TVA Lineworker Helps Shape the Next Generation

On a quiet backroad in Hollywood, Alabama, Jeremy Swafford steers his white Ford F-350 toward a TVA training facility near Guntersville Reservoir.

Spring pollen clings to his truck, coating it a green and yellow hue. Somewhere along the way, a wild turkey crosses the road ahead.

Swafford slows a beat, then carries on.

As the truck nears the training yard, its meaty tires kick up a flurry of gravel. Swafford backs the vehicle to a beige office trailer and quickly steps out.

Jeans and a leather belt. Long-sleeved, button-down shirt. Brown leather work boots. Hard Hat.

He looks one part seasoned lineworker, one part businessman.

About 17 years ago, as an eager apprentice looking to kickstart a career in linework, he would have been pulling into a training facility much like this one.

These days, age 36, he’s shaping the next generation of skilled lineworkers.

As a lead instructor shepherding future apprentices through TVA’s 10-week climbing school, Swafford knows that those who answer the call of linework are a small but mighty group.

“It’s hard work,” he says. “It takes a lot of willpower and stamina. You’ve got to be pretty tough.”

Building a Rhythm

Tough work takes tenacity.

Swafford starts his day at 4 a.m., rising before the sun to say goodbye to his wife and daughter, and then driving many miles to support linework apprentices out in the field, or to lead sessions at TVA's climbing school.

At 6 a.m., he gathers the lineworkers-in-training for a prejob brief.

Here, instructors, supervisors and crew members chat about the day’s goals and any potential hazards or unique challenges.

Carlos Gene Behel, a TVA transmission field lines supervisor, says this open communication is one of the most valuable tools in preventing falls and promoting safety.

“We really try to get every person, at every level, to be engaged and bring their ideas to the prejob meeting,” Behel says. “It’s really important to us.”

When the meeting breaks, the crews gather their tools and toolbelts and head to the training yard.

Here, they hone their skills atop 90-foot poles. At this time of morning, the sun is low on the horizon, so the poles cast long, thin shadows across the ground.

For novices, that first rung of the climb seems daunting.

“Being up there is hard to describe,” Swafford says. “You see a long way.”

The seasoned pros know these poles are just steppingstones to the much bigger climbs TVA lineworkers are frequently tasked with. Some poles and transmission towers stretch up to 500 feet or higher.

During training, the lineworkers move toward the poles with a quiet confidence. Their boots are soon gripping the wooden poles and metal rungs as they ascend ever upward.

The secret to finding a rhythm? A blend of skill, experience and unwavering focus.

“You have to respect the height, but you can’t stop to think about it,” Swafford says. “It becomes second nature, almost as if you’re working on solid ground.”

The Right Stuff

In his 20s, before he became a lead trainer, Swafford was among the 200 TVA lineworkers who help maintain more than 16,000 miles of transmission lines across the Valley region.

He built a wealth of knowledge, which he’s eager to share with this new generation.

TVA employs a variety of specialized lineworkers, each playing a vital role. Some work in maintenance, ensuring grid reliability, while others are involved in construction and installation of transmission towers and power lines. There are troubleshooters, too, adept at diagnosing and fixing issues.

And there are helicopter line crews, those high-flying heroes who work on TVA’s highest transmission towers.

These jobs are all in high demand among younger workers, reflecting a national trend toward vocational training.

Members of Gen Z are flocking to programs like TVA’s lineworker apprenticeship, drawn by job security, a good income and the tangible rewards of trade skills. In the last round of hiring, TVA attracted 500 candidates to the lineworker apprentice fleet.

The hiring process includes a four-day Tennessee Valley Public Power Association boot camp, which lays the foundation for a successful apprenticeship.

Newcomers learn basic knots, safe climbing techniques and everyday operations such as stringing and sagging wire, handling lines and troubleshooting systems.

Evaluators assess candidates not just on technical skills, but on adaptability, aptitude for teamwork and mettle under pressure.

“They’re not looking for how well you can climb,” Swafford says. “They’re looking for the right attitude. Are you teachable? Will you listen when instructed? And how well can you follow directions?”

Those who complete the Tennessee Valley Public Power Association training qualify for an interview. Once hired, they enter TVA’s 10-week climbing school as preapprentice lineworkers.

From there, the sky’s the limit.

“People who come into our enterprise are pretty much committed to TVA,” Behel says. “I’ve watched people come in with no experience and grow to become lineman, then foreman, and move on to the next steps.”

After the 10-week program, an employee enters a four-year apprenticeship where the starting salary is about $54,000. That increases to nearly $81,000 by the program’s end. After four years, the apprentice becomes a lineworker, earning over $95,000 a year.

With time and dedication, they can rise through the ranks as leaders.

“When you become a lineman, you're more than a worker,” Behel says. “You're a teacher. You have the responsibility to lead by example and do the right things.

“You’ve got to teach the younger guys … how to work safely and properly in order to be successful.”

The Best Job

By any measure, linework is a tough job. It can involve long weeks away from home, living out of a suitcase and enduring harsh conditions in challenging terrains.

And when severe weather strikes, they’re on call.

In those moments, lineworkers must watch carefully for potential weather hazards – and they rely on each other to keep watch, too.

“We teach our folks to be your brother’s and sister’s keeper,” Daniel Tate, transmission lines senior manager, says. “For us, safety is above all else.”

The camaraderie that takes shape amid sweltering heat and freezing rain is unlike any other.

“As linemen, we consider this our second family,” Behel says. “There are a lot of challenges both on and off the job that make us even closer.”

In their world, success is measured not just in volts, dollars or wire miles, but in human bonds forged atop steel towers. 

“We build bonds knowing that, at the end of the day, we count on each other to get the work done,” Behel says.

They work to ensure each person returns home safely to their family, all while knowing they’ve done their job well and they’ve helped ensure reliable, resilient power is delivered to more than 10 million people across the Valley region.

“Being a lineman is the best job I ever had,” Swafford says. “No one has to tell you that you’re finished – the work speaks for itself. You can look back at the end of the day and be proud of what you’ve accomplished.”