r/IBEW_Local613

I haven’t been in the program long just 6 months but I recently got laid off 2 weeks ago and I can’t do this not having a job thing. It’s already hard to get hired in my town for simple jobs to do while waiting for a job. Should I wait it out? I was thinking about going back to my old job and just continuing school without working and seeing how available jobs are later? Lmk your experience and what advice you can give.
Edit: I should add I’m doing good in school straight a’s and I’m really ahead of everyone else skill wise coming from my foreman.

Recently decided to come back to 613 Itested in and was curious on what to expect for the hands on test ! Happy to be back 🔥

Been contemplating joining the apprenticeship program, my biggest concern is getting assigned a job super far away. The furthest point from me in the jurisdiction is about 3hrs. I cant imagine having to do that every day. Is their a decent amount of work in this area or would I be likely assigned far?

Is the job board for AP1’s the only way to get employed? Or can I search for union contractors and apply directly? Seems like the ones on the job board go really quick and the ones I was quick enough to put in for I didn’t get.

How long after you apply for something from the job board do you hear something back. Whether the position has already been filled or if you got the job. I applied for something on Tuesday and haven’t gotten anything back.

Hi brothers and sisters, if you have a moment, can you help me figure something out?

On your trade school account, there's an evaluation tab. 1-10 and 11-20. What do the scores mean? The avg as well? I just got mine and I'm not sure how to interpret it.

I’ve been checking the apprentice job board every day since June. I’ve seen maybe one or two jobs on East. I mean around Lawrenceville to Athens.

Yeah I understand Atlanta is a huge city but it’s like %99 of the jobs are there. I don’t know if I will ever have a job on East. I’m so stressed. I don’t want to move to Atlanta but

Going in for my 3rd time to retake the aptitude, I never been good in math. Testing is sept-November any tips for the test

whats the worst case scenario for a failed semester?

Hey siblings.

Really just here to vent and look for encouragement after 3 months out of work.

So here’s a little about me, what happened and how I know there are “ways around it”, but the universe is showing me that i have exactly one way through this.

I’m a nonbinary, black second year apprentice. I am visibly queer, naturally curious and passionate about understanding this trade and making sure my siblings in this union are safe, and motivated.

I am 31, I was fired on my first day back after “sitting out for 3 weeks”, fired before I got a job for having cold piss and attended zoom rehab, and I’m about to return to school in October and work as soon as I can pass an observed piss test…

So how did we get here?

Of course, Georgia is a right to work state, but usually with the union, if you have a good rapport and your company needs it’s workers, your outfit will work with you to make sure you’re not a “hall guy” hopping from job to job and “dragging up” everytime shit gets scarce or interpersonally hard.

In retrospect, I had so many good relationships with my JWs before my last one, but the last JW was so toxic that I think it poisoned my relationship with the company and instead of grinning and bearing it, I should have said the magic words “I think I have learned all I can from this JW and I think I need a change of JW or a new contractor”.

These magic words were hard to say, because my best friend was fired and 4/5 of the company’s women were fired for bullshit reasons. My friend struggled hard to stay with a company and was laid off at least 5 times after being let go for “tardiness” with my company. I have seen so many men in the outfit have DUIs, sleep on the job, be late, and make expensive mistakes and so few were ever reprimanded by way of firing. My friend was fired right as she was eligible for her second raise, and so was I…

The one woman who remains is a legacy hire, a daughter of the most beloved black truck guy at the company, whose going to college for something else anyway…there’s no evidence I had heard that a female apprentice had finished their apprenticeship at my company over the last 46 years. No lore, no stories, no names. I definitely asked around and definitely no female journeymen existed at my company as far as many were aware.

Is that normal? Have you ever met a lady, queer or trans jw? Asking for myself….

Anyway, now, having submitted cold piss after being fired for being tardy on my first day back after a 3 week “sit down”, I did go to rehab and having completed it, I’m just waiting for my break from “propane and propane accessories” (aka thc) to uncloud my piss.

In reality, I actually volunteered to take a week or two off because I needed time to fix some leaks at the house find some weird smells and was told “I was gonna ask you to sit out anyway” by the office guy who dispatches us. Mistake. Really being tardy was my mistake and made me vulnerable to mistreatment and unfair enforcement of the rules. 🙄

I know about certo, upass, detox juice and that would have the same “effect” as stopping smoking, but rehab was like $300 and I don’t want to do it again. I see what expecting workarounds/luck to work for me (like it did for my white brothers who fake piss tests and show up a couple minutes late) did for me.

I notice, tardiness policies are disparately enforced, impacting black workers more. I notice no women have turned out in 46 years at my first company. I notice a lot of my black peers won’t even apply because the odds are stacked against us and we often don’t have time to “piss clean” because it takes so long naturally… I was often late because I made coffee and cooked for myself to save money.

So here are my questions:

Should I go to the women’s committee? When I’m back how do I keep being on time/early for years? How do you do it? What do yall eat? How can I ensure success after months away from the job? How do I not become bitter after being cast away from a small company who I thought cared about my growth? How do you cope with layoffs? Have any women or queer people had positive experiences in this union? Is it worth it? How can I become a great JW that is sought after?

If I get fired a third time, I think the union will be a wrap for me. How do you cope with being exiled from the union if that happens and you still like electrical work?

What stage is this site? Anyone out there yet?