HOW MUCH MONEY DO SHEEP SHEARERS MAKE?
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- Опубліковано 7 лют 2025
- Ewetube Clothing + merch - ewetube.ie/
In this video, I break down how much money I made shearing over here for a week. It's most money I've made in a week as a shearer comfortably, definitely not an average week!
I thought it would make for an interesting video, let me know if you liked it!
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My name is Karol Devaney and I'm a Hill Farmer and Sheep Shearer from Sligo in the Northwest of Ireland. 💚
Every week I put up Vlogs of what I'm getting up to on the farm, plus the odd podcast with special guests. 🥰
If you enjoy my videos and like watching regular farming content, you should subscribe to the channel!
#ewetube #eweknit #irishfarming #sheep #sheepfarming
I am so glad you still have work even though you couldn’t go to NZ , their lose is our gain 😊
I'm glad too, thank you Maureen!
Even though you press the counter to keep count of your tally, do the bosses confirm your count by doing a count out at the end of each run?
Thanks for "telling it like it is" . That's the best way to learn about life somewhere else. You explained yourself very well and looked quite professional. Congratulations.
Thanks Phyliss!
Fair play to you Karl,its a tough game to be at especially in that heat and the big numbers of sheep,you deserve every penny,thanks for keeping us updated on your adventures👍
Thanks Pierce!
Good man, I wouldnt have a farming bone in my body but one day was in a shearing shed in regional NSW, it was about 40 degrees, the hardest physical work ive ever seen, you deserve good money.
Thanks for this informative breakdown. I am so glad you were able to continue working in Australia. Take care of your back. Cheers! 👍😊👍
Thank you Linda! Will do!
Having working in the industry in the eighties as a rousy and a cook, with my husband a shearer, I loved your video and your attitude. I was the 1st female roustabout in some Qld sheds. I still love the smell of a woodshed.
Thank you!
This video was brillant. Fair play for the honesty, tbh ye aren't payed half enough, hardest job ive ever done. Hats off to ye.
Cheers Glyn, glad you liked it. It's tough surely, it takes thickness!
Glad to have you helping out mate. When I was a kid (60+ years ago) the lads never had back support slings and would spend half their pay on chiro's. Did my stint as a roustabout with fond memories of the black, sweet tea and fresh scones at smoko but my most vivid memory is the smell of the shed. I think it was lanolin.
yep at 6ft 4 , there was not a lot space under the fans , decided not to pursue
when we were against the crown :(
That's amazing Karl. I'm glad your doing well over in Australia.. thanks for sharing with us
You're most welcome Rachel!
Thanks so much for this video, I was really curious. And wow, over 800 sheep in a day, you've a right to that sore back.
Very interesting. You just missed the storm from hell here yesterday and last night. Take care over there.
So I hear Filly! Thanks!
@ewetube.ireland and another one tonight...since they started naming the storms they're everywhere 😉
Not much has changed if it was easy everyone wood be doing it good luck with the shearing
Your Australian trip is so enlightening. You've shown us the differences between there and Ireland. I hope that you have had time for some fun and seeing the countryside. What a great trip. 🇮🇪🐏🇦🇺
As usual, interesting watch!!
Thanks for watching John!
4:50 We finished shearing at the farm i work on a few weeks ago. With a team of 10 shearers it took them 5 and a half weeks to finish, the previous year we had a different team with about 4-6 shearers and it took them nearly 4 months.
Big difference!
Brilliant video as always Karl, fair play keep up the good work and as a young sheep shearer thanks for giving some insight into what lies abroad in the sector.
Thank you very much! Yeah I was hoping it'd be informative for young shearers!
Hard earned money but what a great way to make a living. I had my own round for about 25 yrs, gave up aged 48 started again a few years ago after an 8 year rest, have always built my own trailers, and have a new one just about built for the upcoming uk season. I’m hoping to sell a few if I can get motivated enough to build them. Keep living the dream young fella👍
Best of luck with that Mark!
You're a young legend Karol. This should encourage a few youngens to have a go. Cheers.
Thank you!
