At the last Laborers' International Convention a resolution was passed that requires that all new member come through one of the Laborers' apprenticeship programs.  This mainly applies to the construction industry, however it can apply in other areas also.  We are looking for applicants who are highly motivated and have both the physical and mental skills that are now necessary in the construction industry.

 We are testing applicants in a new way to measure the skills that an individual may already have.  New applicants will be slotted in the proper beginning percentage wage rate according to their knowledge and physical ability as it relates to the construction industry.   This will enable those applicants who have prior experience in the industry to start out at a higher wage rate.  New apprentices without any experience start out at 60% of journeyman wage rate and progress at 10% increments for every 1,000 hours worked and classroom training obtained.  The 4,000 hours needed to gain journeyman status can take as short as two years but generally takes between three and four years depending on the number hours worked.

 If you are interested in the apprenticeship program you need to visit one of our locations and request an application.  If you are not located in any of the areas represented by local 252 go to the Washington & Northern Idaho District Council of Laborers to find the locations of other local unions in Washington.  You can also obtain more information by connecting to the Northwest Laborers' Training Center, located in Kingston, Washington.  This training facility has branches at; Kingston, Spokane and Pasco, Washington;  Salt Lake City, Utah; Idaho Falls, Idaho.

 Apprentice Laborers receive full family health care coverage and pension contributions based on the number of hour that they work.  Contribution begin with the first hour worked, other craft require you work a probationary time before the contributions begin.  There are many other benefits that are available to members of the Laborers' Union like belonging to a credit union and the ability to participate in programs sponsored by the AFL-CIO that save you money.

 Many times we sign up contractors who have not had the advantage of using skilled union members and when they agree to sign a union agreement we will take in their employees as members, either as apprentices or journeyman depending on the employer's classification of their employees.  If you think you are employed by a contractor who might see the union as a way to expand his business or provide better benefits and training for his employees please use the organizing page to contact us.

 Also during the summer months we maintain a casual list (D List) that we occasionally will dispatch from when we need a specific skill when we need to fill a job order.  There is a $15.00 fee required to sign on this list and the fee is only good for the month in which you sign.  A new list is started the first workday of each month and there is no guarantee of work.  Generally few people are put to work off this list, unless they are highly skilled in a specific classification i.e.: grade checker, pipe layer, hod carrier, etc.