APPRENTICESHIP PAY$
When you’re accepted into a certified apprenticeship program, you receive classroom training from instructors with practical experience, PLUS you get paid while you’re learning on the job! The average apprentice earns $18/hr. to start plus benefits during on the job training. Apprenticeship training lasts 3-5 years depending on the trade. Admission tests are required for most of the trades and candidates with high school courses in general math, algebra, geometry, science and mechanical drawing are the most desirable.
Learn more about what our 10 local apprenticeship programs focus on and the skills you'll learn.
Hands-on Events
U.P. Construction Skills Challenge 2024
The 2024 U.P. Construction Skills Challenge will be held on Friday, April 19, 2024, at the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters & Millwrights Local 1510 Training Center on US 41 in Negaunee.
The Challenge will judge each five-member student team’s construction of a small wood-framed structure and roof. Students will be tested on electrical components but not on masonry or plumbing. All building materials needed to construct the structure will be provided. Teams are asked to bring their own construction tools, broom, dustpan and garbage can. Specific tool needs and other information will be sent following team registration.
All students participating will receive a certificate of participation and the top three teams will receive medals. The winning team will receive a plaque to be displayed at their home school and have rights to display the event traveling trophy in their school for one year.
Participation will be limited to the first twelve schools (teams) to register. Multiple teams may be pre-registered from one school, but only one team per school is guaranteed. The registration fee is $250.00 (cost of building materials) per team. Registration forms are due by Monday, March 18. Contact Mike Smith for a registration form at 906-250-7498 or mike@upconstruction.com
U.P. Welding Skills Challenge 2024
The U.P. Welding Skills Challenge will take place on Friday, April 19, 2024, at the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters & Millwrights Local 1510 Training Center on US 41 in Negaunee. This competition is a part of the Upper Peninsula Construction Skills Challenge.
The Welding Challenge will be limited to the first twelve school/tech centers to register and will consist of three different individual skills competitions. Each team will be limited initially to five students and must be accompanied by an adult. Schools will be notified if additional spots become available and are encouraged to list alternates.
The top welding student from each school/tech center will participate in the Advanced Welding Challenge, a competition requiring students to interpret prints and fabricate an item, using multiple processes. All other students will participate in one of the following two competitions: Stick or MIG.
All students will receive a certificate of participation and the top three individuals in each competition will receive medals. The winner of the Advanced Welding Challenge will also have the right to display the event’s traveling trophy in their school for one year and have their name engraved on the trophy.
Registration Fees: Advanced Welding Competition - $20 per participant. All other competitions - $10 per participant. Registration forms and fees are due by Monday, March 18. Contact Mike Smith for a registration form at 906-250-7498 or mike@upconstruction.com
Building Trades Summer Camp
The 2024 Building Trades Summer Camp will be held at the LIUNA 1329 Training Center Iron Mountain.
- Host 30 students, 14-17 years old
- Students earn $12.00/hour + $200 bonus at program completion
- Six-week program, July 8 – August 14
- Learn skills in blueprint reading, framing, plumbing, welding, electrical, drywall, cement, brick laying, rigging & lifting, structural steel and industrial machinery
- Field trips and a community service project
- Tools and safety equipment provided
Check back for registration information or contact Mike Smith at 906-250-7498 or mike@upconstruction.com
Earn & Learn. Construction Connect U.P.
High school seniors at least 17 years old and enrolled in a certified CTE program can get hands-on experience with a contractor on a construction site Monday-Thursday, two hours per day during the school day, and earn $13 an hour!
Explore a career path in the trades and build connections with industry professionals for quick entry into the workforce.
Must have a driver's license or in process and reliable transportation and pass a drug screen.
Upper Peninsula Union Apprentice Programs
Boilermaker
A boilermaker is a trained craftsman who produces steel fabrications from plates and sections. They may be blacksmiths, forgers, ship builders, cement workers, stove workers, metal polishers, or numerous other job descriptions, and work on projects as diverse as bridges to blast furnaces to the construction of mining equipment.
Boilermakers Apprenticeship Committee
10154 M-35, Gladstone, MI 49837
906-428-2800
boilermakerslocal169.com
Bricklayer & Craftworkers
Bricklayers work in varied aspects of building, industrial, commercial and residential construction. They build walls, partitions, chimneys and other structural forms from brick, block or other masonry material. They work with mortar using a trowel. They also use chisels, joiners, block hammers and powered saws.
