servitude to work the ropes for me. She was a great groundie, one of my best.

I trained two of my guys from groundie up to climber, and my top paid climber was making 25 bucks an hour when I shut everything down. The economy was better back then, and I was also making a good chunk of change with timber, so I didn't mind paying my men well.

The one drawback I could see would be the license. I can see that being a hastle if I needed you to run a load somewhere or drive a truck, or whatever, but if you are on time to work and perform your duties satisfactorily, then that shouldn't provide much leverage for your boss when it comes time to talk money.

Maybe your boss is hurting for money. Even making 4k a day, he may have over-extended himself and found himself behind the 8-ball, financially.

A good climber is worth more than 15 bucks to me. It sounds like your more a foreman with all you are required to do. Running his daily operations while trying to feed your wife and 4 kids oughta be worth more than 15/hr to him.

From Robert Greene's "The 48 Laws of Power"- Law 13: When asking for help, appeal to people's self-interest, never to their mercy or grattitude.

Basically what this means, is that you will make alot more headway with your boss by detailing ways that him paying you more will help his business, than by detailing ways that him paying you more will help you and your kids. As much as he may feign interest, he cares more about his busniess and his money than he will ever care about you or your family, and you need to find a way to show him that paying you more is an equitable investment in his business. How you pull that off is up to you.

Good luck,

T

Someone rep BT for me. Anyone who has read Robert Greenes book AND made his sister a groundie deserves some gold!
 
i hear ya i hate climbing with people who dont know what they are doing. these guys i work for wont hire anyone else. i have three ground guys that should not even be in this line of work im the only one who can sharpen a saw tie a knot its so frustrating for me cause the slow me down so bad its not funny there last bucket guy didnt even know his knots so i fired him cause he would not learn didnt care and was going to kills some one a cut and thrower without looking for his ground guys what do i do loli could go on for days :chainsaw:

This all tells what type of company it is, either rejoice in being a big frog in a small pond or look for another place to work.
 
my cousin runs a landscape/snow plow company and his string trimmers start at $12.50/hr. you are risking your life for nothing. If he doesn't value you drivers license or not..leave him. last I checked you don't have to have a drivers license to climb a tree. If you get to the job..do the job..you are due the money..the money you deserve. think about it this way..you could call a cab everyday if you make another $5 an hour. the way I see it..shi* happens..if you show up and do a good job..find a better boss. Don't let yourself get taken advantage of any longer. There is work out there..maybe not tree work..easier..better money..and you can always use tree work with the best groundie from where you are for the weekends for tax free money..word of mouth makes dreams come true.

I'm gonna agree with this one.

The only thing I would add is: does this guy pay you in cash?? (we all know it happens) If so you should be getting much more that 15 sinse its very expensive to do things on the up and up...he should pass some of his savings along to you at least. Cheap :censored:!

If its on the up and up, I would say at least 17 an hour - even without a license. Treework IS dangerous.

Good luck.
 
Someone rep BT for me. Anyone who has read Robert Greenes book AND made his sister a groundie deserves some gold!

hahaha thanks bro!

I love Robert Greene. Also a big fan of Jim Marrs and the early Richard Marcinko stuff... people like to make fun of me cause I read about 200 pages a day in my spare time...
 
You can be all of those things you just mentioned and still be an idiot, which means 15 an hour is all your worth to the owner?
 
sorry it has been a long time since i have been on but i need some advice if you may. i now work for a company and i am the only climber, the only one who can fly the bucket i am the only one who can take a tree down. i have ten years under my belt my job title is climber, bucket operator and crew leader my question is to you how much would you pay someone to be a one man show lol? and what would you do in my shoes cause i make 15 dollars a hour to pretty much run this company

I dont want to be rude my fellow tree monkey, but there is A LOT more to running the company than just doing the work. If you answer the phones, set up appointments, bid the jobs, set up the schedules, make changes to the schedules, keep track of your expenses, keep track of the customers, maintain the equipment, buy the stuff to maintain the equipment with, deal with people calling in or showing up late, and then FINALLY doing the work. $15 hour isnt bad for a clock in clock out situation.
 
