Journeyman electrician under IBEW Local 291 in Boise, ID earn $45.30/hr in base wages, or $63.26/hr as a total package with fringe benefits, effective Nov 2025.
IBEW Local 291 runs its own dispatch and out-of-work list — call the hall to confirm hours, books and what to bring. Gulfstream is a private recruiter and does not control hall referral.
The Local 291 pay scale for 2026 is $45.30 per hour for journeymen in Boise, ID, or about $90,600 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $63.26 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 11/25/25.
| Local 291 journeyman hourly wage | $45.30 / hour |
|---|---|
| Total package (wage + fringe benefits) | $63.26 / hour |
| Annualized at 2,080 hours (base wage) | $90,600 / year |
| First-period apprentice (≈45–50% of scale) | $20.38–$22.65 / hour |
| Wage sheet effective | 11/25/25 |
| Classification | Journeyman Inside Wireman |
A Local 291 apprentice in Boise, ID starts at roughly $20.38 an hour — about 45% of the $45.30 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $33.97 an hour by the fourth year and full scale on turning out. These are the standard percentage steps of scale, not a wage sheet Local 291 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
| 1st period (year 1) | 45% of scale | $20.38 / hour | $40,770 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd period (year 2) | 55% of scale | $24.92 / hour | $49,830 |
| 3rd period (year 3) | 65% of scale | $29.45 / hour | $58,890 |
| 4th period (year 4) | 75% of scale | $33.97 / hour | $67,950 |
| 5th period (year 5) | 85% of scale | $38.50 / hour | $77,010 |
| Journeyman (turned out) | 100% of scale | $45.30 / hour | $90,600 |
IBEW Local 291 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall — call (208) 343-4861 to confirm dispatch hours, required documents (union card, certifications, ID) and current list standing before traveling in. Contact details are imported from the UA, SMART and IBEW public directories. Gulfstream is a private recruiting firm, is not affiliated with the local, and does not control hall dispatch.
IBEW Local 291 represents organized electrical workers across the Boise metropolitan area and much of Southwest Idaho. As a chartered affiliate of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the local manages labor relations for inside wiremen, telecommunications specialists, and residential installers. The Treasure Valley market is characterized by a mix of heavy commercial development, institutional projects, and growing high-tech manufacturing infrastructure. By maintaining a steady pipeline of skilled labor, Local 291 ensures that signatory contractors can meet the rigorous demands of complex electrical systems while adhering to the National Electrical Code and stringent safety protocols essential for high-voltage and low-voltage applications.
The Boise market has undergone significant transformation, moving from a regional agricultural hub to a critical node for data centers and technology firms. Local 291 plays a central role in this evolution by providing the man-hours required for large-scale industrial builds and public works. The union operates through a collective bargaining agreement that stabilizes labor costs for contractors and guarantees a living wage for tradespeople. Beyond job placement, the local serves as a clearinghouse for continuing education, ensuring that journeymen remain current on the latest energy-efficient lighting controls, motor systems, and programmable logic controllers. This commitment to technical proficiency makes the local a cornerstone of the regional construction economy.
Under the current collective bargaining agreement effective November 2025, the Journeyman Inside Wireman rate is set at $45.30 per hour. When factoring in the full fringe benefit package, the total compensation reaches $63.26 per hour. Apprentices follow a structured percentage-based wage scale that increases as they complete specific milestones in their classroom training and on-the-job hours. Typically, first-year apprentices start at approximately 40-50% of the journeyman rate, with incremental raises occurring every six to twelve months until they reach full scale. This progression ensures that labor costs remain proportional to the worker's level of skill and autonomy. The total package includes contributions to health insurance and multiple retirement funds, which are paid by the employer above the hourly base pay, providing a comprehensive safety net for the member and their family.
The jurisdiction for IBEW Local 291 spans several counties in Southwest Idaho and extends into parts of Eastern Oregon. The territory is centered on the Boise-Nampa-Meridian corridor, covering the rapid development within the Treasure Valley. Work under this agreement includes all inside electrical wiring for commercial, industrial, and residential structures. Members are dispatched from the Boise hiring hall to various project sites across the region, ranging from downtown high-rises to remote industrial facilities. The local maintains strict jurisdiction over electrical installations, ensuring that signatory contractors utilize qualified labor for everything from basic branch circuitry to complex integrated systems and renewable energy installations within the chartered geographic boundaries.
The signatory landscape for Local 291 is comprised of a diverse group of electrical contractors ranging from small service-oriented shops to large-scale industrial primes. These firms engage in competitive bidding for public infrastructure, healthcare facilities, and the burgeoning data center sector. Hiring typically follows a referral system where contractors request labor based on project needs, allowing for a flexible workforce that can scale rapidly for major builds. Because the Boise market is a destination for many national firms, the local often coordinates with both local family-owned contractors and large regional entities to staff multi-year projects. This mix provides members with varied experience across commercial renovations, new construction, and long-term maintenance contracts.
An Inside Wireman is trained for commercial and industrial environments, handling high-voltage systems and complex machinery. A Residential Wireman focuses exclusively on housing units and smaller multi-family projects. The training for Inside Wiremen is more extensive, lasting five years compared to shorter residential programs, and results in a higher hourly wage scale due to the broader scope of work.
Yes, Idaho law requires all electrical workers to be licensed through the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses. Apprentices must hold an apprentice card, while those at full scale must possess an Idaho Journeyman Electrician license. Local 291 assists members in maintaining these credentials and staying compliant with state continuing education requirements.
Apprentice raises typically occur in intervals of 1,000 hours of on-the-job training, coupled with the successful completion of each year of classroom instruction. There are usually ten pay steps throughout the five-year program. Failure to maintain passing grades in the JATC curriculum or missing work hours can delay these scheduled percentage increases.
