Sorry if this has been asked a hundred times. I posted a while back about making $21 an hour near Manville. I did ask for the review. I got fifty cents and a "we'll see in the spring."
I like the work and the guys, but I keep thinking about the union apprenticeship. I'm two years in. Would I be starting over at zero? Is there any credit for time already worked, or do they not care? I'd also be risking a paycheck I count on for something I might not get.
Not trying to trash my shop, they've been fair in other ways. I just want to know if this is a smart move or a step backward.
Foreman, Inside Wireman (IBEW) · 19 years · Morris County, NJ
Mentor✓ Accepted answer
Not a step backward. Different trade from mine, so take this as general.
Time you've already worked counts for something in the interview, because you can talk about real jobs. Whether it shortens the apprenticeship itself is a question for that program, not for me. Some programs have a way to evaluate prior experience and some don't, and those rules change.
What I'd do: apply while you keep the paycheck. Filling out an application doesn't require quitting anything. If you get called, then you decide. Stay safe.
Mechanical contractor (HVAC + plumbing) · 24 years · Burlington County, NJ
Mentor
Here's what I look for when I hire, from the other side of the table: someone two years in who can explain what they did on a job, start to finish. That's worth more than a certificate. Union or not, keep a record of your work with dates and who supervised you. Whoever you talk to next will ask.
Kid, the guys who regret it are the ones who never applied. A form costs you nothing. Keep showing up to the shop until somebody hands you something better. That's the job.
Master Plumber, second-generation shop owner · 23 years · Hudson County, NJ
Mentor
I'll give you the other side. I went union for a few years and then came back to my father's shop. The benefits were real and the school was better than anything I got on the job. What I didn't like was having no say in where I went.
My father used to say a man who takes the first offer never learns what he's worth. Ask the union your questions, ask your shop what their plan for you is, then compare.
Electrical Contractor · 22 years · Monmouth County, NJ
Mentor
Honestly 50 cents after two years would bug me too. But don't hear 'we'll see' as a no, small shops get squeezed in the fall. Ask him straight what you'd need to show by spring to get a real bump. If he can't answer, that's your answer.
Apprentice plumber · 2 years · Somerset County, NJ
Thank you all, this is more than I expected. I'm going to call Local 9 this week and ask how prior experience works before I do anything else.
edit: called and left a message, waiting on a callback. Started writing down my last two years of jobs from my phone calendar in the meantime.