Journeyman pipefitters under UA Local 601 in Milwaukee, WI earn $60.13/hr in base wages, or $88.51/hr as a total package with fringe benefits, effective Jun 2026.
UA Local 601 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 601 pay scale for 2026 is $60.13 per hour for journeymen in Milwaukee, WI, or about $120,260 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $88.51 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 6/26/26.
| Local 601 journeyman hourly wage | $60.13 / hour |
|---|---|
| Total package (wage + fringe benefits) | $88.51 / hour |
| Annualized at 2,080 hours (base wage) | $120,260 / year |
| First-period apprentice (≈45–50% of scale) | $27.06–$30.07 / hour |
| Wage sheet effective | 6/26/26 |
| Classification | Pipefitters |
A Local 601 apprentice in Milwaukee, WI starts at roughly $27.06 an hour — about 45% of the $60.13 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $45.10 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 601 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
| 1st period (year 1) | 45% of scale | $27.06 / hour | $54,117 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd period (year 2) | 55% of scale | $33.07 / hour | $66,143 |
| 3rd period (year 3) | 65% of scale | $39.08 / hour | $78,169 |
| 4th period (year 4) | 75% of scale | $45.10 / hour | $90,195 |
| 5th period (year 5) | 85% of scale | $51.11 / hour | $102,221 |
| Journeyman (turned out) | 100% of scale | $60.13 / hour | $120,260 |
UA Local 601 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall — call 414-543-0601 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 601 represents steamfitters, refrigeration mechanics, and service technicians throughout Southeastern Wisconsin. Based in Milwaukee, this organization oversees a critical workforce responsible for the installation and maintenance of high-pressure piping, process systems, and large-scale HVAC units. The local provides a centralized labor pool for significant industrial and commercial developments, ensuring that regional infrastructure projects meet stringent safety and efficiency standards. Since 2014, Gulfstream Strategic Placements has monitored the demand for skilled piping professionals in this market, where Local 601 maintains a dominant presence in specialized mechanical construction and industrial process piping applications.
The Milwaukee market is characterized by a high concentration of manufacturing facilities, breweries, and healthcare campuses that require complex mechanical systems. Local 601 members undergo rigorous training at their Madison or Milwaukee facilities to manage these sophisticated environments. The union serves as a vital partner for signatory contractors, providing a scalable workforce for massive turnarounds and capital projects. Because this jurisdiction includes major metropolitan centers and industrial corridors, the local plays a pivotal role in the regional economy by stabilizing labor costs through collective bargaining and maintaining a pipeline of journey-level talent through a five-year apprenticeship program.
As of the June 2026 update, the journeyman hourly rate for UA Local 601 is $60.13, part of a comprehensive total package valued at $88.51 per hour. This package includes employer-paid fringes such as health insurance, pensions, and specialized training funds. Apprentices enter the program at a percentage of the journeyman rate, typically starting around 45% to 50% for first-year students. These rates increase annually as the apprentice completes classroom hours and verified on-the-job training milestones. By the fifth year, senior apprentices earn approximately 80% to 90% of the full scale. These figures represent the standard building trades agreement, though specialized service or residential rates may vary depending on the specific contract under which a member is dispatched.
The chartered territory for UA Local 601 covers a broad section of Southeastern and Central Wisconsin. This jurisdiction includes major hubs such as Milwaukee, Madison, Waukesha, and Janesville. The local manages dispatch for work ranging from heavy a mechanical contractor in power plants and refineries to sophisticated climate control systems in commercial office towers. Members are expected to travel within this multi-county area for assignments, following the specific referral rules outlined in the collective bargaining agreement. The jurisdiction encompasses all aspects of the steamfitting and refrigeration trade, including hydronic heating, process piping, and high-pressure steam systems across residential, commercial, and industrial sectors.
The signatory landscape for UA Local 601 consists of a diverse mix of large-scale mechanical primes and specialized service contractors. These firms range from national mechanical organizations performing industrial process work to regional plumbing and heating companies focused on commercial tenant improvements. Hiring typically follows the fluctuations of major regional projects, such as hospital expansions or industrial upgrades. Signatory contractors rely on the union's hall to supply qualified steamfitters and service techs who hold necessary certifications for welding, medical gas, or refrigerant handling. This relationship allows contractors to bid on large-scale public and private works that require high-density labor and verified safety track records.