I have a question… Who’s the contractor you’re working for? Travel allowance, paper allowance, crutching rate on top of sheering rate for uncrutched sheep??? 20 years in the game (now retired) and I’ve never come across a contractor that generous. 😁
Thank you for sharing the life of a traveling sheep shearer! You do a good job in this backbreaking work! To see all those sheep to be shorn must feel overwhelming at times. Does each sheep farmer provide a place for you to stay or do you have to rent lodging? Are meals always provided? How do you find out about the jobs for hire? It seems as though a traveling sheep shearer is for singles only as a wife and children back home would be greatly missed due to being gone for weeks at a time. Best to you, and always enjoy the countryside of wherever you are located!🐑🐑🐑🐑🐑❤
Thanks Robert
Nice one Karol
Question, could you maybe do a video about the gear you use and how you sharpen?
Respect your hardwork brother keep it up will support 👍🤙
Very interesting thanks, I like that you get paid for what u do , I'm a carpenter and all to often the more motivated workers carry the slackers, all the best and look after your back
The thing I can never understand is, my baber charges $10. I am clean a tidy when I go. No burs and I sit quietly while he does it. You have to be bent over all day, in our Ausie heat in the summer, giving a sheep a full body shear, not just the head. Then you get 46% of a barber.
I never knew shearers earned that much. Please don't get me wrong, you earn every cent, and I have been retired for some years. Good on you for working the weekend too. Great video.
Haha aye and the Barber won't get kicked in the balls. 😂
Hard work, worth every penny.
Really interesting info - I’m a Kiwi born, live in Australia and my father was born in Cookstown Tyrone. 🐨👍
Excellent video. I'm watching from Australia. I'm enjoying all your videos and recognise you from cammi's videos too.
Thank you Kirsty! 😊
Great video Karl very interesting one that was a great weeks wages but it’s hard earned as you know great work 💪👌🇮🇪
Something Iv been wondering about, this has answered alot of questions. Thanks!
Can you do a breakdown of the $5000 you would spend a year on equipment? As a Carpenter I am curious about this.
5000 is usually the bare minimum in Australia two hand pieces are around 2200 combs and cutters around 5000 a year and shearing jeans aka dungarees shearing, moccasins ect another 1000 and you buy a grinder but it lasts you 10 years+ But everything is a tax deduction even if you get brekie at the Servo in the morning it’s a tax deduction ect
3-5k euro I meant which is alot more in aud. The good gear is expensive.
@@EweTubeIreland Surely you would get more than a year out of it, no?
@@EweTubeIreland I’m in my second year of shearing and I’m at like 15-20 k deep in heiniger 😂😂😂
I'm sure you know about the 'wide comb dispute' which wasn't about wide combs but about overseas workers coming to Australia working weekends and undercutting the locals prices thanks to favourable exchange rates. Weekends were hard fought for in your part of the world to give a better quality of life to workers.
Yes I’ve heard about it alright! I watched an interesting video on UA-cam about it.
Good for you saying it all out. good onya for breaking it down.
I didn’t know this information was so fascinating. Well done, clearing up questions. One more question… what is your opinion of shearing with the harness/sling, the stretchy thing that holds your back? In the early 2000s, two of four shearers used them here. No one really talks about it, but to me, they look really helpful.
They look a good job! I don't need one yet thankfully but will prob use one eventually!
Shearers earn every $, with out doubt one of the hardest jobs there is.
Welcome back and appreciate your efforts and hard work for sharing your beautiful sharing adventure documentary, and absolutely another beautiful great footage camera work and a very interesting video to watch .. Merci beaucoup
Be interested to find out what gear you use and typically need to replace change repair each season
Very informative and that's serious work in the heat also. We'll done
Thanks James, glad you liked it!
Good stuff :) i shore for 14 seasons nz and aus.
Awesome! Good on you. ✂️
Hi, I would like to know what interest is in Australia among young people for this job, there are enough local sheep shearers or many from other countries, what part of the year can you spend shearing sheep
Not many Aussies like the job as big money in easier jobs like the trades and mines. If you work hard and save well you can do 9 months shearing and take 3 months off with some nice holidays to rest the body.
Get yourself an Australian bank account and then transfer to your Irish bank account. Much much better exchange rate. I worked overseas for years in Asia and this was the best way to do it. ING is a good option; Citibank were good too.
Shearing and abattoir work some of the hardest jobs out there. Large livestock are hard work
Karl, could you tell us about the meals and accommodation, and also your hours of downtime?
Hello! Thanks for a great video. What did it cost to get the money into euros and to Ireland?
No bother, completely depends on what rate you get. These obviously go up and down based on how the 2 currencies are doing. Companies differ too. I found @Wise to have the best rates this time around and it’s fairly easy to use as well.
