It’s a job that many look at and think “those guys are crazy”. Climbing around the canopy, standing at the top of a ‘trunk’ and felling trees. You may be right in saying an Arborist or Tree Surgeon is a dangerous job – but is it?
In the last 10 years, in the UK, 24 tree surgeons have lost their life at work while nearly 1,400 have suffered some form of injury from being hit by a tree, crushed by timber, cut by a chainsaw or had an accident whilst working at height. These are all common tasks carried out daily by tree surgeons around the world. When you consider that the primary job role of a commercial arborist is to make trees safe for the public and people around them, they are naturally working around unsafe or potentially problematic trees.
This obviously has a risk of causing harm to anyone working on them and thus being ‘dangerous’. I feel that the danger element is purely a matter of managing risk. Eliminating potential hazards and reducing the risk of injury and damage to property is something that is carried out on every job site before boots are even on the ground. It’s a priority to reduce hazards at every opportunity.
go home safe
On any particular site, the person quoting will be able to come up with a safe way of doing the job. The aim is to quote a competitive price by providing an outline for the staff physically carrying out the work. Thereafter, the crew leader will have this information as a baseline and will continue to update this by ensuring each day that the trees, site and surroundings have not changed and any potential hazards are identified. The ultimate aim is to complete the job safely, efficiently and that everyone goes home safe to their families at the end of the day.
With the nature of the tasks being performed, the potential for serious injury or death if something went wrong is quite high. However, the risk of something actually going wrong is quite low. Pre-planning, education, competence and experience of the team members carrying out the tasks is a huge factor on how the job is done. It goes without saying that inexperience, low confidence and improper training on a complicated job brings greater risk of failure regardless of the occupation.
Accident & injury
In 2017, research showed that tree surgeons were one of the most ‘at risk’ trades in the UK as they topped the list for the most injury and accident claims amongst trades people, followed by roofers and scaffolders. These results show that working at height is particularly dangerous, The results did not show the breakdown between personal injury claims and general accidents on site. While there is a risk of injury there is also a risk of damage to land and property.
Removing and dismantling trees is naturally a form of demolition and with that can bring accidental damage. Claims against the damage of a building, boundary fence, vehicle etc are very common in the arb industry particularly in the domestic sector.
The media has a large part to play with the perception of the job. It’s extremely easy to find unqualified and inexperienced “tree surgeons” working on trees. Our industry, in the UK, has in the past been flooded with so called ‘cowboys’. Often, these people are the majority shareholders of the poor photos and videos that are seen online doing dangerous things. Fortunately, I feel that the culture of going for the cheapest price for any given tradesperson is not the case for many now, and the use of professionals to do a skilled and professional job is valued by customers and clients now more than ever.
training
The level of training and health and safety in the UK for people within the workplace is very good. ‘Red tape’ is often viewed as a boundary but I believe it sets a standard and ensures that not every man and his dog can wield a chainsaw or walk onto site and fell trees. This has it’s limitations however and with little regulation on the purchase of arb equipment, domestic jobs are often in the limelight for dangerous activity. I have found that the majority of customers do appreciate a true professional and will pay for one.
The nature of the job requires a certain skill set and mindset. Fortunately, tree workers are aware of the risk of injury and pay close attention to the riskier parts of the job. Many accidents happen when complacency creeps in so it is not uncommon for companies to have regular refresher training and tool box talks. Freak accidents will always be present but unqualified people, with the lack of planning and safety, will cause accidents.
Being an Arborist is a dangerous job but with correct training, control measures and experience we can reduce the risk of accidents and injuries in the workplace. With safety as a number one priority, felling, climbing trees and working around machinery that many would find ridiculously dangerous become well organised routine daily tasks with skilled workers carrying them out. The higher risk demands more understanding, concentration, teamwork and detailed planning and communication from all crew members to ensure a safe and efficient work site.