How to be a GREAT 1st year apprentice in the #IBEW !

what's up y'all you're watching you reminded i'm your host eric and today we're going to talk about what makes a good apprentice by the way if you're a journeyman and you're watching this video please submit your advice in the comments for any apprentices that might be might fall upon this video and want to know what makes a good apprentice also shop rockets please don't comment you guys still need to learn what makes a good journeyman and brother but i digress let's get back to the conversation and the topic at hand what makes a good apprentice well when you start out in the trade and you ain't got no experience your job is to learn so you're going to be assigned to a journeyman your job is to ask questions about everything because everything that journeyman is doing is part of that electrical installation and you should be trying to learn everything you need to be a sponge pick up a piece of material ask how it's proper properly installed once you start to get a handle on the material and the process of the work then becoming a good apprentice means being johnny on the spot that means that anticip you anticipate the journeyman's next need so let's say you're running electrical conduit right and you have your strap mounted which i know this is going to sound foreign to an apprentice but bear with me uh you have your strap mount the journeyman's mounting the strap right and he's at the end of the pipe the next thing he's going to need is a coupling to put onto the end of the pipe for the next piece of pipe so you should have a coupling in hand ready for him so that when he's done you can hand him the coupling and he doesn't have to turn around and say hey uh such and such can you give me a three-quarter inch coupling or whatever it is this is what i mean by anticipating the next move so you want to see the work as it is supposed to be installed and anticipate the journeyman's next need so that he doesn't have to ask you for it or she doesn't have to ask you for it um and that's kind of how you stay ahead of the game and and and whatnot but you also want to ask questions like i said you want to ask about all of the material all the installation and also ask about the union itself you're in a union ask about the union ask about the union meeting ask if he goes if he doesn't go ask him why find out about the the the organization you're joining because it's bigger than a job too many of us get into this and we're not educated well enough on what it is to be a union electrician being an electrician is everyone's anyone could be an electrician in any anywhere but to be a union electrician is something different it's not just being an electrician and that goes for any union work you know these starbucks kids are the starbucks workers not kids let me not say that that was a slip of the tongue but the starbucks workers that are organizing starbucks right now they're wanting more than just a job they had a job they want more than a job and it takes it takes understanding what you're a part of to make that organization strong enough to be able to uplift your living conditions which is part of what we do that's part of our our objectives is to always try to get a higher standard of living okay for the workers uh we do plenty to make a higher standard living for the owners you know we do plenty for them so we're trying to do things for the workers as an apprentice you're coming into an a union you're coming into the ibew the international brotherhood of electrical workers this is a movement this is not just a job please do not come into this only thinking that it's a job if you do that you're coming into this to benefit from the hard work but you're not here to help in the hard work and it's your responsibility to be a good union brother sister or cousin that's it that's the that's the up and down of it all now what else do you have to do to be a good uh apprentice well your responsibility is to learn the material so when you go to school do not take it lightly this is college level courses this is complicated mathematics this is complicated theory um this is complicated motor controls this is complicated all around this is not a cakewalk do not assume that this is going to be a cakewalk because it's a construction job that would be a mistake on your hand on your behalf so stay on top of your homework stay on top of your lessons make sure you pass every exam do not slip up you don't get many fails before you get pulled you know make made to repeat a year this isn't high school where people ain't really gonna hold you accountable you're gonna be held accountable understand that your schooling is coming from a journeyman's wages you know like we help fund that school so we're gonna hold you to account both at work and at school you're you're now becoming like younger siblings to us and as an apprentice you're going to get hazed there's going to be folks that want to joke around and send you to go look for stuff like the wire stretcher um take it in stride smile and laugh about it they're not being mean because they don't like you they're being mean because someone was mean to them and that's kind of a rite of passage coming into the trade we are always evolving as a trade as the ibew we're always evolving we're always looking to improve our culture we're always looking to be more inclusive however we have people that have been in the trade 40 years that are still on the job site still think like we thought 40 years ago so you gotta you got to be patient with our older brothers and our older sisters and our older members and they got to be patient with you as an apprentice you are an indentured servant to the ibew for five years you have no rights you cannot get fired you have to show up for work i mean now the rights you do have are in your collective bargaining agreement and you can hold the contractor to account for that but there's a process for that filing grievances you got to go to sho you got to show up to work every day be on time don't be late being on time means getting there early i know these are all cliche but they're real you got to get there 15 to 20 to 30 minutes early before the shift starts so that you can be ready to go um don't get there last minute you don't want to have that reputation also another thing to know is that your work is all that you're going to leave behind at every job site and the bottom line for any contractor is the work that you install are you making money for them or not that's on the contractor side now you're going to make relationships i i suggest you take phone numbers and keep contact with everyone you work with these are all brothers and sisters and cousins that you're gonna see in the future so if you see if you if you're having a good relationship with someone on the job site exchange information keep in touch that's how we grow the brotherhood um what else can i tell you your work is all that speaks for you over time overtime is not mandatory okay we need to get away from working overtime we we're supposed to work less hours not more and i know the fat check is enticing but prioritize you know i mean money ain't everything prioritize your your your your mental health and in your life uh what else would i tell a first year all right a noob a noob as we call them nowadays um just be prepared you know get your tools as you as you get your paychecks and make sure you buy what's on that tool list and remember that if you bring stuff that's outside of that tool list the contractor's not responsible for it if it gets stolen off of a job site okay that risk is yours your you only have to bring what's on the tool list that is not a minimum requirement it is a maximum requirement you're not supposed to bring more than what's on the tool list because if you do it's disadvantageous to those who don't now we have a contract for a reason that contract has a tool list stick to the tool list what else pay your dues every quarter pay your dues dues are important it's what runs the entire the entire ship don't fall into the narrative where they say that dues are a fee to work that's not what it is dues are a fee for the privilege of having representation at work so that you don't have to only represent yourself it's it's you're you're a member of a club and that club has legal representation has um assistance has health care that club has a lot of benefits and that's what your dues is but it's not don't look at it as a fee to work that's the wrong way to look at it that is a corporate narrative do not fall for that we've been under attack for many decades and it's it's a shame that people are still using that narrative do not fall for that uh what else that's the first year be there every day show up on time

Channel: Union Minded

Views: 24,617

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Id: ENTrdU4UgKQ

Length: 9min 24sec (564 seconds)

Published: Tue Feb 22 2022