The UA is the North American union for plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters, sprinkler fitters, HVAC service technicians and welders. Work is dispatched through local halls, each with its own jurisdiction, collective bargaining agreement and apprenticeship program, so wages and dispatch rules differ from one local to the next.
What UA members work on
Commercial and industrial plumbing, process piping and steam systems
HVAC piping, mechanical service and start-up work
Pipe welding to the local's certified procedures
Five-year apprenticeships run jointly by the local and its signatory contractors
Current UA rate sheets — compare wages across locals
Current journeyman rate sheets for 185 UA locals, each taken from that hall's own published sheet with the effective date it carries. Published journeyman base scale runs from $29.50/hr (UA Local 404, Northwest Texas, TX) to $91.00/hr (UA Local 38, San Francisco, CA), before the benefit package. Rates change between sheets — confirm the current step with the hall before relying on it for an offer.
UA journeyman base wage, total package and effective date by local
5 dated UA items ahead — scheduled wage steps and agreement rate dates printed on the sheets we hold, starting October 9, 2026. Meeting nights, training sessions and apprenticeship intake windows are set locally, so call the hall for those; we only publish dates we can cite.
See the full union calendar for every dated wage step, agreement rate and wage determination we hold. For meeting nights, training sessions and apprenticeship intake dates, contact the hall directly — each local page lists its phone number and website.
UA apprenticeship programs and training pathways
Every UA apprenticeship is run by a local joint apprenticeship and training committee, not by the International — so the program shape below is the UA standard, and the hall sets the intake dates, the exact step percentages and the final entry list. It is an earn-while-you-learn path: you are paid from the first day on the job, classroom instruction is funded through the contract rather than tuition, and you turn out as a journeyman plumber, pipefitter, welder or HVAC service technician.
Program length: Typically a five-year registered apprenticeship
Paid on-the-job hours: about 8,000 to 10,000 hours across the program
Classroom instruction: roughly 216 or more hours a year, related instruction
Run by: The local UA joint apprenticeship and training committee (JATC)
Turns out as: Journeyman plumber, pipefitter, welder or HVAC service technician
Cost: No tuition debt — training is funded through the contract; books, tools and small fees may still be yours
The UA training pathway, step by step
Pre-apprentice / helper — Not required, but many people arrive through a pre-apprenticeship, a Helmets to Hardhats referral or time already worked in the trade. Verifiable hours can shorten the program — raise them with the hall before you apply.
Indentured apprentice — Once you are indentured you work for signatory contractors at the first-period rate and attend related classroom instruction. Pay steps up each period as a set percentage of journeyman scale; each local's page shows that local's own published rate.
Turn out as a journeyman plumber, pipefitter, welder or HVAC service technician — Completing the on-the-job hours and the classroom program earns a nationally recognised registered-apprenticeship credential and full journeyman scale.
Journeyman upgrade and certification — Training does not stop at turn-out. UA training centres run upgrade courses — welding certifications, service and controls, code updates, medical gas, foreman and supervisory training — that take members into service work, detailing and field leadership.
Foreman, general foreman, superintendent — Field leadership is where journeyman hours turn into a career step. Gulfstream recruits foremen, superintendents, project managers and service leaders for mechanical, plumbing, HVAC, sheet metal and electrical contractors — the openings on this page are that route.
What UA programs normally ask for
18 years or older at the time of indenture
High school diploma or GED, with algebra normally required
Proof of legal authority to work in the United States
Valid driver's licence and reliable transportation to jobsites
Aptitude test and panel interview, then ranking on the apprentice list
Ability to pass a physical and a substance screen before dispatch
UA apprenticeship deadlines — how intake windows work
There is no national UA application deadline, and we do not publish one we cannot cite. Each hall's training committee opens its own application window — some once a year, some twice, some continuously while the list is short — and closes it when the list is full. The only reliable date is the one the hall gives you.
Windows are short. Many locals accept applications for a matter of weeks, so the practical step is to call the hall now and ask when the next window opens rather than wait for an announcement.
Applications are usually taken in person at the training centre, with documents in hand — a window you find out about late is often one you cannot meet.