Top man bro keep it up it’s a hard job well deserved
Cheers Wesley, will do. 😁
Awesome bro make money while the sun shines bro🤙🏾
That's the plan!
I respect of your video dude. Keep it up
Bloody hard work you deserve all you can get cheers from OZ.
So you were not using harnesses for most of the work? Don’t they help your back? They were clean sheds. Great video. Aussie tax would take the cream off that week.
Good job mate👍
Thanks Karl, really informative, even for those of use long past being able to do that sort of work. Could you fill out the picture sometime regarding how much the Aussie farmer gets for that wool. i.e if he pays you 1k AUD for a long days work does he makem a loss even when the wool is sold? Seeing the effort of shearing no wonder most lads go to the silage etc.
Takeaway for me = Don't quit my day job to go shear sheep in Australia. Got it. lol, Thank you for another informative video. Are those shorts Sheep Game brand?
Best wishes.
I like the Sheep Game shorts you’re wearing! Thanks for such a valuable vid. 🦌💌❤️🐑$
Cheers!
GREAT video. Well explained
Loved the video mate! Why not go NZ instead? Alot more sheep their lol
I tried but didn't get in because of visa issues 😕
Probably a stupid question but who tracks/how do you track the amount of sheep you shear each day?
No problem at all. We have clickers hanging by the pen door, you click it everytime you go into the pen for another one. Someone records the tallies at the end of each run then. 😁
A great and informative vudeo
Glad you liked it!
Would like to see you out in the bush , shearing merino ,different wool there mate , but good luck to you as it is a tough gig
Your a weapon man that’s one of the hardest jobs on planet earth
Tough gig…glad you survived it.👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Even more interesting... Do you know who invented the Aussie sheers and never got a cent from it?....
He is on our currency. A hero!
Very informative thanks for sharing
Do you have a favourite shed layout?
Hi Karol, have you done any mulesing on merino lambs yet? Not a pleasant job, but better than seeing fly blown sheep.Have you been over to West Australia?
I haven't no! No haven't been over West either!
Love your video glad you came to Australian,you pick up our slang,an I shore you learn how to bend your elbow,that have a beer mate,we are lose our young to street crime,which is a shame,my mum was a shears cook,dad was a wool classed ,I use to be a tar boy,then a rouse ,another word,pick up fleece,sweep the floor,dad had a old doge and a egg shape bond caravan,no travel allowed in they days.good work mate.
Thanks Annette
Who are you working for? Wish we got crutching rates on top in NSW 🤣
Central shearing 😁
@@EweTubeIreland might have to give em a bell next year, the scum is rife in the riverina 🤣
Why dont the Poms and Irish build wool sheds like we have?
Hard to justify building a wool shed when the wools worth nothing and they're only shorn once a year
@@DaveC97 No. But they have other uses. Crutching for starters.
Good man carol, a hardy boy. Is the money similar in NZ ?
Cheers Paul, no it's less, I was going to be on about $2.30 NZD in New Zealand. New Zealand is more for the experience and to get better. 😁
That was really interesting are the sheep look to be bigger than ireland sheep
Cheers David, ah there's some big sheep in Ireland too!
Unfortunately you won't make anywhere near that amount in NZ unless you shear over 400 most days. Some parts of NZ you might get close but 75% of the sheep are hard going. You get very little in gear allowance, I'm getting paid $2.40 a ewe and $2.10 a lamb different areas or contractors will be different plus my tax is 33% 😐
Yeah very true! And no I wouldn't be doing 400 everyday!
It might be a good thing that I'm still in Australia!
How does the money compare to a good week in eire shearing sheep
Are you paid as a contractor with abn or is this on tax file?
A working holiday visa is a taxable income, ( ATF number needed), but the visa holders get their tax refunded on leaving the country. I've had backpackers in my home on that visa and one was delayed here picking blueberries for 3 years over Covid. Basic minimum farm rate is above $28 per hour.
Vous et vos beaux mecs traitez les agneaux avec le plus grand soin. J'ai accidentellement trouvé vos vidéos. J'ai aimé, je me suis abonné, j'ai enregistré, partagé et j'ai beaucoup appris sur votre mouton. Merci.