Bricklayers JAC
119 S. Front St., Marquette, MI 49855
906-226-3015
Electrical Workers
Electricians must be able to lay out, assemble, install, repair and test entire electrical systems. Along with their electrical training, journeyperson electricians must have a complete working knowledge of blueprint reading and know the National Electric Code and any state or local codes. Electricians must be mechanically inclined, physically fit and enjoy working with mathematical formulas.
Electricians JATC
304 Ave. A, Gwinn, MI 49841
906-346-2717
www.ibew906.org
Ironworkers
An ironworker is an important part of the building and construction industry, responsible for performing many duties related to the construction industry. For example: placing steel and post tensioning cables in concrete; erecting framework of steel buildings; installing metal siding and roof decking, fences, guardrails or ornamental and structural elements. It is important to be a certified welder, good burner and layout person and a team player.
Ironworkers JAC
119 S. Front St., Marquette, MI 49855
906-228-6450
www.iwl8.org
Laborers
Laborers may work in the construction industry or other areas such as paving, concrete work, blasting, demolition and small heavy equipment operation, and act as assistants to other trades.
Laborers Local 1329
1800 N. US 2, Iron Mountain, MI 49801
906-774-6070
liunalocal1329.org
Carpenters/Millwrights
Carpenters are required to have a working knowledge of many things, from building of small residential homes, to the construction of the most complex industrial settings. Their tools are hammers, saws, easers, digital and electronic devices and organizational and communication skills. They saw wood, form concrete, build scaffolds, weld metals, mold plastics, and layout the tallest buildings.
Millwrights are skilled construction mechanics who study and interpret blueprints and then put their knowledge and expertise to work drilling, welding and bolting in order to have a perfect fit. Millwrights sometimes work to specifications requiring tolerances to a thousandth of an inch. Millwrights install and do maintenance in factories and do much of the precision work in nuclear power plans. They also install conveyor systems, giant electrical turbines and generators.
The Carpenters & Millwrights JATC
370 US Hwy 41 E
Negaunee, MI 49866
906-228-2913
www.hammer9.com
Operating Engineers
Operating engineers work on machines that erect bridges, lay sewers and water mains, move construction materials, earth, and other heavy materials and apply asphalt and concrete to roads and other structures. Operating engineers may also be required to set up and inspect equipment, and perform minor repairs. They are skilled at operating several different types of construction equipment.
Operators Local 324
802 Clark Dr., Gladstone, MI 49837
248-451-0324
www.oe324.org
Painters & Allied Trades
Apprentices in this union will gain skills for such careers as painters, glaziers, wall coverers, flooring installers, convention and trade show decorators, glassworkers, sign and display workers, asbestos workers/hazmat technicians and drywall finishers.
Painters JAC
707 Clark Dr., Gladstone, MI 49837
906-786-9626
www.iupatdc7.com
Sheetmetal Workers
Sheet metal work is an extremely varied trade. Sheet metal workers build interior and exterior architectural work, food service kitchen systems, material handling systems, and air handling systems for HVACR systems. Sheet metal workers also install and service mechanical equipment. It is one of the few modern trades in which the skilled individual takes the raw product, interprets the design drawing, develops the pattern, fabricates the items, installs and maintains them.
Sheetmetal Workers JATC
304 Ave. A, Gwinn, MI 49841
906-372-9288
www.sheetmetal7.org
Plumbers & Pipefitters
A plumber is a skilled craftworker who installs and repairs pipe systems that carry water, waste drainage, natural and medical gas in buildings. They join pipes and install fixtures like bathtubs, toilets, dishwashers and water heaters. Often they design these systems or they may work from blueprints and drawings. A pipefitter layouts, fabricates and assembles pipes from drawings, blueprints and specifications. They install and service sophisticated equipment, state of the art controls and piping systems or environmental control systems for a variety of industries and facilities.
UA Plumbers & Pipefitters
2601 N. 30th St., Escanaba, MI 49829
906-789-9784
www.lu111.com
The Union Carpenters and Millwrights Skilled Training Center
This 33,000-square-foot facility located between Marquette and Negaunee offers apprentice and training opportunities for people interested in becoming carpenters, welders and millwrights, with state-of-the-art equipment, to fill 100,000 skilled trades jobs available in Michigan.
Contact Information
For more information:
contact mike@upconstruction.com
906-786-1573
visit the Upper Peninsula Construction Council website
or directly contact the union that provides apprenticeship training.
