r/IUEC

Soooo I saw I post saying some statuses already say “recruitable”. Mine still says “Schedulable” ….. should I be worried

local 71 has 800 applications.

local 85 has 350 applications.

is anyone applying for one of them or both?

Hey all. Just was wondering how often you guys get to work nights. Thanks!

Happy Fourth everyone. I am sorry for the long post.

I am going into my last year as an apprentice in the operating engineers union. Currently my rate is $50.43 an hour (take home). Once I journey out, my pay will be at around $63.00 an hour, which again is take-home. This rate becomes higher in certain scenarios, like if I’m running a large crane or operating a hydraulic hammer from my crane.

However I was laid off for 4 months and started worrying about health insurance for next year. In this time I applied to the local elevators union and went through the whole application process.

I got a very good number and will most likely get a call within the next 4-5 months. I just don’t know what to do.

Do I start over and become a first year apprentice in the elevators? I would take a pay cut initially (first year is about $38.00 and hour) but after once second year hits, I would be making what I make now.

I do like running cranes. It is fun and I enjoy the challenges it can bring at times. Also, I have a machine doing all the heavy lifting. I don’t hurt my body or anything like that.

The elevator guys in my area seem to love what they do and they get great pay. But again, after this coming year, I’ll be able to run my own crane and have my own apprentice training under me.

I’m very sorry for the long post. I am just so torn about what to do. Thank you!

I guess I have to attend schooling on weekends and on evenings, curious how I’m going to balance my schedule out with this. Does the union provide a full time apprenticeship position where they give you ample time after work to go to class?

Hello, I will get right to the point. I am a 2 month Probie working for TKE, my mechanic is great and i am loving the job so far. My mechanic frequently tells me how great of a helper i am and how i just need to keep doing what im doing. The issue at hand is that my management is in absolute shambles ever since it was set in stone that KONE would be acquiring us soon we have had multiple supers quit as well as other office personnel, My issue is my mechanic has a lot of time off this summer, when he takes his time i wish to keep working. He reaches out to management multiple times as well do i and they just keep saying they will take care of it etc until the day comes where he is off and they have no work for me. my mechanic tells me that is absolute bullshit and apologizes to me about it (even though i understand it’s out of his control) He essentially told me that if they keep jerking me around like this i should request a lay off and go to the hall tell my BA what has been going on and get put on with another company. Basically i just want a second opinion from some experienced brothers on what i should do in this situation.

On my first assignment(i'm a probie), on a mod job right now (demo, so not much elevator-specific stuff yet). Crew’s been solid and welcoming, I’m with one mechanic, one TM, and anywhere from a couple helpers to a full crew depending on the day and they’ve already started tossing me small tasks to handle, so I'm handling tools and being trusted a fair amount. Already put in a 20-hour shift, which was a good wake-up call for what this trade actually asks of you.

Just doing the basics right now. Keeping tools clean, keeping batteries organized, picking up after the crew without being asked. Nothing crazy, just don’t want to be the guy someone has to clean up after.

Honestly I’m hungry to learn, get my hands dirty, and actually understand how this all works. That ambition is what got me here and I don’t want to lose it, but I also don’t want it to turn into a liability for me or any of the guys I’m with.

Only thing nagging at me is that demo doesn’t teach me much about the actual mechanics of the job. I know that’ll come, but for now I’m just asking questions when it makes sense and waiting for a good moment to ask if I can take on something bigger. I just don’t want to be the apprentice who’s constantly pushing and ends up being more annoying than helpful, especially around guys with 25+ years in.

For those of you who’ve been through this, what worked for you? How’d you carry yourself, what kind of questions did you ask, and how’d you know when to just shut up and watch instead of pushing for more?

Also curious: what questions should I actually be asking on the job to supplement classroom and build toward the journeyman’s exam? 4-5 years feels like a long time until you realize how hard that exam is. I’d rather have a solid foundation by year 3 and use years 4 and 5 to actually hone the craft.

