# Measuring a Helper's Work Performance



## MikeFL (Apr 16, 2016)

That's a well written question. I wish you were my apprentice!

I'd say dependability is #1. If you're not there, you're worthless to the company & the crew.

A close 2nd would be employee relations. Are you pleasant to work with? 

And a close 3rd is the quality of your work, before the quantity of your work. Get it right before you get it fast. The worst thing you can do is blow out 3 days of work in 1 day and it's all wrong. If that happens it will take a day to rip it out, 3 days to put it in correctly, the job schedule gets behind and it's costing someone big money.

Show up, be nice, work smartly and you'll do fine.

The best employee shows up 10 minutes early and stays 10 minutes late.


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## gnuuser (Jan 13, 2013)

i would say its in the ability to listen to instruction and benefit from it.
If an apprentice needs to be shown how to do a task repeatedly (more than a few times) its apparent they have difficulty learning.
are they taking notes and reviewing what they learned? are they verifying what they learned with a journeyman or master?


any apprentice that takes the time to double check his work for accuracy is worth keeping whether its taking and recording his meter readings or verifying that the wiring is correct (this is a trait that should be encouraged)



as far as quantifying how much they can do that's a sticky situation, speed and consistent accuracy comes with a lot of practice.


setting a minimum standard like that can be a little bit too biased.
while its understandable that management would like something like that, its not really an accurate gauge of competence


confidence in their own work comes from complimentary comments from their superiors!
for instance I would rather have a task done right the first time than have it done quickly and possibly incorrect.


with helpers its more their interest in the job! do they exhibit an active interest in helping the journeyman and are they asking questions to learn about it?
are they doing the work or are they playing with their phones?
a good helper will anticipate what the journeyman needs in a very short time and will not need to be told to get something very often.


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## Coppersmith (Aug 11, 2017)

Are you a helper or an apprentice? A helper is a level below a year one apprentice and year one apprentices really don't know anything and aren't expected to do much except dig ditches or run and get stuff from the truck/conex.

Just show up on time everyday, keep your phone in your pocket, bring a pencil and some paper to write on, and stand ready to do what you are asked and you will be a shining star among helpers.


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## stiffneck (Nov 8, 2015)

Coppersmith said:


> Are you a helper or an apprentice? A helper is a level below a year one apprentice and year one apprentices really don't know anything and aren't expected to do much except dig ditches or run and get stuff from the truck/conex.
> 
> Just show up on time everyday, *keep your phone in your pocket*, bring a pencil and some paper to write on, and stand ready to do what you are asked and you will be a shining star among helpers.



Number-1 issue of today, for any fellow employee. Too often some other workers turn off and tune out, waiting to be told what to do every step of the way. The rest of the time is playing that stupid internet interactive simulated war game on their cell phone. As a result, I(You) end up having to watch, listen and think for 2,3,4 or more people.


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## stiffneck (Nov 8, 2015)

DeterminedSparky said:


> How do you measure a helper's work performance? Do you do it terms of the helper being able to install or bend x amount of feet of conduit per hour, or pull a certain amount of wire per hour? I'm trying to get a idea of what things are most important for a helper to become good at, and what are good targets, or target ranges to aim for in doing so. Particularly so with regard to commercial construction as that is type of electrical work I am most interested in.
> 
> If work performance is measured in any sort of quantifiable way, I would i*magine the answers from non-union and union electricians might vary with one group focused purely on speed and production, and the other on quality*.



Feel free to finish your insinuation.
Inquiring minds would like to know.


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## DeterminedSparky (Mar 14, 2019)

Coppersmith said:


> Are you a helper or an apprentice? A helper is a level below a year one apprentice and year one apprentices really don't know anything and aren't expected to do much except dig ditches or run and get stuff from the truck/conex.


Currently, I am neither since I have no electrical experience. I did not know there is a difference between being a helper and an apprentice, or what tasks are expected of an apprentice at various points in their apprenticeship.


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## DeterminedSparky (Mar 14, 2019)

It sounds like work performance prior to the journeyman level is not measured in any sort of quantifiable way.


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## Wirenuting (Sep 12, 2010)

DeterminedSparky said:


> Currently, I am neither since I have no electrical experience. .


Then how and why are you on this site asking questions you don’t understand?


