Journeyman pipefitters under UA Local 26 in Western Washington, WA earn $58.47/hr in base wages, or $87.77/hr as a total package with fringe benefits, effective Jun 2024.
UA Local 26 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 26 pay scale is $58.47 per hour for journeymen in Western Washington, WA, or about $116,940 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $87.77 per hour. That is the rate in force, effective 6/12/24.
| Local 26 journeyman hourly wage | $58.47 / hour |
|---|---|
| Total package (wage + fringe benefits) | $87.77 / hour |
| Annualized at 2,080 hours (base wage) | $116,940 / year |
| First-period apprentice (≈45–50% of scale) | $26.31–$29.24 / hour |
| Wage sheet effective | 6/12/24 |
| Classification | Combo |
A Local 26 apprentice in Western Washington, WA starts at roughly $26.31 an hour — about 45% of the $58.47 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $43.85 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 26 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
| 1st period (year 1) | 45% of scale | $26.31 / hour | $52,623 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd period (year 2) | 55% of scale | $32.16 / hour | $64,317 |
| 3rd period (year 3) | 65% of scale | $38.01 / hour | $76,011 |
| 4th period (year 4) | 75% of scale | $43.85 / hour | $87,705 |
| 5th period (year 5) | 85% of scale | $49.70 / hour | $99,399 |
| Journeyman (turned out) | 100% of scale | $58.47 / hour | $116,940 |
UA Local 26 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall — call 360-486-9340 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.
United Association Local 26 represents a critical workforce of plumbers, steamfitters, and refrigeration mechanics serving Western Washington. Since 2014, Gulfstream Strategic Placements has monitored this market as a hub for both public infrastructure and private industrial growth. The local maintains jurisdiction over a vast geographic area, ensuring that large-scale mechanical systems in maritime, healthcare, and technology sectors meet rigorous code standards. Members are trained to handle complex piping installations, high-pressure steam systems, and advanced hydronic heating, making them the primary labor source for the region's most demanding mechanical projects.
The Western Washington market is defined by its diversity of work, ranging from the naval shipyards and industrial corridors to the expanding commercial centers outside the immediate Seattle metro. Local 26 plays a pivotal role in maintaining labor stability through its signatory agreements with mechanical contractors who specialize in heavy industrial and commercial construction. For the tradesperson, this local offers a structured career path backed by a robust Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (JATC). For the contractor, it provides a scalable pool of highly skilled labor capable of meeting stringent project deadlines and safety requirements across diverse job sites.
As of June 12, 2024, the journeyman hourly rate for UA Local 26 is set at $58.47, contributing to a comprehensive total package of $87.77 per hour. This nearly $30.00 difference covers essential fringes including health coverage and retirement security. Apprentices enter the program at a percentage of the journeyman rate, typically starting around 40% to 50% and receiving incremental raises every six to twelve months as they complete required classroom hours and on-the-job training milestones. By the fifth year, senior apprentices earn near-journeyman wages, reflecting their increased autonomy on the job site. These rates are standardized across the jurisdiction, ensuring wage parity for members regardless of which signatory contractor they are dispatched to within the Western Washington territory.
The jurisdiction for UA Local 26 covers a significant portion of Western Washington, extending from the Canadian border down through the Olympic Peninsula and into southwest Washington, excluding the immediate Seattle-King County area which falls under a separate charter. This territory encompasses major hubs like Olympia, Bremerton, and Bellingham. The work involves all aspects of the piping trades, including medical gas systems, industrial process piping, and commercial plumbing. Members are dispatched through the union hall to various job sites, and the local maintains strict oversight of territorial boundaries to ensure that signatory contractors utilize local labor for projects situated within these chartered counties.
The contractor landscape for UA Local 26 is comprised of a mix of large-scale mechanical primes and specialized service firms. These signatory contractors often manage multi-million dollar contracts for state facilities, regional hospitals, and industrial plants. The market is characterized by long-term maintenance agreements alongside new construction projects. Hiring typically fluctuates based on major capital project starts, with contractors utilizing the union’s referral system to scale their workforce quickly. Because the jurisdiction includes significant naval and military presence, many signatory contractors also engage in specialized federal contracting work that requires high-level security clearances and specific technical certifications.