After the window closes there is an aptitude test and a panel interview, then a ranked list. Indenture happens off that list as contractors call for apprentices, which can be months after you apply.
The list can reopen early when work picks up. Ask the hall to tell you what triggers a reopening in their jurisdiction.
How to apply to a UA apprenticeship
Find the hall whose jurisdiction covers you — Apprenticeships are dispatched locally. Open the UA local nearest the work you want and use its page for the hall address, dispatch line and website.
Call the training committee for the current window — Ask the local UA joint apprenticeship and training committee (JATC) when applications open, where they are taken and what they want you to bring. This single call is what most applicants miss.
Get your documents together first — Birth certificate or passport, high school transcript or GED, an algebra credit, driver's licence, and a DD-214 if you served. Gather them before the window opens, not during it.
Sit the aptitude test and panel interview — Expect a math and reading aptitude test and an interview. Scores set your position on the ranked apprentice list.
Stay reachable while you wait — Indenture comes off the list as contractors call for help. Keep your number current with the hall and take the first dispatch you are offered.
Official UA training and apprenticeship pages
UA apprenticeship — The United Association's own apprenticeship page: the trades it trains, what the registered program covers and how the earn-while-you-learn model works.
Find a UA local union — The International's hall finder — the local's training committee is the only body that can tell you when its application window opens.
Apprenticeship.gov job finder — The U.S. Department of Labor's finder for registered apprenticeships, including open programs with current application windows.
UA apprenticeship pages by local
Each local below has its own apprenticeship page: the step-by-step wage progression from that local's published journeyman sheet where we hold one, the program shape, the entry requirements and the hall's phone number for the current intake. 242 UA locals.
When is the UA apprenticeship application deadline?
There isn't a single one. Each UA local's training committee runs its own application window and closes it when the list is full, so the deadline that matters is the one at the hall whose jurisdiction covers you. Call that hall — its number is on its local page — and ask when the next window opens and what to bring.
How long is a UA apprenticeship?
Typically a five-year registered program — about 8,000 to 10,000 paid on-the-job hours alongside roughly 216 or more hours of related classroom instruction a year — finishing as a journeyman plumber, pipefitter, welder or HVAC service technician. The local UA joint apprenticeship and training committee (JATC) confirms the exact term.
What do you need to get into a UA apprenticeship?
Registered programs in this trade normally ask for: 18 years or older at the time of indenture; High school diploma or GED, with algebra normally required; Proof of legal authority to work in the United States; Valid driver's licence and reliable transportation to jobsites; Aptitude test and panel interview, then ranking on the apprentice list; Ability to pass a physical and a substance screen before dispatch. Each local publishes its own list, so confirm with the training centre before you apply.
Do UA apprentices get paid?
Yes — apprentices are paid from the first day at a percentage of journeyman scale that rises each period, plus benefit contributions, and the classroom instruction is funded through the contract rather than tuition. Each local's page shows that local's own published journeyman rate and the step percentages the trade uses.
Can Gulfstream get me into a UA apprenticeship?
No. Apprentice intake runs through the local training committees only, and we never charge candidates. Gulfstream Search Partners recruits journeymen, foremen and office staff for mechanical, plumbing, HVAC, sheet metal and electrical contractors — once you have hours in the trade, our open roles and job alerts are the fastest way to see what's hiring.
Start with your local's page below — each one lists the live openings a member of that local can work, the hall's city and contact details, and the published journeyman scale where we hold the sheet. You can also search by local number on our union search page.
Do I have to be a UA member to apply through Gulfstream?
No. Gulfstream recruits for both union-signatory and open-shop mechanical contractors. Union membership matters for signatory work, but many of the roles we fill are direct-hire positions where your experience is what counts.
How do UA locals set wages?
Each local negotiates its own collective bargaining agreement, so the journeyman base rate and the total package with fringes vary by local and change each CBA cycle. Where we hold a published wage sheet we show it and date it; otherwise we point you to the hall.
Gulfstream Strategic Placements — South Corona, California
We are a mechanical, plumbing and electrical construction recruiting firm with one office, in the South Corona area of Corona, California, off Temescal Canyon Road. We recruit for contractors signatory to UA and for open-shop contractors, and we place union-scale tradespeople and field leadership nationwide.