IBEW Local 31

Read it. Then read it again. Then read it again. Maybe we can all find a part of this to just do better? We all owe it to our families to just do better.
The faces of safety when tragedy strikes is our FAMILIES!

Keep being your brothers and sisters keepers solidarity is the core of our union 💪👍

SAFETY SUNDAY (April 12, 2026)

JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE’S STANDING THERE…
DOESN’T MAKE THEM A QUALIFIED OBSERVER
— & —
3 MAN POLE CHANGE OUT CREWS ARE CORPORATE COWARDICE
Lineman Bull$hit™ Academy

I took a break last weekend for Easter…
But I’m back today with a hard refresh from my ET&D Best Practice Series…
And I’m not easing into this one.

Because some things in this trade deserve a calm conversation…
And some things deserve to be dragged into the street… knocked to their knees… and beaten with the truth until there’s nowhere left to hide.
This is one of those.

When I say a 3-man pole, change-out crew…
I mean, 3 men total.
Foreman… lineman… and one other.
Not 3 plus a foreman.
Not “help nearby.”
Not some office version of the job drawn up by somebody who never has to stand in the mud.

And that third hand damn well ought to be another JL…
But far too often… he’s not.

Everybody knows it.
The utility knows it.
The contractor knows it.
The supervisor knows it.
The safety department knows it.
And the men in the field sure as hell know it.

But the job gets pushed anyway.
Because too many utilities and power companies would rather squeeze manpower than tell the truth…
The work takes what the work takes.
And if that means more men… more time… more money…
Then so be it.
Instead… they build a skeleton crew… call it efficient… and leave the field to bleed the difference.
That ain’t leadership…

That’s corporate cowardice.

LET LOOSE THE DOGS OF WAR
I’m sick of hearing companies talk safety out of one side of their mouth…
While gutting manpower out of the other.
I’m sick of the slogans.
Sick of the banners.
Sick of polished safety talk from people who wouldn’t know real field exposure if it climbed up in their lap and pi**ed on them.
You do not get to pound your chest about safety…
While sending 3 men total to do a pole change-out.
You do not get to preach “Nobody Gets Hurt”…
While starving the manpower it takes to do it… with a margin.
And you sure as hell don’t get to stand on profit… reliability… shareholder confidence…
While the men and women keeping the lights on are expected to absorb the risk with their bodies.
That bill doesn’t get paid in a boardroom…
It gets paid in mud… traffic… weather… bad footing… time pressure… overloaded minds…
And sometimes… in blood.

A POLE CHANGE-OUT IS NOT LIGHT WORK
This is serious work.

Equipment movement…
Rigging…
Load control…
Digging…
Setting…
Transfers…
Conductor control…
Ground conditions…
Traffic…
Public exposure…
Communication…
Stored energy…
Changing conditions…

And right in the middle of all that…
These companies still want to act like one man can also serve as a true Qualified Observer?

While helping…
While spotting…
While rigging…
While moving material…
While trying to keep the job from stalling because the crew is too damn lean…

No.
Hell no.

That is not a Qualified Observer.
That is a man being split into pieces so a company can pretend the role still exists.
It doesn’t.

JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE’S STANDING THERE… DOESN’T MEAN S**T
Let’s stop bastardizing the term.
“Watch him for me.”
“Keep an eye on that.”
“You’re the observer.”

No.
That’s not a Qualified Observer…
That’s a warm body standing in the blast radius.

A real Qualified Observer is locked in.
Eyes on the task.
Understands the hazard.
Understands exposure.
Understands MAD.
Understands cover-up.
Understands the movement of men… material… and equipment.
And has the authority… and backbone… to stop the job the second something drifts.

That role is not symbolic.
Not decorative.
Not a box to check.
That role is a line between order… and chaos.
And if your staffing model doesn’t allow that line to actually exist…
Then your staffing model is the hazard.

QUIT CALLING IT TOUGHNESS
This is where I’m going to p**s some people off…
Good.

Because 3-man total pole change-out crews are too often sold as toughness.
Like it’s gritty.
Like it’s old school.

That’s bu****it sold by people who benefit from the gamble.
There is nothing noble about underbuilding a dangerous job.
Nothing gritty about starving a crew.
That’s not toughness.

That’s exploitation with a hard hat on.
And when the crew somehow pulls it off…
Everybody acts like the model worked.

No…
The crew worked.
Survival does not equal soundness.
Getting away with it does not equal best practice.

RECORD MONEY… DISCOUNT MANPOWER
These companies find money for everything.
Executive pay…
Consultants…
Brand campaigns…
Investor confidence…
Everything gets funded.

But when it comes time to properly man a dangerous job…
Suddenly, it’s all about efficiency.
Funny how that works.
The “less” never comes out of the offices…
It comes out of the crews.
Out of the margin.
Out of the buffer that keeps a hard day from becoming a funeral.
So here’s the question…

At what cost to the men and women keeping the lights on?

LEADERSHIP… THIS BLOOD DOESN’T JUST LAND IN THE FIELD
If a 3-man total crew is overloaded from the jump…
That’s not just a field problem.
That’s management.
That’s planning.
That’s values.

Because somewhere… someone said…
“Good enough.”

Good enough on manpower.
Good enough on margin.
Good enough on risk.
And then sent somebody else to stand in it.
That’s why I call it cowardice.

Because it’s easy as hell to be brave with somebody else’s life.

FINAL WORD
Just because someone’s standing there…

Doesn’t make them a Qualified Observer.
Just because a utility says it’s staffed…
Doesn’t mean it’s safe.

Just because a crew has survived a bad model…
Doesn’t make it right.

And just because companies keep making money…
Doesn’t give them the right to discount the manpower it takes to do dangerous work with integrity.

So let me say it plain…

3-man total pole change-out crews are a disgrace.
Not lean…
Not tough…
Not efficient…
Not best practice…
A disgrace.

Be your brother’s keeper…
And stop letting cowards in clean shirts define what “enough” looks like for the people doing the real work.
Better… NEVER RESTS.
~Kevin

City of Superior: It’s Not About Savings — It’s About the Debt 🚨

Yesterday, the City of Superior promised “savings” from taking over the water utility. But what they’re not telling you matters just as much as what they are.

The City’s own consultant says the water system would cost $58 million. Sounds manageable… until you look closer

👉 Even the City’s low estimate would TRIPLE Superior’s debt overnight.

And here’s what gets lost in the conversation:

Right now, skilled utility workers operate all three systems together — sharing trucks, equipment, and expertise. That keeps costs down for everyone.

Splitting the water utility means:
• Buying all new equipment
• Hiring and training a new workforce
• Passing those costs directly onto customers

Join the Superior Community Coalition for some fact checking and support IBEW Local 31!

Superior Community Coaliation The Superior Community Coalition Mayor Paine and some members of the Superior City Council are considering borrowing an estimated 290 million dollars to create a government-run utility through a takeover of one or all our local water, gas, or electric services. We are a diverse coalition of local le...

Rapids mtg moved to next Weds 2/25 @ 6 pm for weather.
Stay safe, folks!