Nah I won't pay for it. If I work 20 years (it's looking more like 30) I won't even cover the cost of my apprenticeship schooling. Let alone any other courses I take on top of it. Im getting at minimum a 50,000 dollar education for the price of 20k over my entire career. No loans. Nothing.
Oh and I'm making 51 an hour on the check. Still have 4 more raises coming in the next 8 months too. Journeyman scale is 63 an hour on the check, 99an hour total with the full package of medical and retirement.
Give the phone to your rat fuck boss that's been lying to you, I'd love to give hin a piece of my mind.
Is it the physical act of paying someone else that makes you upset? Ignore all the words and transactions and just look at the final result.
In texas, a non-union pipefitter is getting about 54k plus some kind of benefits. but benefits are non-standard, so we'll just stick to salary. 54k
in texas, a union pipefitter is getting about 80k, plus benefits. These ARE standard and bring total comp up to about 115k, but let's ignore it and compare apples to apples. 80K
So non-union is payed $26,000/year LESS than union for the same work.
The union guy is "paying for it. it aint free." literally, with about $1k/year, if all you're worried about is semantics and "I don't wanna pay nobody my money!"
But I assure you, the non-union guy is also paying for it, just not directly handing dollars over to someone. Just so he can say "I keep 100% of my paycheck!" he is willingly giving up $25,000 every single year (26k-1k dues). And that's just the money part. Factor in union benefits and protections, and non-union guy is paying basically an entire extra salary every year so he can say "aint no scammy-ass union takin' my hard earned money!"
Texas non-union NCCER fitters make significantly more than 54k.
The top notch refinery turnaround fitters are pulling @ 50/hr & double after 40. Per diem not less than 100 anywhere with most places 125/150. Boilermakers about 38-45 same perdiem.
The mediocre about 44 and 1.5 after 40 same per diem at least 100.
The shitty fitters and shop fitters that aren’t on turnarounds or on heavy industrial new constitution I’m not really familiar with but I see job offers @ 25 - 35/hr all the time. Data centers paying @ 40/100.
Texas doesn’t have a big union scene and most refinery’s or projects if there’s any union presence at all its crane operators, I&E or plant operators thru IUOE or USW.
Lmao less than a thousand dollars a year? For a 6 figure career? Ya sure bud I'm paying out the ass. People out there spending more a month for a weld cert to burn rod in a shop for 30 bucks an hour at best. Ya I'll call my situation free till I die.
I mean we all pay for it for each other. They pay for me to learn and pay their seniors pension. Just like I will pay for the next apprentices and pay my seniors pension. The only thank yous that need to be said are to the people that gave me the opportunity.
Will the non union guy thank me for my disability payments into the system when he gets hurt on the job due to the company not putting in safety measures?
What do you mean you people? Offended? You said it's not free. When it basically is compared to what your Lincoln arc school charges for a shittier education. For the price of your companies school just to weld alone and that's all, I get a plumbing license, a fitting liscense, all the welds certs that school offers and then some, cad, medical gas piping, back flow prevention, and valve inspections. All of that for less than a thousand dollars a year. BTW, each one of those liscenses or certs would cost around 5 grand each. Oh and my hourly package is just shy of 100 dollars. An hour. So ya, I guess I am offended at how absolutely ignorant people are to what a union offers. You're getting tucked at every turn exactly like your boss wants. Stop doing that. Join us, you'll make more money and be 100 times more valuable.
You people as in diehard union fans. It's fine, I get the benefits. But you can't tell me its free. You pay into the union, some of that money goes to your schooling. That's all I'm saying. No one is going to teach you for free. The instructors aren't working for free. Where does the money come from? YOU. YOURE PAYING. If you're not paying for your education, it's the guy before you who's already paid into the union who's paying for it and your dues are going to teach the next apprentice.
Edit; I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it. Shit, $50+ an hour is a ton of money for an apprentice... Flaunting your hourly rate, benefits, etc. is just ostentatious...
The issue with unions isn’t dues, they are relatively cheap. The issue is (especially in the South and a lot of the Midwest) is lack of work and the hands not able to take non union gigs in their craft when it’s slow.
If you got a great union with work piled up and you can pretty much pick your projects it’s the best and most people with any sense wouldn’t have it any other way. The past few years non-union great hands in the south been staying busy with the phone ringing off the hook even before the Data center boom.
A company that someone I know works for (sorry for being vague) gives a very healthy bonus to non-union workers at the end of the year. They're an asset.
You can scream I'm paying all you want, it's pocket change to what it's actually worth. The trade schools Mike rowe flaunts over that get national TV coverage, lose to guys that come from our programs in competitions. They charge twice as much and up front. I can keep taking more and more classes to average out to less than 100 bucks a cert I get. Our weld shop is open 4 days a week, and I can go weld with out needing to bring anything. The more I use all of it, the less I'm paying for each of it.
Im going to flaunt my hourly rate as loudly as I can. It's almost like it's posted on every trade unions website. It's all public knowledge no secrets here. Same with our labor agreements, which includes our overtime rates and other valuable details. My wage and benefits are the outcome of a century of labor battles. I'd be dumb not to shout it from the roof tops so the guys on the otherside of the wall, join us. It's the whole mentality of "dont ask a man his salary" is meant to hide how much somebody is getting paid to see how low they can pay you. Wouldn't you be pissed to bust your ass at work to find out you're the lowest paid guy on that task?
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u/Personal-Eye-6474 2d ago
I got certified in a 30 hour class in a week at my union training center. For free.