Signing up in Chicago Appreniceship

[cjr7806]

I am getting ready to submit my application and test to get into the union here in Chicago.

Just wondering what to expect day by day.
Avg hours per day?
Type of training to expect from union apprenticeship?
Avg work per year?,.....How often should I expect to be laid off?
Do you guys enjoy your jobs in the HVAC field?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot

[ideafx]

Chicago's screwed up.

I left Chicago because I knew I had no chance of getting in there. With the way things are now, it will probably take you at least 2 years to get in unless you "know" someone.

I would suggest going to trade school while applying for apprenticeship. It may help your chances. There's a trade school near Midway airport called HVAC Technical Institute. I'd look into it.

[tinner73]

Chicago's screwed up.

I left Chicago because I knew I had no chance of getting in there. With the way things are now, it will probably take you at least 2 years to get in unless you "know" someone.

wrong.

at least 2 years huh?? i'm amazed they wouldn't take you.

[tinner73]

I am getting ready to submit my application and test to get into the union here in Chicago.

Just wondering what to expect day by day.
Avg hours per day?
Type of training to expect from union apprenticeship?
Avg work per year?,.....How often should I expect to be laid off?
Do you guys enjoy your jobs in the HVAC field?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot

let's start small...what trade?

[ideafx]

wrong.

at least 2 years huh?? i'm amazed they wouldn't take you.

I'm not exactly sure what you're implying by this post.

I applied for apprenticeship with Local 597 twice. The first time, I didn't do well on the test. The second time, I scored a 95% and I wasn't even called for an interview. I also had 18 credits from a community college for courses including sheet metal fab, refrigeration theory, technical math, etc.

I was told by a JATC instructor that I really needed to have a relative working in the local in order to get in. He told me that I should become an electrician instead since my father is a foreman with IBEW, even though I didn't want to be an electrician.

I moved out west and got in on the first try.

[neophytes serendipity]

I am getting ready to submit my application and test to get into the union here in Chicago.

Just wondering what to expect day by day.
Avg hours per day?
Type of training to expect from union apprenticeship?
Avg work per year?,.....How often should I expect to be laid off?
Do you guys enjoy your jobs in the HVAC field?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot

597 or 73?

Layoffs have little to do with skill/lack of skill pertaining to your job... and they have a lot to with the skill you have on your knees.

[tinner73]

Layoffs have little to do with skill/lack of skill pertaining to your job... and they have a lot to with the skill you have on your knees.

are you kidding me? normally the best performers stay like any other job...there are exceptions of course.

how come you never have anything positive to post about your union?

[tinner73]

so what are you saying??
you want a hiring hall?
you had a personality conflict with someone and now you think the hall should some how make his company hire you because you think you are the most qualified? this is no different than any other job...in any other industry. you wouldn't be hired there either. sometimes your the hammer..sometimes your the nail.
what exactly do you think should happen?

ibew 134 has a hiring hall...with a right of refusal.

[neophytes serendipity]

so what are you saying??
you want a hiring hall?
you had a personality conflict with someone and now you think the hall should some how make his company hire you because you think you are the most qualified? this is no different than any other job...in any other industry. you wouldn't be hired there either. sometimes your the hammer..sometimes your the nail.
what exactly do you think should happen?

ibew 134 has a hiring hall...with a right of refusal.

Just wanted to make a point that the "best performers stay on" or "get on" philosophy does not always hold true... and how easy it is for our "union brothers" to stick it to you in a referral hall environment.

I do not have issues with a personality conflict. He did not do his job, and I made the mistake of doing mine. I do have issues with the fact that one person has the power to bar another from ever working at a company in a referral environment.

I do not expect the union to do anything... they don't do much, anyways. Making the argument to eliminate BA positions in a referral hall environment is not much of a stretch to me.

The electricians seem to have better control over some things... don't know if a "hiring hall" would be any better or worse than a "referral hall"... do know that many of the electricians I have talked to prefer their system, and they view it as being more fair than the free for all that exists on my side.

Only one way to find out.

[Lash]

Maybe you just weren't as good of a foreman as you think...lol.

Part of being a good foreman includes a good working relationship with your workers. Every worker has a different personality....so different tact must be taken when dealing with each individual.
It's rare I ever have a problem dealing with an employee....good worker or not. How to motivate different types of personalities is a much needed skill in the construction trades.


I know your type.....thinking somebody is always out to get you....lol.
If you were really that good.....even with that ONE guy saying not to hire you, you have 5 guys saying the opposite.

[Dowadudda]

It's absolutely best to keep your mouth shut.

The problem I have is I often can not. LOL.

[neophytes serendipity]

Maybe you just weren't as good of a foreman as you think...lol.

Maybe not

Part of being a good foreman includes a good working relationship with your workers. Every worker has a different personality....so different tact must be taken when dealing with each individual.
It's rare I ever have a problem dealing with an employee....good worker or not. How to motivate different types of personalities is a much needed skill in the construction trades.

I guess next time I should let the individual continue to screw off instead of working. My bad.

I know your type.....thinking somebody is always out to get you....lol.
If you were really that good.....even with that ONE guy saying not to hire you, you have 5 guys saying the opposite.

I don't think everyone is out to get me.

When you knock on the job trailer early on, and one of the 4 people on the site has it out for you, that's all it takes- damage done. I did have others pulling, but not hard enough to overcome the inertia.

[softtail]

Maybe you just weren't as good of a foreman as you think...lol.

Part of being a good foreman includes a good working relationship with your workers. Every worker has a different personality....so different tact must be taken when dealing with each individual.
It's rare I ever have a problem dealing with an employee....good worker or not. How to motivate different types of personalities is a much needed skill in the construction trades.


I know your type.....thinking somebody is always out to get you....lol.
If you were really that good.....even with that ONE guy saying not to hire you, you have 5 guys saying the opposite.

Amen Lash, very well said and couldn't be truer.

Some guys are real good mechanics, but just can't handle the manpower in a supervison position. Some guys got it and some don't.

If a foreman has bad "MoJo", it's better to try a new foreman than to hire a new crew. A new foreman usually gets one chance to make it, either you get it or you don't.