Journeyman pipefitters under UA Local 172 in South Bend, IN earn $47.68/hr in base wages, or $70.21/hr as a total package with fringe benefits, effective Jun 2026.
View current trade openings and apply
The Local 172 pay scale for 2026 is $47.68 per hour for journeymen in South Bend, IN, or about $95,360 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $70.21 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 6/11/26.
| Local 172 journeyman hourly wage | $47.68 / hour |
|---|---|
| Total package (wage + fringe benefits) | $70.21 / hour |
| Annualized at 2,080 hours (base wage) | $95,360 / year |
| First-period apprentice (≈45 to 50% of scale) | $21.46 to $23.84 / hour |
| Wage sheet effective | 6/11/26 |
| Classification | Combo |
Apply now | Gulfstream places plumbers & pipefitters candidates with mechanical contractors. These are direct-hire contractor roles, not union dispatch.
A Local 172 apprentice in South Bend, IN starts at roughly $21.46 an hour, about 45% of the $47.68 journeyman scale, and steps up each period, reaching around $35.76 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 172 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
| 1st period (year 1) | 45% of scale | $21.46 / hour | $42,912 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd period (year 2) | 55% of scale | $26.22 / hour | $52,448 |
| 3rd period (year 3) | 65% of scale | $30.99 / hour | $61,984 |
| 4th period (year 4) | 75% of scale | $35.76 / hour | $71,520 |
| 5th period (year 5) | 85% of scale | $40.53 / hour | $81,056 |
| Journeyman (turned out) | 100% of scale | $47.68 / hour | $95,360 |
Active Gulfstream trade listings in the local's state, with South Bend listings first when available. Jobs elsewhere in the state are not necessarily near this hall. Union status is not verified for these jobs; confirm with your recruiter.
UA Local 172 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.
UA Local 172 pay rates and union rules
UA Local 172 does not post an online application we could verify; contact the hall by phone for dispatch or apprenticeship. To be considered for direct-hire roles with mechanical, electrical and sheet metal contractors in this area, apply to Gulfstream. This is not an application to the union.
We'll email you when the UA Local 172 rate is updated, plus union-shop plumbers & pipefitters openings near South Bend, IN. Sign up for rate updates. Free alerts from Gulfstream Strategic Placements. We are not affiliated with UA Local 172.
Local 172 wages: $47.68 an hour on the journeyman scale, $70.21 an hour with fringe benefits added, effective 6/11/26. That is the most recent South Bend, IN sheet we can source; rates move with each contract cycle, so confirm with the hall before quoting.
UA Local 172 has not published a current wage sheet to the public rate sources we track, so the figure above is the reporting-wide pipefitters average, not this hall's own scale. Members dispatched out of this hall work commercial mechanical and process piping, chiller and boiler work, HVAC piping and hydronics and service, retrofit and shutdown work for signatory contractors throughout the South Bend, IN area, and local scale in the South Bend market is normally set by the hall's current collective bargaining agreement, confirm it with the business office before quoting.
Gulfstream recruits pipefitters talent for commercial mechanical, electrical, plumbing, piping, sheet metal and building automation contractors in and around South Bend. We are a private recruiting firm, we do not dispatch, set, or negotiate Local 172 rates. For current South Bend scale, dispatch standing, or apprenticeship intake, contact the hall directly.
UA Local 172 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall, call 574-273-0300 to confirm dispatch procedure, 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.
UA Local 172 represents the skilled plumbers and pipefitters across the South Bend, Indiana, metropolitan region and surrounding counties. As a charter of the United Association, this local provides the specialized labor force necessary for the installation, maintenance, and repair of complex piping systems in industrial, commercial, and residential environments. The local operates a robust training facility that ensures all members are proficient in current welding certifications, medical gas standards, and backflow prevention protocols. This commitment to technical excellence makes Local 172 the primary labor source for the region's most demanding mechanical infrastructure projects, ranging from university campus expansions to healthcare facility upgrades.
The market in Northern Indiana is defined by a mix of institutional stability and industrial revitalisation. Local 172 members support the heavy mechanical needs of the region's manufacturing base and the continuous development of higher education facilities. By maintaining a highly qualified pool of journeymen, the local enables signatory mechanical contractors to bid on large-scale projects that require significant manpower and strict adherence to safety regulations. For the tradesperson, joining Local 172 offers a structured career path with collectively bargained protections and benefits that are among the most competitive in the regional construction industry. The union serves as a vital link between the specialized needs of mechanical primes and the local labor supply.
The journeyman hourly rate for UA Local 172 is set at $47.68, reflecting the high level of technical skill required for piping and plumbing work in Northern Indiana. When factoring in the fringe benefit package, the total compensation reaches $70.21 per hour as of the June 2026 effective date. Apprentices in the five-year program start at a percentage of this journeyman scale, typically beginning around 45% to 50% and receiving incremental raises every six to twelve months as they complete their classroom hours and on-the-job training milestones. By the fifth year, senior apprentices earn a high percentage of the full rate, ensuring that their pay remains commensurate with their increasing proficiency in the field. This transparent progression provides a clear financial roadmap for new entrants into the mechanical trades.
