Interested in operating or owning heavy equipment? Then one piece of heavy machinery you may want to consider looking into securing or learning how to use is a skid steer. It’s an essential piece of equipment necessary to have available for use on any construction site. Begin by learning how much do skid steer operators make and tips for how you can earn more by owning one yourself.
A skid steer is a small type of construction equipment that’s used on-site to complete a variety of tasks in construction. It’ll require that you have a qualified operator or driver of the skid steer. In this job role, you’ll need to learn how to start and steer it, how the gauges and features work, and how to properly raise and lower the boom.
A skid steer operator is a necessary job role in the construction and the building industry. This piece of heavy equipment serves different purposes and can help you complete a lot of essential tasks. As a skid steer operator, you may be required to work on:
Digging trenches
Digging holes
Transporting large objects around a construction site
Moving dirt or Earth
Plowing snow
Helping lay pavement
The more skilled you are and the greater your responsibilities on a job site and with using a skid steer, the more money you can potentially make. The employer is in charge of and required by law to train all skid steer operators. It’s essential to identify and avoid unsafe conditions, which is one reason why it’s important that you or your employer secures the right type of insurance policy such as liability insurance.
A skilled and knowledgeable skid steer operator can make good money depending on their level of experience and the location where they are working and who they are working for. Although it’s fairly straightforward to operate this machinery, it does take some practice and skill. The range of salary and how much you can make annually operating a skid steer is between $28,00 to over $47,000.
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On average, you will make about $38,000 per year as your salary. Some of the top-paying US states for skid steer operators include CA, WY, and WA. The more experience you have and the more tasks you’re able to complete with a skid steer the more your earnings are likely to increase. In fact, the top earners in the US can make over $50,000 annually.
Your average skid steer operator is going to make roughly just over $18 per hour. Of course, this can fluctuate depending on what city you’re working in and what types of responsibilities you’re able to take on. Begin by learning the basic skills, starter controls, and how the automatic lockout system works. Then you can continue to gain experience over time and find an employer who will compensate you fairly and based on your skill level.
If you’re looking to or interested in earning more than the average salary then be glad to know there are some practical ways to do so. Some of these factors that will influence your salary are:
Your experience
Location of work
Skill level
There is always room for advancement and improvement so it’s important to take advantage of training and certifications as you try to earn more. A crane operator is the highest-paying heavy equipment operator, so you can always think about switching machinery if you choose.
Other ideas and ways to earn more include working your way into a management or supervisory role or owning your own company. If you own skid steers then you have more control over which jobs you take and how many you can handle at a time. Of course, if you’re employing skid steerers as a business owner then you’ll want to make sure you have insurance policies in place to protect you and your workers.
The annual salary for a skid steer operator is roughly $48,000. However, you can make more if you consider owning your own business and owning a skid steer yourself. This way you can select which jobs you want to take on and work with clients who will pay you the most.
Some of the jobs you may be able to do are:
Moving dirt
Hauling rock
General material handling
You can also grow your business and employ skid steer workers so that you can bring in even more income and earnings overtime. However, just keep in mind that it can be a dangerous and risky job with many liabilities so you’ll want to make sure you secure the right insurance for your company and your workers.
You have the potential to get a great return on your investment if you choose to own a skid steer instead of always renting one as needed. It will pay off in the long run and you’ll avoid constant rental fees and will find that you can work more efficiently overall.
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The construction business and operating heavy machinery come with a lot of risks. There are always safety concerns and accidents do happen. Therefore, you can reduce financial risk and avoid having to cover large unexpected expenses by getting insurance for your company, workers, and that covers your heavy equipment.
Use anyone except Employers. Period. They are non-transparent and shameful. After I complained long enough to warrant a call from a supervisor, the supervisor called back from a PRIVATE NUMBER (no caller ID), left a message that they are not reversing their decision (without any communication with me), and failed to leave a phone number for me to call back. She was hiding! They also fact find via email and phone calls, which is terrific for speed and communication. However, after setting a precedence of email or phone calls, they send time sensitive information via email, without any heads up... they are hoping you miss it and forfeit via expiration. Evil policies. Go elsewhere.
This place is an absolute joke of a company and should be ashamed of the way they conduct business. I was hurt on the job at the end of July and it took them just shy of 7 weeks to issue out a paycheck to me. Yes the amount was back dated but still. Not many have the luxury of not receiving a paycheck for almost 2 months. To top it all off, the original adjuster marked me down for the wrong state which caused a problem from the get go, I've had 3 different adjusters now since each one can't seem to figure out the simplicity of my claim. All my paperwork which includes, my job, house, and drs visits all are from the same state and city but yet some how I have been filed under a completely different state 1500 miles away. They do not answer your phone calls or emails no matter how many you leave. I've had to escalate my frustrations to the supervisors of each of these individuals in order to even get some kind of response. I've had more communication and information given to me about my claim from the customer service representatives then the actual adjusters.......... please tell me how that works?! A serious overhaul needs to happen here in order to serve your clients the way they deserve to be taken care of. 10/10 do not recommend this company to a single soul on earth
I have never had the displeasure of working with a more incompetent and disrespectful person in my life. I’m an injured worker and the adjuster that was assigned to my case was named Carrie Furgeson. In the past 6 weeks that I’ve been injured and out of work I have only been able to get ahold of her twice, not for lack of trying. I have left countless voicemails, countless emails, and she ignores them all. When I am finally able to get ahold of her I’m greeted with terrible customer service. She is rude, she talks over me and I’m hardly able to get a word in edgewise. She spelled my name wrong on my documents even after I spelled it for her properly countless times, this caused a whole new issue with my bank. I have bill collectors from the hospital calling me demanding payment and Carrie Furgeson won’t do a single thing to help, or to get them paid. All of my documentation is in Colorado, my job is in Colorado, my address is in Colorado, all my Dr offices and appointments have been in Colorado and Carrie still managed to hold my claim because she wasn’t sure what state she needed to file it under. It’s been 6 weeks since my Injury and my company still hasn’t received the wage paperwork to fill out so they can get me my correct wages. When she’s not ignoring me she’s answering my questions with “I don’t know” well I don’t know how she got this job, because apparently she doesn’t know anything about it. She is a disgusting morose individual inside and out and I genuinely wish her the worst in all of her future endeavors. I highly recommend you don’t use this company. Please if you are a business owner and your looking into this company please don’t use them. I’m sure they have the cheapest payment and that’s why companies use them in the first place, but you will be doing your employees a grave disservice by forcing them to venture into this absolute dumpster fire of a company. I would rate 0/5 if possible but 1 was the lowest I was allowed.
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