Anybody interested in becoming an electrician in the Tampa Bay Area? I’ll give a brief rundown in this post, otherwise feel free to hit me up for more information!

There are a certain amount of electrical contractors in the area that service Tampa Bay. Some of them are non union contractors, their apprenticeship programs are done through the Independent Electrical Contractors (known as the IEC). Some of these contractors are union, their schooling is done through the Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee (the JATC).

I’m a year into my apprenticeship, I started non union and joined the union about 6 months in. I’ll tell you a bit about how both work and how to get in.

So you want to join a non union company? You would start by applying to the CONTRACTOR FIRST. Once you successfully get a job with a non union contractor, they will enroll you into IEC classes. These classes should be FREE, though you may have to pay for books. If any company tries to get you to pay for your electrical apprenticeship, hit the road. Electricians are in high demand, they’re trying to take advantage of you by making you pay. For non union, the apprenticeship will take 4 years. You will take classes twice a week, from 6pm-9pm, usually at your nearest local community college. Once you get into the IEC, they will make sure you always have a job as you are an investment for them. Working non union, your pay and benefits are tied to the company. So if you get laid off due to work slowdown, you will lose your health insurance until you get another job and your pay is not guaranteed, these benefits are taken out of your paycheck. The IEC sets a minimum that companies must pay apprentices, but the minimum is low and you’ll see that pay varies between non union companies. Once you graduate from your apprenticeship, you will have the opportunity to take a state electrical exam. Once you pass this, you become a licensed journeyman electrician. Your pay will go up significantly and you will be licensed to work in the state of Florida. If you want to open your own shop someday, you’ll need to go back to school to become a master electrician.

Let’s talk about union contractors, which is my personal preference. There is one major electricians union in the United States and Canada, it is called the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW). There is also a group for union contractors specifically called the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA).

Get ready for some acronyms y’all, I’m so sorry… So! To work for a union contractor you apply to the UNION FIRST. You can do this by looking up Tampa’s union local, IBEW local 915. You want to get accepted into the school, again, the school for union is the JATC. The JATC is run both by the IBEW and NECA, this way both the companies and the workers are represented in the schooling process. The apprenticeship for the union lasts 5 years. Tampa’s local 915 is unique in that our classes are accelerated, so you could potentially finish your class work in 3.5 years, but you still need 8,000 on the job hours to graduate. Again, this schooling is FREE. Once you start school, you’ll get sworn in and officially become an IBEW member. Union dues for 915 are $40 a month. You are not tied to a contractor, all of your pay and benefits go through the union. Union contractors come to the local and request guys when they need the work, then lay them off when they don’t. It’s not uncommon to switch companies every once in a while, but your pay and benefits will always be consistent because our contract is negotiated through the union itself. You will get two pensions, an annuity, an end of the year vacation paycheck this is bigger the more you work, health, dental, and vision insurance AND YOU PAY FOR NONE OF IT. The contractor that you work for pays for EVERYTHING, all of your benefits. Nothing comes out of pocket. You will make MUCH more money with the union, you don’t have to pay for any power tools, and if you lose your job you keep everything because your benefits are tied to the union and not the company.

Once you’re done with schooling, you take a test through the union that makes you a journeyman electrician. You can now work anywhere in the United States, you just call the local for wherever you want to work and take a job for however long you want. Pay changes per local, obviously you get more in union states up North and out West.

Big jobs all over the country offer large incentives for traveling union electricians. You could easily follow big jobs, make 6 figures in 6-9 months, then just take the rest of the year off. I know a few people who do that.

I know that’s a lot of info! Any other questions, feel free to comment or message me. I could explain more of what the job is actually like and how a career in construction is tied to the economy.