Fred Tamuty, Construction Mechanic, 30 years

You know you have been in the trade a long time when the buildings you worked on as new construction get torn down for newer, bigger construction.

I started out as a helper like everyone else. I was working at a machine shop, and some of my buddies said come over and work with us. So I did. I liked the mechanical assembly, and not working inside a factory or office, and that at the end of the you can see you made something.

In some ways things have changed, and in some they are the same as 100 years ago. This company uses new equipment to hoist rails; others still use a rope and a windless wrench like 100 years ago. It’s lots safer now. In the past we worked without handrails and without safety harnesses. It required a lot more knowledge and skill. You sometimes did things that were really scary. I had a few close calls, got a few stitches from sharp edges.