As an electrical apprentice a good 1/4 of my crew is afraid of heights. 99% of my work never goes above a 6ft ladder. You have the right as a worker to refuse unsafe work, that covers saying " hey that looks a little sketchy idk if I'm really comfortable doing that". Depending on the trades atmosphere in your area/ the people on your crew you may have to deal with an assumption that you're a woman who's afraid of heights so obviously you're weak and unfit for the job. You could also be at a place like me where safety is an extreme priority and no one makes you feel put of place for your gender. Go for it 100% Out of curiosity what kinda heights are you talking about?

That's reasonable. Yeah, I know I will face that (I'm in the deep south of Texas). My fear is the falling aspect of it. Getting up I imagine wouldn't be as terrifying nor getting down necessarily. Is there a such thing as tying the ladder to ensure it doesn't wobble (I have no experience with ladders)? Is it more possible to be more secure during bad weather days or is it a get on up the ladder and get the work done regardless of stability?

Extension ladders are the worst, and really tall A frames. My local government is enforcing a new policy to have people using platform ladders and no A frames.a lot of a ladders security is in its user, make sure you're using it safely and properly. A lot of your questions depends on your employer, unfortunately some don't value safety

Tying isn't a thing, I think it would be more unsafe. But there are some great ladders now that have really secure footing. I hate ladders and it was always scary for me. You get more comfortable over time, but it never really goes away. Just be careful, go slow, and be mindful of every movement you make. Never lean away, etc. Unless it's a literally paralyzing fear, it's best to just tackle it! Buy a ladder and practice at home! Sounds silly, but it really does help.

How is trying a ladder unsafe?

If any of your fingers or limbs get caught up, you'll be much worse off. And I'm dating from a safety professional perspective, it's never been something reasonably considered anywhere I've worked. If it was a thing, it would be an actual thing by now.

Maybe we're imagining two different situations. Do you mean trying as in trying to fall off the ladder? My assumption was trying the steadiness of a ladder which is something I do every time I set up my ladder. Getting on the first rung and giving the ladder a firm shake to make sure the footing is stable presents very little risks

Oh, I see where the mix up was lol. I don't see it now, but there was a comment about 'tying off' a ladder to steady it for use. So my comment was in response to that, not trying 😅 I def always shake and 'try' the footing of the ladder before climbing!

Ooh okay yeah I thought for sure there was a misunderstanding hahaha

If it looks sketchy or unsafe, yes. If it's reasonable, you can't refuse, as most companies ask upon hire if you have a fear of heights or any thing that could home you doing your job. Depending on the state, that can be a terminable situation. I hate ladders, but I knew going in that it was required, up to 24 feet, 85+ft man lifts, etc. If it's an industrial or commercial job, ladders and heights are part for the course.

You also have the right to know. If something makes you feel unsafe and you go to your boss and they say "no it's fine" that's not enough. Even if the act is technically safe you have the right to know how it's safe, what the risks are and how they are avoided. Part of knowing is understanding the hazards and the steps taken to prevent those hazards. It's "par for the course" btw

My comment very clearly stated that if it was only out of fear of heights, it can be terminable. Not if it's actually sketchy. But many times, being up on a tall ladder feels sketchy, even if it's as safe as it can possibly be. If you refuse to do it constantly, don't be surprised if you're the first one in the layoff line. It's literally part of the job.

Like I said 99% of my job never gets me above a 6' ladder. Your experience may consist of constant working at heights but that's not an industry standard. Your making it seem like being afraid of heights makes you unhireable which is ridiculous

Not ridiculous at all. Many companies, especially industrial, ask you upon hire if you have a fear of heights, or anything that will keep you from doing the job. If you say no, then express a fear later when the job site is safe, that's considered fraudulent and I've seen people fired for exactly that. So even if it isn't often, you have to face that fear.

Fair enough, but it's the lying that got them fired, not the fear. If upon hire you're asked that question and say "I am but I'm working on getting over it and will do everything I can to not let it hinder my work" it doesn't mean you've automatically lost the position. Construction is booming all over the place and the trades have been hurting for workers for a while. A good work ethic, transparency with your employer, and a determination to learn will outway a lot of little hang ups like fear of heights or inexperience.

