Observed in Alabama during April, Lineworker Appreciation Month is a time to thank lineworkers everywhere for their willingness to tackle the important tasks involved in ensuring the integrity of our electric system. They brave the elements to preserve and protect our modern way of life, and they deserve special recognition every day.
A day in the life of a lineworker extends far beyond the technical skills needed for handling high-voltage lines and scaling utility poles. And while those moments are among the more harrowing aspects of the job, there’s much more to a lineworker’s daily routine.
“As a lineman, you get asked to do a lot of different things. A member might need a trench dug for a water line, or someone calls in a late-night power issue and it’s just an issue on the customer’s end like a breaker or connector that needs replacing,” says Joey Brown, Wiregrass Electric Cooperative manager of operations. “It’s not part of their official job duties to fix these problems, but they just kind of take it upon themselves to help the member if they can.”
With a career spanning 36 years at WEC, Brown’s journey from the right-of-way crew to lineworker and, ultimately, operations manager has given him insight into the nature of linework. It’s difficult, exacting, and rewarding, with each day different from the last.
“You might be in the heat or cold, you might have to go through a swamp or whatever it takes to get the line built or fixed,” Brown says. “When there’s a storm, they’re working 17 to 18 hours a day for 10 days in a row to get the power back on as fast as they can.”
It’s a risky line of work. While the most common injury lineworkers receive is electrical shock or burns from accidental contact with energized lines, many other occupational hazards come from extreme weather, animals, difficult terrain, and traffic.
“We have really thorough safety protocols, but there are a lot of things about the job that are out of our control,” Brown says. “A lot of the calls we get are from power outages caused by wildlife — squirrels or birds or snakes. Those are pretty common.”
In the face of such unpredictability, courage is a good trait for any lineworker to have. But beyond that, the work requires excellent problem-solving abilities with a solid grasp of mathematics. Whether framing a pole, drilling holes, or setting a pole in the ground, everything is precisely measured.
“A lot of it is cut and dried,” Brown says. “But sometimes, you have to modify it a little bit when you get out there in real-world conditions, especially when you’re dealing with a pole that’s energized.”
The job of a lineworker is full of sacrifices — missed family events, working through holidays or even a honeymoon. Yet, ask Brown or any of the WEC lineworkers and they’ll tell you their work is worth it. The gratitude from the communities they power, whether right here in the Wiregrass or miles from home, is a reward unlike any other.
“When people’s lights have been off for a week or more, and you get their power on and you just hear them yelling, they’re so happy,” Brown says. “It’s an unbelievable feeling. And that’s what it’s all about.”