Part 1
Letter to Accompany Application Form
Thank you for your interest in the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 800 Journeymen Apprenticeship Training Program. A career as an Operating Engineer is challenging, diverse, and fulfilling, both in terms of personal rewards and monetary benefits.
Before applying, we feel it is important that every applicant fully understands the requirements of the Apprenticeship Program.
The term of apprenticeship of the Program is a minimum of 3 years or 6000 hours. In addition, 442 hours of classroom instruction is also required. Applicants who are selected to take part in the apprenticeship program will receive a combination of on-the-job training while assigned to employers and related field instruction by the Program’s instructors at Bar Nunn Wyoming.
Operating Engineers in the construction industry operate, maintain and repair many types of equipment—from relatively simple pavement breakers to large cranes, which are complex and require the coordination of numerous controls. The job requires excellent eyesight, hand-eye coordination, muscular coordination, and the ability to perform routine, repetitive work without losing concentration. At times, the work will be performed while sitting, standing, walking, and climbing. As the work is performed outdoors, Operating Engineers are exposed to extremes of noise, dust, wind, rain, cold, and heat.
By its very nature, working in the construction industry is seasonal. An Operating Engineer can expect to spend periods of time unemployed, particularly in the winter months.
Apprentices will be assigned to work on projects throughout Wyoming, the jurisdictional area of Operating Engineers Local 800. They must be able to travel and must have reliable transportation. The Apprenticeship Program does not reimburse Apprentices for travel expenses.
Applicants should be aware that they will be required to take a pre-employment drug test and that various employers also require random drug tests.
The current average hourly rate for beginning Apprentices is approximately 70% per hour of group two journeyman wages, plus fringe benefits. With satisfactory progress in their training, Apprentices will receive wage increases throughout the period of training.
Upon acceptance into the Apprenticeship Program, applicants will be required to join the union, Local 800 of the International Union of Operating Engineers. A union is a democratic organization chosen by a majority of employees in a facility. The basic idea of a union is that by joining together with co-employees to form a union, workers have a greater ability, through their strength in numbers, to improve conditions at the worksite. In other words, “In unity, there is strength.”
The primary purpose of the union is to represent workers in their employment and to negotiate a contract that improves wages, benefits, and working conditions and protects workers from unfair treatment. The International Union of Operating Engineers is a progressive, diversified trade union that is dedicated to offering employment and training opportunities to workers in the construction industry.
Thank you again for your interest in applying for the Local 800 Apprenticeship Training Program. We hope that the information in this letter has provided you with a clear, comprehensive view of a challenging and exciting opportunity.