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## DeterminedSparky (Mar 14, 2019)

Wirenuting said:


> Then how and why are you on this site asking questions you don’t understand?


Just because I didn't know there is a difference between a "helper" and "apprentice" doesn't mean that I don't know what I meant when I asked the question. I asked the question because I want to be an electrician, I want to be good at what I do, and this is the electrician apprentice sub forum. I thought that's what it's for.


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## Coppersmith (Aug 11, 2017)

Wirenuting said:


> Then how and why are you on this site asking questions you don’t understand?


I found DeterminedSparky's question to be perfectly valid.



DeterminedSparky said:


> It sounds like work performance prior to the journeyman level is not measured in any sort of quantifiable way.


Not true at all. Helper's and apprentices are constantly being judged by the journeymen running them and by the foremen walking by and noticing them.

There are five years of apprenticeship and every journeyman knows what to expect from an apprentice at each of those levels. If an apprentice is "performing adequately" for their level, there will be no complaints and probably no compliments either. If however, an apprentice should know how to do something but doesn't, expect this will annoy the j-man. If he is a good j-man, he will train you and overlook the problem. If it happens repeatedly, expect to be laid off. Moral of the story--continually be learning the trade from those training you.

One final note: never get caught standing around doing nothing. It may be just one minute out of a day you were working like a dog that the foreman sees you standing around and figures that all you did all day.


*All references to gender include both male and female tradespersons.


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## telsa (May 22, 2015)

I've had apprentices that were no help at all.


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## electricalwiz (Mar 12, 2011)

I would rather an apprentice take a little bit linger doing a task, than try to be fast and screw something up 
Most important to me is 
1. Show Up
2. Listen 
3. Do it right the first time

Speed comes after experience


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## Martine (Jan 26, 2018)

So far for me (I’ve been doing commercial work for a month), it’s been about showing up on time, and trying to predict what my journeyman needs. If we’re installing runs of conduit, it’s knowing we’re going to need couplings and connectors. 

I have a little notebook that I take notes of all measurements he gives me, supplies he asks me to go grab, or angles in which he prefers his conduits bent. He was REALLY happy the first day they put me with him and noticed my little book. 

He expects me to need help with stuff, and I’ve been told as long as I’m learning, and not making the same mistake over and over again, and as long as I’m not trying to rush through a job, I never hear him complain. 

My attitude is my number one priority. I leave my ego at the door and try to soak everything in like a sponge. Journeyman don’t expect an apprentice to be super speedy or knowledgeable. They just expect us to show up on time, wanting to work, wanting to learn, and to want to be useful.


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## Coppersmith (Aug 11, 2017)

Martine said:


> So far for me (I’ve been doing commercial work for a month), it’s been about showing up on time, and trying to predict what my journeyman needs. If we’re installing runs of conduit, it’s knowing we’re going to need couplings and connectors.
> 
> I have a little notebook that I take notes of all measurements he gives me, supplies he asks me to go grab, or angles in which he prefers his conduits bent. He was REALLY happy the first day they put me with him and noticed my little book.
> 
> ...


Very well said. The trade could use a few thousand apprentices just like you.


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## HertzHound (Jan 22, 2019)

The state I live in does not require an apprenticeship. So here’s my interpretation of helper and apprentice. 

A helper goes to work for an EC. He may take classes at night, he may not. Just because he does go to school doesn’t make him an apprentice. He may be paying out of pocket, his employer might be paying or reimburse him/her if he keeps a certain grade. There is no real milestone when he changes from helper to mechanic. At the end of the year, like everyone, he writes electrician in the box for occupation on his taxes. After five years he may want to go for his contractors license as some sort of qualification of his skills. It may or may not help increase his pay. 

Just like anything some guys with licenses shouldn’t have one, and guys without could easily have one but choose not to. I’d just size them up by what the know and how they work, not by a piece of paper. 

Now an apprentice is in a structured system. They are reviewed monthly by the journeyman or Foreman that they are working for. The apprentice report is given to the apprentice director. Raises are withheld for not having the on the job hours. You have to go in front of an apprentice board for failed tests or bad work reports. Fines are imposed after the second bad grade. Eventual termination after a third failed test. After five years you pass a journeyman test. You can also take a journeyman test for the state, but at that point you just go for the EC license so that you can go into Buisiness if you wanted to someday. 

Other states vary. 

Best of luck to you, you are a determined sparky.


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