Electrical Linemen are responsible for the installation, repair and maintenance of transmission lines and distribution electric power grids.http://occupations.careers.org/28591/electrical-lineman This page does not cover telephone, telegraph or cable TV workers who are also sometimes also referred to as linemen.

An Electrical Lineman works everyday with high voltage wires and conductors. Electrical Linemen need to comply with various aspects of safety law, specific industry standards for their role and also various local laws.

The work is very dangerous and therefore for their own protection many workers prefer to be with a Union. The most popular Unions for Linemen are the Utility Workers Union of America (aka UWUA), the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (aka IBEW) and the Communications Workers of America (aka CWA).http://www.uwua.net/ http://www.ibew.org/ http://www.cwa-union.org/

Many employers require a High School Diploma or similar qualification prior to taking somebody on as a Lineman. The majority of a Lineman's training is received on the job as opposed to in the classroom, therefore Apprenticeship programs are a good route to educate new Lineman. The Lineman industry has invested heavily in Apprenticeship Programs, this is necessary to replenish the industry with the next generation of linemen. An Apprenticeship can last up to 5 years, most typically they take 3-4 years.

Typical skills learned during an Apprenticeship Program include pole climbing, pole setting, rigging techniques, electrical theory, transformer theory, safety at work, use of rubber gloves, use of protective equipment, first aid techniques and wire stringing techniques. http://www.morainepark.edu/pages/582.asp There are other skills acquired too but the above will give an indication of the skills attained.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, average earnings for an Electrical Lineman in the USA as at May, 2008 were $55,100. http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos195.htm Where a Lineman is in a Union the wage paid is often based on the prevailing union rate. This simplifies wage negotiations and means that employers can settle wages with a mass number of employees as opposed to settling at an individual level.

According to research published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) there were 113,900 Electrical Linemen employed in the USA in 2008. This is projected to grow to 119,000 by the year 2018, representing an increase of 4%.