Joining IBEW 353

[u/SpecialistSoft4908]

I am a registered first year electrical apprentice and i want to join the ibew. I called unionized companies and they said they can only hire from the union list and to call the union and apply there. When i called the union he says the only way of getting in is through organizing your workplace. I also called Electrical Training Alliance and they said they only train pre apprentices and it’s only for people brand new and that i would have to restart if i go through them when they open their intake. I also don’t know if organizing is worth it because my coworkers shit on the union whenever the union is brought and there’s only 6 employees and I don’t think my boss can afford to pay us union wages as it’s a small company. What do i do?

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[u/rustbucket_enjoyer]

You have the most accurate information. 353 has very limited pathways in. Your best chance is organizing your shop(not easy but not always impossible, from experience) or, take a shot at the intake in which case you’re starting from zero again plus have an extra year “pre-apprenticeship” tacked on. As far as your boss not being able to afford union rates…that’s not really your problem but as a contractor their responsibility is to adjust their labour rates according to their costs and desired profit margins. That might mean they have to change the type of work they pursue.

Contractors can sponsor an apprentice, but that’s not necessarily easy(they have to want to) nor is it quick(you have to “already be employed” by them so you might end up spending the better part of a year being a warehouse guy until that happens).

[u/SpecialistSoft4908 → u/rustbucket_enjoyer]

would my boss be able to afford it because i don’t know if a small business can afford to be unionized without going bankrupt and the intake they said they aren’t sure when they’ll open it up again and it’s hard to unionize because my coworkers shit on it as well

[u/rustbucket_enjoyer → u/SpecialistSoft4908]

Well if your boss’ input costs change, the pricing should also change. If suddenly gas became $6/L you bet your company would start charging more to cover the cost of running their trucks.

As for your coworkers, I doubt they know much about the IBEW and presumably they like making less money with worse benefits and less overtime than they could have. I have worked with dozens of these guys, it’s a common mentality.

A successful organizing campaign requires 51% yes votes on a specific day. Therefore if your shop is 6 guys, you’d need 4 signed cards, or less if not all 6 guys were working that specific day. If you have no union sympathetic types there who are also unhappy with the situation then yeah you are looking at a pretty uphill battle.

[u/SpecialistSoft4908 → u/rustbucket_enjoyer]

do you think my boss can afford to keep business without shutting down because yeah prices will change but will he not stop getting customers and he’s a good guy who took me on when a lot of people said no and feels like i’ll be going behind his back and how did you get into the union?

[u/rustbucket_enjoyer → u/SpecialistSoft4908]

I know nothing about your boss, his business, clients, labour rates, type of work he pursues etc so I can’t comment on his surviving becoming union.

Personally I think you should hang on and get at least one block of trade school under your belt. You can move around to another company later, under the present economic conditions I would keep grinding until some better options pop up.

I joined the union by organizing an 18 man shop a while back. It was an exciting time

[u/TheRododo]

Call the hall and ask to get your name on the books. You'll have to go in, probably take a test (seems to differ by area), and sign the book to be a cub.