What are the cons of being a linemen?
The cons are benefits are usually lacking, pay is not always the best, getting promoted to your next classification and getting a raise is solely up to management, and training and experience is usually limited and greatly depends on the lineman you have training you.
The pros of being a lineman are competitive benefits and rewarding feelings, while the cons are dangerous work and potentially unpleasant work conditions.
Only for the strong. To become a lineman, you have to have extreme mental and physical strength. The mental strength is a main factor when you are working 12 hour days six days a week. One wrong move or one miss communication from fatigue or from tiredness can cost you your life or many other peoples.
How often do linemen get hurt in 2021? According to national lineman surveys and utility company data around 2,400 for every 100,000 lineman suffer serious non-fatal injuries each year. The most common of these serious injuries are electrical burns and broken bones from falls.
“The occupational work that a lineman does certainly puts a strain on the muscles and joints. Add in working in all kinds of weather often high above the ground and you'll see an increased risk of muscular-skeletal injuries.”
Although power linemen are well compensated and receive pay while pursuing apprenticeship programs, they also have to contend with unfavorable working conditions and a slower than average job growth rate.
Average Pay for Lineworkers
The median salary for lineman is $79,843 or around $41.50 an hour. The four key areas that have significant impact of a lineworker's annual pay is: Location. Storm Seasonality and number of overtime hours worked.
Electricians use trigonometry and basic geometry principles during installations, repair, and maintenance. Trigonometry is a math branch dealing with the sides and angles of triangles.
Along with working regular eight-hour, five-days-a-week schedules and on-call shifts, linemen also respond to emergencies outside the town limits, to help out neighboring cities or states where hurricanes or other storms have caused massive power outages.
Yes, the demand for lineman is expected to climb by 8.5% by the year 2026 according to labor statistics. It is estimated there will be 21,500 lineman job openings in 2023 alone. Each year over the past five years has seen gradual increases in lineman job openings.
