Tar Pusher
A Tar pusher is any man or woman who works in the road mending, roofing, or other field that consists of moving blacktop or tar over a surface from one place to another.
Qualifications
A Tar Pusher is a physically and mentally taxing profession. Thus, there are a some criteria that must be met in order to be considered even a novice Tar Pusher, and to be safe:
- Medium to heavy Build: This is rather important, due to the fact that the worker is, indeed, pushing tar. Tar is a very dense material and it's viscosity is very high, making it difficult to "push" or move.
- A well grounded mind that can withstand the long hours of repetitious and tedious tasks that are associated with Tar Pushing.
- Sufficient knowledge of the materials being used, considering tar is a very dangerous substance. Different techniques should also be learned in order to work at one's best.
Hazards
There are many hazards associated with this profession:
Burns
It is very easy to get a burn from tar. It needs to be extremely hot in order to be worked, thus Tar Pushers deal with this hot substance daily.
Heat Stroke
This job is frequently done outside, and in warm weather. Not only is the Tar Pusher working with a hot substance, but he/she is also wearing protective gear, and working in the sun. This frequently results in heat stroke.
Muscle aches and back problems
Being a Tar Pusher means exerting one's body day in and day out. The Tar Pusher pushes his/her body to the limit. This often results in muscle aches, back problems, broken bones, head trauma, dyslexia, and other things.
Toxic Effects
Caused by fumes given off by tar, which smells strangely like "skunk funk".
Tar Pushing in the Modern World
In any given minute, there are at least one hundred Tar pushers at work. Without these men and women doing these jobs for us, where exactly would we be? Without the "second oldest profession", how would the everyday person get to work? The answer is, they wouldn't be able to. This is because the Tar Pusher lays our transportation lines, keeps everything "running smoothly" so to speak, and keeps life driving (in every sense of the word).
See also
- Construction worker
Cited Works