I'm along Stephen's line of compensation. You get training for up to a week at entry level rate ($15-18/hr, depending on drving skills; if you've never driven a large, heavy-duty pickup, you're at the bottom). The more you learn and can do (learn knots/run the ropes/porty/other rigging; drive bigger truck/trailer; learn to drive stick for my chip truck and move it and chipper; run a jobsite so I can go dump (or better, learn how to dump for me)). All those things will earn an increase. As for another guy wanting to use his own saw, unless I've known him for a LONG time, and have an idea of his skill and how well he would keep his saw, I have no need for him to bring it. I have plenty of saws that can do every job I need almost 2x over, and because I live in this ridiculous nanny-state/insurance hellhole, I would not want an unknown saw on my jobsite that may be the source of a problem (only possibly another climber's saw, and even then, I would give it a serious once-over before approving or handing him/her one of my saws). If climber used their's, it would be accounted for in the rate I would pay him/her.