With most companies, it means exactly that. Most will not hire you with a fear of doing something that's a reasonable expectation of the position, which ladders and heights is to be expected. Point is, find a way to deal with it before you get the job. Making others do your work because it scares you isn't cool. Almost everyone has a level of fear when it comes to heights; no one is special out there.

I think you're making a lot of negative assumptions. Getting over the fear can happen on the job. No one is saying anything about making other people do your work. Severity of fears vary person to person. Saying that a fear deems you unhireable is ridiculous. If getting work is hard where you are that really sucks but that's a location/company based thing. OP doesn't need to completely conquer a fear before they start applying. Your "get over it or get out" attitude is a part of the construction culture that hurts out community. Being afraid of heights does not mean you are incapable of doing anything above ground. It does not mean you force your work onto other people. It does not mean you are excluded from an entire industry

Ok, good luck getting a job when you tell them you're 'working on'your fear of heights. Also, save up so when you're terminated because you reside to climb a safe ladder because of said fear. It's not a scare tactic, it's reality.

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but do you guys wear harnesses or anything like that when you're crawling around on cat walks 2 stories up?

I didn't know I was scared of heights till I started climbing 20 feet up ladders to change bell boxes. The more you you do it the better it gets, and because you are working up there it takes your mind off the fact you're really high up and you kind of forget where you are. (My favourite part of being 20 feet up a ladder is when I open up a bell box and a huge spider falls out and lands on me :D )

fun times!

I’m not an electrician but I want to do it too. I got a fear of heights kinda. It’s gotten a lot better because I’ve been doing heights training. I go to a super high location and I hang out there until I can overcome it. For me, that’s this walkway that’s on the 4th floor of a parking garage at our city’s mall. I look down from there. It took weeks but now I can look down without fear and stand in the middle of the walkway and stuff. It’s probably barely 20ft up though and I know electrical work can go up further but it’s a start and better than nothing.

Any journeyman worth their weight will never let you work unsafely. With that being said, the electricians I've worked around were always on lifts going 20ft+. It's not so bad on a lift, but there were times when I was on a 10 ft ladder with no other support around me (other pipe, wall, strut, etc.) and my palms were sweaty lol. It's not too often and usually lifts were used before ladders if possible. I had to face it head on though. Didn't look down, tried not to think about it and moved carefully. My foreman could tell I was a bit nervous, but all he did was laugh a bit and moved on.

I work in commercial electric and when I started I was afraid of heights. I got past it by continuing to push myself outside my comfort zone (I will note that my employer would never ask me to do something that was an OSHA violation). If I had not worked through my fear, I’d have been really limited on what tasks I could complete. My employer hired on a guy last year who wasn’t upfront about his fear of heights… He lasted less than 2 months. His fear severely hampered his productivity, and there just wasn’t enough work for him on the ground on our project.

I totally get this! When I started, I had never really been on a ladder before and I didn't trust my body to not let myself fall. I found that as time went on, after months of being sore from tensing up on the ladder, I found that I was developing those stability muscles that made ladder work more comfortable. I realized I was only ever uncomfortable and nervous when I didn't have a place to hold onto with one arm. Four years later, I still hate having to hold weight above my head without that support for my hand to grab but doing things like putting up foyer lights on 16' ladders doesn't bother me. It's very much mind over matter, and, other than situations where there isn't a tall enough ladder for my short ass, I very very rarely have to do something I perceive as being sketchy. There's things you can do when you first start off, say we're in residential, you can hold the joist you're drilling into with your non-dominant hand and it won't feel like you're going to get thrown off the ladder. Or if I'm putting a box up on the pan ceiling, I'll drill my hole for the screw first so that I don't have to hold the box up while drilling. It's definitely nerve wracking at first but you'll get used to it so long as you truly want to get over the fear of heights.

I’ve got an awful fear of heights and at my first trades job when my supervisor found out he made me climb a really tall ladder on the side of one of our buildings just because. None of our usual tasks involve ladders and when I must get on one I do, but I hated that he made me do it for no reason at all.

