Climber vs ground crew

The differences between climbers and ground crews can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a climber and a ground crew. Additionally, a climber has an average salary of $42,388, which is higher than the $33,390 average annual salary of a ground crew.

The top three skills for a climber include hand tools, line clearance and power saws. The most important skills for a ground crew are mowing, GRASS, and snow removal.

Climber vs ground crew overview

	Climber	Ground Crew
Yearly salary	$42,388	$33,390
Hourly rate	$20.38	$16.05
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	4,477	64,779
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	2	2

Climber vs ground crew salary

Climbers and ground crews have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Climber	Ground Crew
Average salary	$42,388	$33,390
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $57,000	Between $26,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	-	Juneau, AK
Highest paying state	-	Massachusetts
Best paying company	-	Elcona Pro Shop
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between climber and ground crew education

There are a few differences between a climber and a ground crew in terms of educational background:

	Climber	Ground Crew
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Climber vs ground crew demographics

Here are the differences between climbers' and ground crews' demographics:

	Climber	Ground Crew
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 96.8% Female, 3.2%	Male, 89.3% Female, 10.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 20.8% Asian, 1.5% White, 62.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 1.7% White, 66.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between climber and ground crew duties and responsibilities

Climber example responsibilities.

Install lte and umts anttennnas.
Train in the proper use of rigging equipment (porta wrap, pulleys, ect.
Operate heavy equipment trucks with booms and lift systems, company service trucks and vehicles, and a cherry picker.
Hand dig area between old and new poles to ensure enough room to transfer wires, dips etc to new poles.
Train in the proper use of rigging equipment (porta wrap, pulleys, ect.

Ground crew example responsibilities.

Manage the maintenance for all generators: small Honda 4000 and Onan 6500K's.
Used hand saws and hand pruners as well as motorized saws to manage tree cuttings on the ground.
Used rakes, shovels, pruning saws, brush trimmers, axes, and other equipment.
Collect debris and refuge from tree trimming and removal operations into piles using shovels, rakes, and other tools.
Use landscape tools-rakes, shovels, and shrub pruners.
Synchronize missile defense operations within NATO's southern region.

Climber vs ground crew skills

Common climber skills

Hand Tools, 20%
Line Clearance, 10%
Power Saws, 10%
Transmission Lines, 7%
CPR, 6%
OSHA, 5%

Common ground crew skills

Mowing, 22%
GRASS, 14%
Snow Removal, 7%
Safety Procedures, 6%
General Upkeep, 5%
Fairways, 4%

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Building and Grounds Maintenance Industry
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Climber vs Ground Crew

Updated January 8, 2025

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