I think you are a little off on your numbers, none the less with no drivers liscense I wouldn't pay you more than 15 per hr, after you get your driver liscense, then you ask for twenty and he'll pay.

one more thing, don't let this be a one man show. You're the leader get your men on the same page. everyone should be doing things in order and following your lead. then your worth your weight in gold.

be a good leader first

its a lil hard to get them in shape when between all of them they may have one year exp if i am lucky so i do what i have to
 
I dont want to be rude my fellow tree monkey, but there is A LOT more to running the company than just doing the work. If you answer the phones, set up appointments, bid the jobs, set up the schedules, make changes to the schedules, keep track of your expenses, keep track of the customers, maintain the equipment, buy the stuff to maintain the equipment with, deal with people calling in or showing up late, and then FINALLY doing the work. $15 hour isnt bad for a clock in clock out situation.
And don't forget to shave and look pretty! More money means more Hats to wear. All good!
Jeff
 
sorry it has been a long time since i have been on but i need some advice if you may. i now work for a company and i am the only climber, the only one who can fly the bucket i am the only one who can take a tree down. i have ten years under my belt my job title is climber, bucket operator and crew leader my question is to you how much would you pay someone to be a one man show lol? and what would you do in my shoes cause i make 15 dollars a hour to pretty much run this company

I wouldnt climb out of bed in the morning for $15 an hour never mind up a tree.
 
hahaha thanks bro!

I love Robert Greene. Also a big fan of Jim Marrs and the early Richard Marcinko stuff... people like to make fun of me cause I read about 200 pages a day in my spare time...

Richard Marcinko - good stuff. I stopped after Green Team. They started to be the same book over and over but Rogue Warrior and Red Cell kicked some serious azz!
 
Not looking for a fight, and Im sure your worth your weight in gold. Greed and pride when mixed can get you into big trouble, as I can surely attest to. Its getting cold this time of year in Michigan. Id say you ought to ride out the winter and then talk in the spring. You have your families well being to consider.

Best wishes,
Bob
 
Not looking for a fight, and Im sure your worth your weight in gold. Greed and pride when mixed can get you into big trouble, as I can surely attest to. Its getting cold this time of year in Michigan. Id say you ought to ride out the winter and then talk in the spring. You have your families well being to consider.

Best wishes,
Bob


Scott listen to this post, things are tight right now I would ride out the winter if he will provide you with steady pay. I know what it's like to have to provide for a family it may sound good to hear your worth more go find a other job but don't leave this one till you find another and one thing I've learned is don't burn any bridges you never know when you may need to cross them again. Good luck and hang in there, also you never told us why you don't have a license and that's your buisnesss but you will help yourself and your family once you get that corrected if you can.
 
Scott listen to this post, things are tight right now I would ride out the winter if he will provide you with steady pay. I know what it's like to have to provide for a family it may sound good to hear your worth more go find a other job but don't leave this one till you find another and one thing I've learned is don't burn any bridges you never know when you may need to cross them again. Good luck and hang in there, also you never told us why you don't have a license and that's your buisnesss but you will help yourself and your family once you get that corrected if you can.

well my insurance expired and for got to renew it and got pulled over that's why i lost them. the only reason i get out of bed is for my family and yes i too have learned the lesson about burning bridges. some think its greedy that i want more money but its not i know i am worth more than 15 but i have called a broad area looking for a new job but with out a DI i am worhtless to a company but the way i see it is don't that truck have to go to the job site . so i am stuck till spring or if i can get them back which ever comes first.thank you for you thoughts and help.
 
You're not greedy you're boss could probably afford to pay you more but times are tough right now it's not the best time to ask for a raise. Hang in there and get you're licence as soon as possible. Good luck
 
Lone Wolf made an excellent point. I know in NY you can get a conditional license if your driving priveleges have been suspended, allowing you to get to and from work.

Just don't go out on the town on a friday night with a conditional license and get pulled over.
 
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