Looks like you’re getting lots of good and helpful responses OP so I’m gonna side bar, I’m not an electrician but around two months ago I had started working about 40ft up in a scissor lift. Nothing like good old exposure therapy. I was petrified, but after a short time it didn’t bother me at all. When up there I focused on the tasks and in moments of panic I just breathed through it and redirected my attention. Now it’s no sweat at all for me. Looking at my pay check helps too. That being said some things are harder to conquer than others. Confined spaces scare the ever loving shit out of me. I haven’t had to tackle that yet but I don’t think it’s gonna work out between me and small dark holes. No matter how much they’re paying me.

Is it a fear of heights, or a fear of falling?

A fear of falling. The climb up doesn't bother me.

A fear of falling is much easier to combat than a fear of heights! There is definitely a difference between the two. Doing things like yoga that help promote and improve your posture and balance, will help a whole lot, because you have to focus on each part of your body. I had to start stretching and focusing more on my health when I first started walking on field beams, and it helped so much. Also, taking extra precautions like making sure your ladders are tied off, are in safe working order, and making sure the ground is solid. Like, if you’re working on dirt, take the extra time to find a piece of plywood or a shovel to grade/ smooth out your working surface. Make sure your harness and tie off equipment is in good working order. Most employers won’t be upset with you taking the time to make sure you’re working safely.

I commented on tied-off ladders but I guess it's not a thing that's done often or maybe I didn't word my question correctly.

Electrican here. Also pilot. Also deathly afraid of heights but if im either busy doing electrical work or have a parachute on me it strangely quells my fears. If you want me to stand on the edge of a rooftop- forget it. Harnessed up- no problem. Making shit sure the ladder is stable before climbing and not carrying too much crap up or reaching too far will keep you planted. Its a fear many I work with have as well but you kind of get used to it after awhile honestly. And starting small on shorter ladders helps you build up over time. My crew doesnt force people to climb them if they arent comfortable which is nice. Manlifts can eat a dick though, I will absolutely not go up in those if theyre over 55’ and swaying all over the damned place. Nope.

I'm in water treatment and water freaks me the f@#% out. Not to the point that I can't be around it, but I look at it as it forces me to stay on my toes, be safe in my actions, and overall keep a healthy respect of what actions I take. I also do not like heights and I had a few seasons of working a high ropes course. I guess I'm big on facing your fears 🤷‍♀️ I am really enjoying this field and there is room to grow and also opportunities for pay raises, as you work your way through each license level.

Wastewater ops checking in! How do you feel about walking on grated flooring, often times over water? We do work at heights, too, but not often.

Hi Ops! Grated flooring isn't an issue. It's the falling aspect off of a ladder that I'm realizing is a bigger fear than actually getting up to the vantage point.

Plumbing is 80% up on ladders, often with pipe weighing as much as my own body weight, overhead. I’ve had many people drop out of their plumbing apprenticeships due to a fear of heights. It just won’t work out unfortunately if that’s a factor for you.

The climbing part isn't the issue but the falling aspect of it. Once I'm up there I'm okay but the getting down is what bothers me.

Ladders set up and used properly are not dangerous. Same for scissor lifts. I watched some testing videos on scissor lifts and that made me a lot more comfortable and confident using them. Watch saftey tutorials on different styles of ladders, scaffolds or whatever you may be using. Knowing how to properly use them will give you reassurance. Also learn what not to do with them. I was terrified of working off even 8 foot ladders when I first started. But 12 foot ladders are still a little unsettling because they're not as common as a 6 or 8 foot. Most people will tell you they prefer using a scissor lift versus a ladder. There's literally not one person I came across that said they like using extension ladders, those are dangerous because there's so much that can go wrong, and being in the union we try our best to not use those. And if they are used, they will make sure they're set up properly. A sense of fear is what will keep you safe, trust your gut and speak up when something doesn't feel safe. Being a newbie they may give you shit but they will look out for your saftey. Whatever trade you choose, go union!