The $58.47 hourly wage is the gross amount paid on the member's paycheck before taxes. The $87.77 total package includes that wage plus the additional $29.30 per hour paid by the contractor into fringe benefits like health insurance, pensions, and training funds. These benefits are not deducted from your check but are paid in addition to your hourly rate.
Generally, no. UA Local 26 covers the surrounding Western Washington counties such as Thurston, Kitsap, and Whatcom. The City of Seattle and King County fall under the jurisdiction of UA Local 32. While the locals often work together, the specific dispatch rules and wage scales are governed by the respective local where the project is physically located.
Yes, UA members in good standing can typically request a travel card to work in Local 26's jurisdiction if there is a demand for labor. Permanent transfers, or 'depositing your card,' usually require approval from the Local 26 business manager and may depend on current employment levels and the local's specific bylaws regarding transfers.
Local 26 members often pursue UA-certified welder designations, including UA-21 and UA-22 for pipe welding. Given the industrial and maritime work in the region, certifications for stainless steel, carbon steel, and chrome-moly are highly valued. The JATC provides the necessary booth time and testing for members to maintain and update these certifications.
UA Local 26 is seated in Western Washington, Washington (WA). We hold published wage sheets for 11 locals across Washington — compare nearby scales before you take a call.
We are a mechanical, plumbing and electrical construction recruiting firm serving Western Washington and the rest of Washington, including contractors signatory to UA Local 26. Our office is in South Corona, California and we place union-scale 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–Friday, 7:00 AM–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 26 pay scale is $58.47 per hour for journeymen in Western Washington, WA, or about $116,940 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $87.77 per hour. That is the rate in force, effective 6/12/24.
Journeyman pipefitters under the UA Local 26 agreement make $58.47 an hour in base wages, or $87.77 an hour counting the fringe package, per the wage sheet effective 6/12/24. Overtime, shift premiums, and travel or subsistence pay are added on top under the local's CBA.
$58.47 per hour base wage and $87.77 per hour total package for a journeyman in Western Washington, WA, effective 6/12/24. Annualized at 2,080 hours that is roughly $116,940 before overtime.
A Local 26 apprentice in Western Washington, WA starts at roughly $26.31 an hour — about 45% of the $58.47 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $43.85 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 26 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
About $26.31 an hour, or roughly $52,623 a year at 2,080 hours, based on the standard 45% first-period step of the $58.47 journeyman rate effective 6/12/24. Apprentices also earn benefit contributions and paid classroom progression; the JATC sets the exact percentage.
Around $38.01 an hour at the standard 65% third-period step, moving to about $43.85 an hour in the fourth period and $58.47 an hour at full journeyman scale. Confirm the published step schedule with the Local 26 training center.
The current UA Local 26 journeyman rate is $58.47/hour, with a total package of $87.77/hour including fringe benefits, effective 6/12/24. At 2,080 hours that works out to roughly $116,940 per year in base wages before overtime. Rates change with each CBA cycle — confirm with the Local 26 business office before relying on the figure.
The $58.47/hour figure is the base journeyman wage that lands on the paycheck. The $87.77/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 26 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 $58.47/hour journeyman rate, a first-period apprentice would be in the $26.31–$29.24/hour range. The exact percentage schedule is set by the local's JATC.
UA Local 26 is headquartered in Western Washington, WA 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 26 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 26 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 26 training center directly.
Plumbers & Pipefitters 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 UA Local 26 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 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 6/12/24 schedule; check with the Local 26 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 26 against neighboring jurisdictions and other plumbers & pipefitters markets.
The UA Local 26 hall is at 780 Chrysler Dr Burlington, WA 98233, serving Western Washington, WA and the surrounding jurisdiction. Hall phone: 360-486-9340.
UA Local 26 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall. Call the hall at 360-486-9340 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 26 can be reached at 360-486-9340. Contact details are imported from the union's public directory listing — confirm hours with the hall.