While both trades involve piping, Local 601 specifically focuses on steamfitters and refrigeration mechanics. Steamfitters work on high-pressure systems, industrial process piping, and large-scale heating and cooling units. Plumbers generally handle potable water, drainage, and gas systems. In the Milwaukee market, these trades are often represented by separate UA locals, though they frequently work side-by-side on large commercial jobsites.
Yes, the local's training department provides UA-certified welder testing and certification programs. Members can maintain various certifications in orbital welding, TIG, MIG, and stick welding for carbon and stainless steel. These certifications are essential for working on industrial projects, such as those found in the food and beverage industry or power generation facilities throughout Southeastern Wisconsin.
The refrigeration and HVAC service division focuses on the ongoing maintenance, repair, and commissioning of existing systems. While construction members focus on new installations, service technicians often work independently from a service vehicle and may have different on-call requirements. The wage scale for service technicians is generally comparable to the building trades scale, though specific contract language may apply to service-specific work.
Travelers from other United Association locals may work in Local 601's jurisdiction when there is a documented labor shortage that cannot be filled by local members. Travelers must report to the business manager and provide a valid travel card. This process ensures that local members have priority for available work while allowing signatory contractors to meet manning requirements during peak construction periods.
UA Local 601 is seated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (WI). We hold published wage sheets for 16 locals across Wisconsin — compare nearby scales before you take a call.
We are a mechanical, plumbing and electrical construction recruiting firm serving Milwaukee and the rest of Wisconsin, including contractors signatory to UA Local 601. 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 601 pay scale for 2026 is $60.13 per hour for journeymen in Milwaukee, WI, or about $120,260 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $88.51 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 6/26/26.
Journeyman pipefitters under the UA Local 601 agreement make $60.13 an hour in base wages, or $88.51 an hour counting the fringe package, per the wage sheet effective 6/26/26. Overtime, shift premiums, and travel or subsistence pay are added on top under the local's CBA.
$60.13 per hour base wage and $88.51 per hour total package for a journeyman in Milwaukee, WI, effective 6/26/26. Annualized at 2,080 hours that is roughly $120,260 before overtime.
A Local 601 apprentice in Milwaukee, WI starts at roughly $27.06 an hour — about 45% of the $60.13 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $45.10 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 601 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
About $27.06 an hour, or roughly $54,117 a year at 2,080 hours, based on the standard 45% first-period step of the $60.13 journeyman rate effective 6/26/26. Apprentices also earn benefit contributions and paid classroom progression; the JATC sets the exact percentage.
Around $39.08 an hour at the standard 65% third-period step, moving to about $45.10 an hour in the fourth period and $60.13 an hour at full journeyman scale. Confirm the published step schedule with the Local 601 training center.
The current UA Local 601 journeyman rate is $60.13/hour, with a total package of $88.51/hour including fringe benefits, effective 6/26/26. At 2,080 hours that works out to roughly $120,260 per year in base wages before overtime. Rates change with each CBA cycle — confirm with the Local 601 business office before relying on the figure.
The $60.13/hour figure is the base journeyman wage that lands on the paycheck. The $88.51/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 601 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 $60.13/hour journeyman rate, a first-period apprentice would be in the $27.06–$30.07/hour range. The exact percentage schedule is set by the local's JATC.
UA Local 601 is headquartered in Milwaukee, WI 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 601 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 601 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 601 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 601 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 6/26/26 schedule; check with the Local 601 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 601 against neighboring jurisdictions and other plumbers & pipefitters markets.
The UA Local 601 hall is at 3300 S 103rd St Milwaukee, WI 53227, serving Milwaukee, WI and the surrounding jurisdiction. Hall phone: 414-543-0601.
UA Local 601 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall. Call the hall at 414-543-0601 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 601 can be reached at 414-543-0601. Contact details are imported from the union's public directory listing — confirm hours with the hall.