Travelers are permitted to work in Local 291's jurisdiction when the local 'Book 1' is exhausted. Traveling members must sign 'Book 2' at the Boise hall and provide a current travel letter from their home local. Due to the high volume of industrial work in the Treasure Valley, the area frequently utilizes travelers to meet peak labor demands.
IBEW Local 291 is seated in Boise, Idaho (ID). We hold published wage sheets for 4 locals across Idaho — compare nearby scales before you take a call.
We are a mechanical, plumbing and electrical construction recruiting firm serving Boise and the rest of Idaho, including contractors signatory to IBEW Local 291. Our office is in South Corona, California and we place union-scale tradespeople and field leadership nationwide.
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Journeyman scales as last published by each local. Rates change every contract cycle — confirm with the hall.
The Local 291 pay scale for 2026 is $45.30 per hour for journeymen in Boise, ID, or about $90,600 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $63.26 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 11/25/25.
Journeyman electrician under the IBEW Local 291 agreement make $45.30 an hour in base wages, or $63.26 an hour counting the fringe package, per the wage sheet effective 11/25/25. Overtime, shift premiums, and travel or subsistence pay are added on top under the local's CBA.
$45.30 per hour base wage and $63.26 per hour total package for a journeyman in Boise, ID, effective 11/25/25. Annualized at 2,080 hours that is roughly $90,600 before overtime.
A Local 291 apprentice in Boise, ID starts at roughly $20.38 an hour — about 45% of the $45.30 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $33.97 an hour by the fourth year and full scale on turning out. These are the standard percentage steps of scale, not a wage sheet Local 291 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
About $20.38 an hour, or roughly $40,770 a year at 2,080 hours, based on the standard 45% first-period step of the $45.30 journeyman rate effective 11/25/25. Apprentices also earn benefit contributions and paid classroom progression; the JATC sets the exact percentage.
Around $29.45 an hour at the standard 65% third-period step, moving to about $33.97 an hour in the fourth period and $45.30 an hour at full journeyman scale. Confirm the published step schedule with the Local 291 training center.
The current IBEW Local 291 journeyman rate is $45.30/hour, with a total package of $63.26/hour including fringe benefits, effective 11/25/25. At 2,080 hours that works out to roughly $90,600 per year in base wages before overtime. Rates change with each CBA cycle — confirm with the Local 291 business office before relying on the figure.
The $45.30/hour figure is the base journeyman wage that lands on the paycheck. The $63.26/hour total package adds employer-paid fringes — health and welfare, pension, annuity, apprenticeship training, and industry funds. Contractors bid work off the total package, so that is the number that matters when comparing electricians labor costs across locals.
Apprentices under the IBEW Local 291 agreement are paid a graduated percentage of the journeyman rate, typically starting near 40–50% in the first period and stepping up each six-month or annual period until reaching 100% at turnout. Against the current $45.30/hour journeyman rate, a first-period apprentice would be in the $20.38–$22.65/hour range. The exact percentage schedule is set by the local's JATC.
IBEW Local 291 is headquartered in Boise, ID and dispatches electricians manpower throughout its chartered jurisdiction. Work performed inside that territory falls under the local's collective bargaining agreement and wage schedule, even when the contractor is based elsewhere and travels in.
Most locals require applicants to be at least 18, legally able to work in the U.S., hold a high school diploma or GED, pass a basic math/aptitude assessment and a drug screen, and be physically able to perform electricians work. Some Local 291 programs give preference to applicants inside the jurisdiction or to veterans. Eligibility rules are set by the local's Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (JATC), so confirm the current criteria with the hall before applying.
Apprenticeship applications go through the IBEW Local 291 JATC, not through a contractor or a recruiter. Applications typically open in defined intake windows each year: you submit the application with proof of age, education, and residency, sit for an aptitude test, and then interview. Ranked applicants are placed on an eligibility list and indentured as signatory contractors call for apprentices. Gulfstream Strategic Placements does not process apprenticeship applications — contact the Local 291 training center directly.
Electricians apprenticeships generally run four to five years — roughly 8,000–10,000 hours of on-the-job training plus several hundred classroom hours per year. Apprentices earn a paycheck the entire time, stepping up through the wage periods until they turn out as journeymen at 100% of scale.
Signatory contractors hire through the local's hiring hall, so working under the IBEW Local 291 agreement generally means being a member or being organized in through the local's process. Journeymen from other locals can travel in by signing the out-of-work book, subject to the local's referral rules and manpower needs. Non-union electricians professionals are usually placed with open-shop contractors instead — we recruit for both.
Rates move with the collective bargaining agreement, typically on a fixed anniversary date each year of a three- to five-year contract, with negotiated increases split between the base wage and the fringe package. The figures on this page reflect the 11/25/25 schedule; check with the Local 291 business office for any increase that has taken effect since.
Wage rates vary widely by local and market. Use the Union Pay Scale Explorer to sort every UA and SMART local by hourly wage, total package, and annualized pay so you can benchmark Local 291 against neighboring jurisdictions and other electricians markets.
The IBEW Local 291 hall is at 225 N 16th St, Suite 110, Boise, ID 83702, serving Boise, ID and the surrounding jurisdiction. Hall phone: (208) 343-4861.
IBEW Local 291 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall. Call the hall at (208) 343-4861 to confirm dispatch hours, required documents (union card, certifications, ID) and current list standing before traveling in — Gulfstream does not control hall dispatch.
IBEW Local 291 can be reached at (208) 343-4861. Contact details are imported from the union's public directory listing — confirm hours with the hall.