I applied 3 years ago with absolutely no construction experience. The list moved 32 in the first two years and I figured I wouldn’t be called up and went to grad school to get a masters. List is being blown through and it looks like I’m gonna get the call.

I have a knee injury already and I’m wondering how bad the job will be on the injury if I decide to take this route. I know construction is hard on the body. But how hard I just don’t know.

I’d have to leave my family for at least a year or two. I just had a baby. Honestly not sure what to do here.

Can anyone say they have been in similar situation?
Any previous injuries going into the trade?

Congrats to everyone who was able to get an application last month! As of a few minutes ago, the application submission deadline has officially passed. Hopefully everyone who intended to apply was able to get everything submitted on time.

The EIAT will take place in September. Anyone who passes the exam can expect interviews to be scheduled sometime between October and November.

Best of luck to everyone throughout the process, and have a safe and happy 4th of July weekend!

Title pretty much sums it up. I've been working as an elevator mechanic in Korea for about 4 years and I'm still on the job.

The problem is the pay here just isn't cutting it — after taxes, I take home around $2,000 a month, so roughly $28k a year. That's why I'm hoping to move to North America and keep working in the same trade.

My concern is that my Korean experience and certifications probably won't transfer over directly to the US or Canada, and honestly I have no idea how the licensing/apprenticeship process works over there.

Has anyone here made a similar move, or does anyone know how this works? Even if you're from somewhere other than the US or Canada, I'd appreciate any insight.

Did anyone get their interview results?

Strawberry milk is better then chocolate milk.

I know FL is a red state and I also know unions aren’t strong in red states. My question is how consistent is work for Local 71? I would love to move to Florida if accepted. If anyone here is a Local 71 member I would appreciate a few minutes of your time to pick your brain. TIA

are there any fears of getting crushed and how did you get over it

What is a good local to work at? I’m currently with 8 in the Sacramento area. I was about to apply for a position with my company in Australia that has been open for over a year now but after researching pay and how much it would cost to move my life there I quickly learned that Australia is never happening.

I kind of want to move out of California and experience something new but pay scales and cost of living don’t seem to make sense anywhere that isn’t a state like California.

I was talking to my mechanic today and the topic of working on escalators came up. He had mentioned he worked on them as a 2nd year apprentice, which was about 20 years ago. For those of you that work on them, do you like it? He encouraged me to try to get escalator experience. How would I go about trying to get with a repair guy that works on them? Or is that not in my control, and it’s just something that happens by chance?

Hey guys wondering how you think I would fare going from Ironwork to the IUEC, I’m a journeyman ironworker in my mid 20s been doing it right out of high school, I seen the IUEC near me has applications in december of this year and figured i’d go for it, i’m still young enough to complete another apprenticeship, I worked with a few of you guys at a airport one time and have had a interest in it since then now I may have a chance to get in, most of my ironwork career has been structural steel, oddball rigging, and industrial maintnence (composite with milwrites and boiler makers). Can weld fairly decent and interpret blueprints pretty well as well as layout, just want to know if you guys think i could be a good fit coming from a union background already just looking to switch over to something I think will be a bit more fulfilling to me.

Been eyeballing the trade for about 6 months now, I’m right in between two locals with staggered recruitment years so ideally I can apply for one each year until maybe i get lucky. One of the recruitments opens next month 🤞🏼But on a side note there’s really not much content out there on what the actual process is of being an elevator mechanic, I know it’s hard meticulous work. If you were to start a new construction today, what’s the steps and time frames? Do elevator mechanics run a vast amount of equipment? Are all parts brought up the stairs by manpower or is there cranes involved to bring stuff up? I’m not here to ask for interview questions, test tips or anything like that , but I’d love for someone to actually break down what the process looks like for someone who’s never seen it before. Thanks in advance fellas.

Good luck to those having their interview at Local 21 this week! I had my interview this morning and the guys who were conducting it were genuinely great interviewers and really eased the tension of it imo. Looking forward to hopefully getting that email on Monday!