The journeyman hourly rate for UA Local 172 is set at $47.68, reflecting the high level of technical skill required for piping and plumbing work in Northern Indiana. When factoring in the fringe benefit package, the total compensation reaches $70.21 per hour as of the June 2026 effective date. Apprentices in the five-year program start at a percentage of this journeyman scale, typically beginning around 45% to 50% and receiving incremental raises every six to twelve months as they complete their classroom hours and on-the-job training milestones. By the fifth year, senior apprentices earn a high percentage of the full rate, ensuring that their pay remains commensurate with their increasing proficiency in the field. This transparent progression provides a clear financial roadmap for new entrants into the mechanical trades.
The contractor landscape for UA Local 172 consists of a diverse group of signatory mechanical firms, ranging from large-scale industrial piping specialists to commercial plumbing service providers. These contractors rely on the union to provide a scalable workforce that can meet the demands of project-based cycles. The market includes mechanical primes that focus on new construction for the region's educational and medical institutions, as well as smaller shops specializing in high-efficiency HVAC retrofits and residential plumbing systems. Because these contractors are signatory to the local agreement, they adhere to standardized labor costs, which allows for fair competition based on operational efficiency and project management rather than depressed wages.
Members have access to a wide range of industry-recognized certifications through the JATC, including various UA welding certifications (SMAW, GTAW), Medical Gas Installer, Backflow Prevention, and OSHA safety training. These credentials allow members to work on specialized systems and increase their value to signatory contractors.
Yes, as a member of the United Association, Local 172 participates in the national reciprocity system. This allows members to travel to other jurisdictions for work when local demand is low, or for members from other locals to work in South Bend when there is a labor shortage, provided they follow proper travel card procedures.
While the apprenticeship provides a broad foundation in both plumbing and pipefitting, many members choose to specialize in specific areas such as high-purity process piping for industrial applications, advanced HVAC-R controls, or large-scale commercial plumbing. The JATC offers advanced classes to support these specialized career paths.
Local 172 utilizes a dispatch system or 'out-of-work' list. When signatory contractors need additional manpower, they request workers from the union hall, and qualified members are dispatched based on their position on the list and their specific certifications, ensuring a fair and organized hiring process.
UA Local 172 is seated in South Bend, Indiana (IN). We hold published wage sheets for 16 locals across Indiana, compare nearby scales before you take a call.
Gulfstream Strategic Placements recruits mechanical, electrical and plumbing staff for contractors nationwide, union and open shop. These are markets where we run the most searches: Sacramento mechanical recruiter · Denver mechanical recruiter · Orange County mechanical recruiter · Seattle mechanical recruiter. Post a role.
We are a commercial MEP recruiting firm serving South Bend and the rest of Indiana, including contractors signatory to UA Local 172. Our office is in South Corona, California and we place tradespeople and field leadership nationwide.
Gulfstream Strategic Placements, 4160 Temescal Canyon Road, Suite 401, Corona, CA 92883. Phone (951) 208-7780. Email hello@gulfstreamsp.com. Monday to Friday, 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM Pacific.View our verified Google Business Profile
Journeyman scales as last published by each local. Rates change every contract cycle, confirm with the hall.
The Local 172 pay scale for 2026 is $47.68 per hour for journeymen in South Bend, IN, or about $95,360 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $70.21 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 6/11/26.
UA Local 172 wages for 2026: journeyman Plumbers & Pipefitters rate of $47.68 per hour in South Bend, IN, with a total package of $70.21 per hour including fringe benefits, effective 6/11/26. Apprentices are paid a graduated percentage of that rate. Confirm any increase since 6/11/26 with the UA Local 172 business office.
The UA Local 172 wage sheet on this page lists the journeyman scale of $47.68 per hour ($70.21 per hour total package), effective 6/11/26, plus the apprentice percentage steps. The official sheet is published by the UA Local 172 business office; figures here come from that published schedule, so confirm any increase dated after 6/11/26 with the hall.
Local 172 apprentices earn a graduated percentage of the $47.68 per hour journeyman rate, typically starting near 40 to 50% ($21.46 to $23.84 per hour) in the first period and stepping up each period to 100% at turnout. The exact percentage schedule is set by the UA Local 172 JATC, so confirm the current apprentice sheet with the training center.
Journeyman pipefitters under the UA Local 172 agreement make $47.68 an hour in base wages, or $70.21 an hour counting the fringe package, per the wage sheet effective 6/11/26. Overtime, shift premiums, and travel or subsistence pay are added on top under the local's CBA.
$47.68 per hour base wage and $70.21 per hour total package for a journeyman in South Bend, IN, effective 6/11/26. Annualized at 2,080 hours that is roughly $95,360 before overtime.
