So my cousin is 18, lives in Williamstown, just finished high school and wants to do plumbing. He asked me what to do because I'm the "plumber" in the family now lol.
Problem is I'm a first year in Local 1 in Brooklyn and everything I know is how it works in the city. I told him apply to the union and he asked which one, and I realized I have no idea what covers South Jersey. Also no idea if the county vo-tech down there does adult programs or if he should just call shops. I'd drive down the Turnpike and walk him around myself but I'm on at 6 every day.
Help me not give my cousin bad advice. He's a good kid, works at a Wawa on the Black Horse Pike right now and hates it.
Mechanical contractor (HVAC + plumbing) · 24 years · Burlington County, NJ
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Here's what I'd tell him, from Burlington County. There's a UA local that covers South Jersey. I believe it's 322, but have him look it up and confirm; don't go off a contractor's memory.
Separately, plenty of shops down here hire helpers straight out of high school, especially commercial and service. Tell him to have a driver's license and be ready for a background check. Those two things get kids hired more than anything on paper.
Kid, the best thing you can tell him is to stop working at Wawa and start carrying pipe for somebody, anybody, while he figures out the rest. He'll know in a month whether he even likes it.
Foreman, Inside Wireman (IBEW) · 19 years · Morris County, NJ
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Good on you for asking instead of guessing. One practical thing: whichever way he goes, he should get his OSHA 10 if he can find a class. It's cheap or even free in some places, it shows initiative, and it teaches him what not to do on a site. Stay safe.
Electrical Contractor · 22 years · Monmouth County, NJ
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Honestly I'd put trade school on the list too, even though I'm biased. I think there's a private technical school or two around Blackwood. Costs real money though, so he should get a helper job first and find out if he likes it before signing anything.
Camden County vo-tech grad here... I think the county schools down here have some adult night programs but I don't know Gloucester's specifically. worth a phone call. edit: my old teacher says call the adult ed office directly, not the main number
Mechanical contractor (HVAC + plumbing) · 24 years · Burlington County, NJ
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Both, depending. A lot of our public work is in schools, so anyone on those sites has to clear whatever the district requires. Shops that don't do schools may not care. Tell him to keep his record clean and he'll never have to think about it.
Ha... I had a helper from Williamstown once, best kid I ever trained lol. Came from a pizza place. Tell your cousin attitude beats everything down here, and there are shops all along the Black Horse Pike that need helpers.
Apprentice plumber · 3 years · Gloucester County, NJ
Deptford here, 15 minutes away. Plenty of shops. Does he want benefits from day one, or is he okay with cash to start? I did three years of cash and wouldn't do it again. Appreciate you looking out for him.
Master Plumber, second-generation shop owner · 23 years · Hudson County, NJ
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One thing nobody's said: tell him to keep a notebook from the first day. Every job, every date, every boss. My father kept one his whole career, and when I took over the shop it was the most useful thing he left me besides the trucks.
1st-year apprentice, Plumbers · 1 year · Brooklyn, NY
update: he called two shops near Glassboro and one wants him to come in Thursday. Also told him about the notebook. Thanks everybody, this was way more than I would've known to tell him.