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A typical day

On site by 6, safety meeting and a look at what the other trades need access to today. Then material: tube, clips, frames, planks, all of it carried and passed hand to hand. Building goes up in bays, level by level, tying into the structure as you climb, guardrails and toe boards as you go. An inspection and a tag before anybody else is allowed on it. Afternoon is often dismantling somewhere else, which is faster, dirtier and where most injuries happen because people rush. You go home tired in a way that office jobs do not explain.