A Local 172 apprentice in South Bend, IN starts at roughly $21.46 an hour, about 45% of the $47.68 journeyman scale, and steps up each period, reaching around $35.76 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 172 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
About $21.46 an hour, or roughly $42,912 a year at 2,080 hours, based on the standard 45% first-period step of the $47.68 journeyman rate effective 6/11/26. Apprentices also earn benefit contributions and paid classroom progression; the JATC sets the exact percentage.
Around $30.99 an hour at the standard 65% third-period step, moving to about $35.76 an hour in the fourth period and $47.68 an hour at full journeyman scale. Confirm the published step schedule with the Local 172 training center.
Local 172 wages: $47.68 an hour on the journeyman scale, $70.21 an hour with fringe benefits added, effective 6/11/26. That is the most recent South Bend, IN sheet we can source; rates move with each contract cycle, so confirm with the hall before quoting.
The current published UA Local 172 journeyman rate is $47.68 an hour ($70.21 total package), effective 6/11/26, roughly $95,360 a year at 2,080 hours before overtime. Confirm the effective agreement with the local.
Yes, a one-page printable UA Local 172 rate sheet is available at /rate-sheets/ua-local-172-pay-scale.pdf, showing the $47.68 hourly scale, the $70.21 total package and the 6/11/26 effective date, with the source it was read from. It is a free download, no sign-up needed.
The current UA Local 172 journeyman rate is $47.68/hour, with a total package of $70.21/hour including fringe benefits, effective 6/11/26. At 2,080 hours that works out to roughly $95,360 per year in base wages before overtime. Rates change with each CBA cycle, confirm with the Local 172 business office before relying on the figure.
The $47.68/hour figure is the base journeyman wage that lands on the paycheck. The $70.21/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 plumbers & pipefitters labor costs across locals.
Apprentices under the UA Local 172 agreement are paid a graduated percentage of the journeyman rate, typically starting near 40 to 50% in the first period and stepping up each six-month or annual period until reaching 100% at turnout. Against the current $47.68/hour journeyman rate, a first-period apprentice would be in the $21.46 to $23.84/hour range. The exact percentage schedule is set by the local's JATC.
UA Local 172 is headquartered in South Bend, IN and dispatches plumbers & pipefitters 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 plumbers & pipefitters work. Some Local 172 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 UA Local 172 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 172 training center directly.
Plumbers & Pipefitters apprenticeships generally run four to five years, roughly 8,000 to 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 UA Local 172 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 plumbers & pipefitters 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 6/11/26 schedule; check with the Local 172 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 172 against neighboring jurisdictions and other plumbers & pipefitters markets.
Yes, the openings section on this page lists current plumbers & pipefitters roles near South Bend, IN, and you can apply directly through the apply form on this page. These are direct-hire positions with mechanical contractors that Gulfstream recruits for, not union dispatch or hall referrals. For the hall's out-of-work list, contact the Local 172 business office.
The UA Local 172 hall is at 4172 Ralph Jones Ct South Bend, IN 46628, serving South Bend, IN and the surrounding jurisdiction. Hall phone: 574-273-0300.
UA Local 172 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall. Call the hall at 574-273-0300 to confirm dispatch hours, required documents (union card, certifications, ID) and current list standing before traveling in | Gulfstream does not control hall dispatch.
UA Local 172 can be reached at 574-273-0300. Contact details are imported from the union's public directory listing, confirm hours with the hall.
Apply through the local's joint apprenticeship training committee (JATC). Most programs open applications on a set schedule and require an aptitude test and interview. For UA Local 172's current application window and requirements, contact the hall at 574-273-0300.
Each Plumbers & Pipefitters local sets its own intake process, and it varies. The common paths: apprenticeship through the JATC; organizing in as an experienced worker, since journeymen and technicians already working in the trade can usually apply directly to the hall for membership; or transferring from another local of the same international with a transfer card from your current hall. For fees and requirements, contact the hall at 574-273-0300.
We haven't found an official source for UA Local 172's dues or membership rules. To confirm, contact the hall at 574-273-0300.
We haven't found an official source for UA Local 172's member benefits. To confirm, contact the hall at 574-273-0300.
Coverage unverified, contact the hall. No reviewed published boundary is held for this local; office location does not establish jurisdiction.
Coverage map and city lookup · Hall contact
No comparable official rate held. No trade average or another hall’s rate is substituted.
Confirm the current agreement, classification, zone and effective schedule with the hall; a package is not take-home pay.
Membership fees, dues and admission rules are not verified in our held official records. Confirm directly with the hall.
Rates and sources · Membership and apprenticeship · Official hall contact · Send a recruiting inquiry to Gulfstream · Compare Rates
Recruiting inquiries go to Gulfstream, not UA Local 172. Membership, dispatch and apprenticeship applications must go directly to the hall. Gulfstream is union-independent and recruits for commercial mechanical, electrical and plumbing contractors.
We fill union-covered and salaried roles for union and merit-shop mechanical contractors: project managers, superintendents, estimators and service staff. Hall dispatch stays with the local.