DO YOU QUALIFY?

To become a Local 785 Apprentice, applicants must be 18 years of age, successfully completed 2 years of high school, must have reliable transportation to worksites throughout jurisdiction and to instructional classes; have a valid driver’s license; be physically able to perform heavy lifting; able to perform prolonged lifting, standing, walking and repeated squatting and/or bending; able to work off ladders and scaffolds at protected heights; work under exposure to temperature extremes, loud noise and respiratory irritants, and able to work in confined spaces with proper training and protection.

Applicants must complete an application for employment and with the apprentice committee. The applicant is scored based on educational achievement, work experience, seniority (years of employment with the sponsoring firm), job aptitude, ability to communicate, willingness to accept the obligation of apprenticeship, ability to reason and comprehend, and interest and motivation. Each applicant is then placed on the candidate list composed of those eligible applicants who meet the minimum qualifications and complete the selection process. Candidates on this list are ranked according to his or her score with the highest scoring applicant placed first. Selection of apprentices is made based on the applicant’s rank from the candidate list. The list of ranking applicants is continuously revised and selections are made from the top as openings occur. The list of candidates will remain valid for a minimum period of two years, or until the list is exhausted.

Upon becoming a Laborers Local 785 apprentice, the apprentice will be assigned a “term” or “year” from 1 to 4 based on previous experience. An apprentice’s wage s and benefits package will be based on his/her term. With every 1000 hours of on-the-job training completed, appropriate classroom training, and proper monthly Union meeting attendance, the apprentice will receive an increase in wages and will move to the next term in the apprenticeship program. An apprentice’s wage and benefits package for on-the-job training varies according to the apprentice’s term and whether he/she is working in building construction or heavy and highway. See Table A Laborers’ Local 785 responsibilities include: performing diligently and faithfully the work of the trade or craft as prescribed in the terms and conditions of the program; complying with the regulations of the Labor Commissioner concerning Apprentice Training; agreeing that Laborers Local 785 may arrange for the transfer of the Apprentice from one employer to another to ensure training and reasonably continuous employment; attending classes of related instruction as required by Article 23 of the Labor Law, (PARTICIPATION IN RELATED INSTRUCTION IS MANDATORY); paying the Laborers International Initiation fee and monthly dues requirements.