Earning Potential
Earn wages and benefits while you learn
Apprentices start at 60% of the journey-level wage. During the four-year program, apprentices who show progress are eligible for increases at regular intervals. Apprentices also receive benefits during the program. Upon completion of 640 hours of class time for carpenters or 800 hours for millwrights, and a minimum of 1,300 jobsite hours each year, the wage-and-benefit package increases to the journey level. Wages and benefits vary by local.
Here’s the potential.
$100,000 – Value of training union carpenters, millwrights, and pile drivers receive at no cost
$7.25 – Current federal minimum wage per hour
$18–$20 – What most construction workers in our area make per hour
$18.96–$26.20 – What union carpenters and millwrights earn per hour
$800 – Average weekly wage for this region
$840–$1,128 – Average weekly wage for union carpenters and millwrights
$33,000 – Average yearly wages for a first-year union carpenter/millwright apprentice
$48,000 – Average yearly wages for a 4th year union carpenter/millwright apprentice
$46,680–$51,000 – Average yearly wages for a journey-level union carpenter or millwright
Contractors pay health insurance and pension benefits for union carpenters and millwrights. Union carpenters and millwrights have protection under their collective bargaining agreements.