That's a week of hard yakka lad . Earned it
Cheers Doug, yeah if it was easy everyone would be at it 👍
Cheers Doug, yeah if it was easy everyone would be at it 👍
Hard work hard craft fair play to you
How much are you left over after going to the pub everyday? 90% of the shearers I know haven't got a pot to piss in.
I don't but I know plenty who do lol
Hard earned money but nice to have big volumes to shear only do my own but find if there in a few different places and you do 80 or 90 in one place if it stays dry that long and move and set up again to do nearly same amount its harder on ya that if you done 150 in one place you take that set after first few hours and its just easier to keep at it that moving like as you said here in ireland doing so much moving to get numbers done 👍👍This time next year you be a millionaire😂😂😂😂
Aye the moving about slows you down. I don't know about that 😄 🤔
2 hours break in a 10 hour day! You've got it too easy. I don't doubt that its hard graft when you're working through.
Is the wool worth anything over there
Current price received for farmers is around $14 aud per kilo for 20 micron wool. A lot more for finer wool. I assure they don't pay shearers that sort of money if there was not profit to be made. 👍
@@tonysambarUK wool worthless
Good video, Karol.
Noel
Thanks Noel, hope all is well!
Whereabouts in Aus is this?
Around beaufort!
Well done, without you I wouldn't be wearing kilts!
Do you get superannuation on top?
Yeah you do! I must look into that, I think you can bring some of it home when you're leaving.
Fair play for sharing Karl. your tempting me to come out of retirement
It'd be tough first week back Raymond 🤣
So when you pay tax will that be 30% off your earnings. That is what my daughter had to pay working on a 3 month working visa. She queried the rate and was told that she was paying for the privilege.
The working holiday tax rate is 15% Wendy, that is meant to be up to around 37k and then it's 32.5% after that, I think! Correct me if I'm wrong.
@@chrisoconnor5880they need the labour. There’s a shortage of workers out there. They fly people in for all the fruit harvests aswell
he dosent get a tax free allowance as the other australian tax payers enjoy the fact is the locals get the first 18 thousand tax free and the same job is open to all the locals that are able to enjoy the same working conditions mabye you should try a shearing shed for a season @@chrisoconnor5880
@chrisoconnor5880 technically we're paying more tax because Australians can earn something like 18k tax free where as we're taxed from the first dollar. I'm not complaining though, 15% isn't high. It's at home where I'll get stung the worst taxwise.
@@EweTubeIreland it was a good many years ago and my daughter was doing office work. But yes 15% would sound fair. Our government decided that the Kiwi shearers who used to do the bulk of the shearing in the UK should be stung for tax. They said that being the case, they won’t come. As a result home grown shearers became the norm. So now it seems, the traffic is going the other way. One of our local agri contractor workers carries on baling year round by going down under.
Your a wee bit faster than average in my opinion .
it should be mentioned that few shearers shear till they're 60 due to pain and injury often quite debilitating.
Divorce rates are high and if you want to live near the sea traveling happens for another hour or two in your day + the time it takes to wash and grind combs and cutters another half an hour.
Moral of the story do shearing schools be a rousy or learner in the fastest team you can find, do campouts marry a top shedhand get another buisimess to sink your money into and get out within 5 to 10 years
EWETUBE ABU !
Good Man Karol.
KHL 🔥
Cheers Philip!
(What is crutching ?)
Shearing the dirt off their bums. 😁
@@EweTubeIreland ty 🫢😆
How much Aus tax did you have to pay..???
15% when you're on a working holiday visa Melanie
A interesting video thanks
Glad you enjoyed it!
$900 a day minus our Australian greedy tax system , your left with $120, thanks for coming
WOW 😮😮😮😮😮❤❤❤❤❤
How much Tax did the Australian government get from you for that week
15% on a working holiday visa so not too bad
Nice only need to work 16 weeks of the year for a $110k and the rest of the year living the good life
It's my best week ever, not an average week
Good money “but” a tough industry on your body 👍
Sure is!
Your on about 25 euro an hour after tax
We’re abouts in Australia to go and who for
👍👍👍.
👍👍👍👍👍
You sure have been busy!
Kept going surely Ron!
the travelling around would stop me
True, young persons game ideally!
@@EweTubeIreland i used to contract shearers when i had my sheep farm near goulburn, bloody hard yakka--- i never minded paying the shearers as it something i would never want to do, but yes they used to travel miles for work, luckily we still have them😀
Remember all that shearing gear is Tax deductible.