# Aspiring apprentice. Experience applying with local 191 and 46



## asdfsa2377 (Apr 14, 2016)

Hey, I just thought I would share my story. I relocated from the midwest to Washington state and am trying pursue a career in the electrical trade due to the unique economic factors that give the Pacific Northwest region one of the highest Journeyman pay rates in the country ($43/hr +/-). My background is in the cable tv and DirecTV industry for nearly 5 years now and I've hit the ceiling of what I can achieve. It is dead end at $15-23/hr unless I become management or live on the road to make $30. I need a real career with real trajectory and I believe the union offers that. To me they are the best of the best in regards to training, total wage package, and quality of work, and it would be unwise to settle for less.

I applied to Mount Vernon / Everett local 191 in March 2015 and Seattle / Renton 46 in November 2015. I sent in my college transcripts and $50 application fee for both. The aptitude tests followed about 2 months after where I scored competitively at 7/9 for MV and 8/9 for Seattle. It was a 2 part test consisting of math and reading sections. The math part covers concepts mostly from Algebra 2 and the reading section is straight forward enough. It's important to be accurate. No gears or pulley scenarios, unlike Seattle City Lights. l had about 5 minutes to review my answers after finishing the math section and 10-15 minutes for the reading section. Results came back in under 2 weeks. Interviews followed in September for 191 and March for 46. Sat down next to a panel of 4 people and was asked basic questions (Why do you want to be here?, What strengths can you offer?, Describe a scenario where you worked in a team, Are you afraid of heights/confined spaces? Have you considered other trades?, Why should we choose you?, If you don't get in this time, what will you do?, Why here of all places?) I wrote down some of the exact questions, which I can dig up if needed. I stumbled a bit on the interviews but scored a "better than average score" of 98.5 for Mount Vernon and 96.5 for Seattle. My placements were 35 and 45. Since November, my placement for the 191 has dropped to as low as 10, before rising again to 26 just recently. My score at the 46 is currently unchanged at 45. I have been given the option to reinterview if I obtain 500 hours of experience in an electrical trade or take 2 classes related to math, science, or electronics. 46 will accept my current job for experience towards a reinterview but 191 will not. Odds look "OK" that I may have a shot of getting in within the next year if they take 2 classes per year of 15-20 apprentices each, but I need to work to give them a reason to select me and show that I'm persistent.


----------

