New Line Life Podcast: Working as a Troubleman In the Pacific Northwest

This T&D World Line Life Podcast episode highlights the 25-year career of Jon Backman, an IBEW journeyman lineworker, troubleman for Puget Sound Energy and founder of Making Connections, LLC.

The graduate of Northwest Lineman College started in the line trade in the utility line clearance program before joining an apprenticeship program at a municipality in Washington State. When he topped out as a journeyman, he worked as a lineworker for a PUD and then moved to Puget Sound Energy to work as a troubleman or electric first responder. In his current role, he responds to storms and outages and serves his community. 

To learn more about Jon, read his profile in the April 2025 Lineworker Focus department and his article about RFI troubleshooting coming up in T&D World's May 2025 Electric Utility Operations section.

If you know of a journeyman lineworker we should consider profiling in Lineworker Focus and have as a guest on our Line Life Podcast, email me at [email protected]. Also, listen and subscribe to the Line Life Podcast at linelife.podbean.com to become part of our community.