Provide your own wage: how much do I ask for experienced heavy labour?

June 21, 2008 9:44 AM

Asking for a friend: If starting wage for unskilled heavy labour was $13/hr. What would one ask for (in wages) if they were asked to provide a wage for themselves for skilled and experienced heavy labour?

Ritzy landscaping company. Cocoapples can follow up with more details if needed in the questions, but he just registered and is unable to ask his time sensitive Q for a week.

posted by Acer_saccharum to work & money (6 comments total)

What skills are there for heavy labor? Honest question really, but I thought the entire job description is "put this heavy thing over there".

Do the skills needed branch out into carpentry, plumbing, building or any other areas that could be used as reference points?
posted by cschneid at 11:42 AM on June 21, 2008

Will you be running equipment like a skid loader or backhoe? That's what I think of when I hear skilled heavy labor. Otherwise it's just heavy labor.
posted by sanka at 1:02 PM on June 21, 2008

Find out what your competitors charge for the same service, then undercut it by 15% as you're only just starting out.
posted by Mike1024 at 1:06 PM on June 21, 2008

I'm assuming when you say experienced and skilled, you just mean that your friend has worked for a decent amount of time (6+ months) in landscaping and wouldn't have to have his hand held doing most things. I don't know where you or your friend live, but such a person could easily expect to make 18-20 dollars an hour in Calgary.
posted by paradoxflow at 4:22 PM on June 21, 2008

Ok, right! I wouldn't need my hand held, that's right.... I have experience with lots of small landscape machinery and forks. I have carpentry and masonry skills...experience building ponds and with equipment related to them. I am a horticultural diploma grad and am halfway through a degree in the same feild. I am experienced with plant/tree disease diagnosis... ... ....
posted by cocoapples at 9:04 AM on June 22, 2008

Oh and to answer a question...unskilled heavy labour is the guy or gal that gets you killed!
posted by cocoapples at 9:11 AM on June 22, 2008