Outdoor Electrician Lineworker

Journeyman Lineman are the individuals that build and repair power distribution
and transmission systems throughout the country. To become a Journeyman
Lineman, you must first apply and get accepted into an accredited
apprenticeship. The apprenticeship is typically 7000 hours broken into 7 steps
with 1000 hours per step. These hours are paid, on-the-job training performed in
a progressive fashion. First you will help from the ground, then you will work
on the pole close to danger and finally, you will work on energized lines under
the tutelage of a qualified Journeyman.


As you learn more about this trade you are going to hear about Utilities,
Co-Ops, and Contractors.


A Utility is your local power company. They own the equipment from the power
plant to the end user, either commercial or residential. They have Lineman that
work for them directly, but they don't typically have enough to maintain their
equipment or build new systems.


A Co-Operative is a customer owned company that delivers power to a rural
community. They have the same challenges that the utility has in that they
don’t typically employ enough personnel to maintain their equipment nor build
new systems.


A Contractor is a group of Journeyman that travel to different locations to
perform maintenance on and build new distribution and transmission systems for
communities. They are also the ones that travel out of the area to do storm
work. When a catastrophe strikes and the power grid is damaged by extreme
weather or man-made disasters, these men and women travel to that location to
restore the power grid, typically working for days and weeks at a time in
austere conditions and for their efforts, they are paid handsomely.


This program is exclusively for Contractors and is a pipeline designed to get
you into an IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers)
apprenticeship. There are nine (9) IBEW apprenticeships in the country.


AJAETT- Includes the state of Alaska


ALBAT- Includes the states of Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, West
Virginia, Virgina, Maryland and the District of Columbia.


CAL-NEV- Includes the states of California, Hawaii and Nevada.


MOVALLEY – Includes the states of Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South
Dakota, Iowa, and Wisconsin


MSLCAT- Includes the states of Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Colorado, Utah


NWLINE- Includes the states of Oregon, Washington and parts of Northern
California


NEAT – Includes the states of New York, New Jersey, Maine, Delaware, Rhode
Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts.


SELCAT- Includes the states of Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi,
Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Florida


SWLCAT- Includes the states of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas


To become an indentured apprentice, you have to apply to the apprenticeship and
pass an interview. You will need to have a class A CDL with no restrictions and
be prepared to travel throughout the jurisdiction of your assigned
apprenticeship. You might be able to do several steps of your apprenticeship in
one generalized location, but it is not realistic to think that you will be
able to do both “cold” (de-energized) and “hot” (energized) work without
travelling distances to get to where there is applicable work available.


With each step of your apprenticeship, you will do a form of distance learning
on your own that we call "Bookwork" in the trade. You'll be tested on
this bookwork every six months and will have to maintain passing scores as well
as be signed off by the Journeyman you are apprenticing under.


The seven steps of your apprenticeship will occasionally be interrupted by the
necessity of performing storm work in other parts of the country. This is
construction and you will also have to navigate lay-offs and other calamities
such as budgeting constraints, material shortages and even politics. The only
people that can successfully navigate these apprenticeships are those
individuals that plan ahead, live within their means, and remain flexible.


Once you finish your apprenticeship and “Top Out” as a Journeyman Lineman, you
will earn your ticket and be able to travel throughout the world performing
your craft for communities in need. You’ll be paid extremely well, work
outside, work with your hands, and belong to a rare group of individuals that
have earned the title Journeyman Lineman.


This work is also inherently dangerous and not for the faint of heart. You will
be required to work in all weather conditions and spend months away from home.
It is not a job; it is a lifestyle. If this does not sound like it is for you,
do not apply.

If you are interested, visit www.in2veep.com
to apply for the Veteran Electrical Entry Program (VEEP). VEEP is a pipeline
that trains qualified and specially selected veterans to attend a 16-week
pre-apprenticeship program at the Lazy Q Line School in La Grange, Texas. If
selected to attend, you will receive free room and board, climbing equipment
and hand tools, and receive paid training for the duration of your stay. You
will work 6 days a week, 10 hours a day for $18/hour. With overtime, your take
home pay is around $5000/month. Nothing is taken from your GI Bill benefits.

In addition to the training you receive here, you will also do your first year
of bookwork that, depending on which apprenticeship you apply for, will be
accredited towards your apprenticeship.


You will also receive approximately 800 hours of training that if applicable
can give you the opportunity to get advanced placement into the IBEW
apprenticeship. This is the only program in the country that offers this
benefit.


You will have two (2) breaks after week 6 and 12 where you can travel home to
visit family. Travel to and from the training facility is at your expense,
driving or flying. While you are attending this program you will not be allowed
to leave the training facility, departure will only happen on scheduled breaks.
Everything that you could need is provided. A state-of-the-art gym, dining
facility, and entertainment in the likes of shuffleboard, pool tables, outdoor
recreation and fishing are all on site. There are no TVs in your rooms as you
will want to limit the distractions from your studies. A partnership is
maintained with a local store that you can order whatever you might need from
town, and you can also order whatever you need online to be shipped to you.


This opportunity sounds like it’s too good to be true, but again, not everyone
gets in. If you are selected and you graduate, we will help you get indentured
into the apprenticeship of your choice. In some instances, you might have a job
immediately following graduation with one of the Quanta Operating Units as a
groundman while you wait for the apprenticeship to have an opening.


Many veterans will apply, but few will be invited to attend. If you think you
have what it takes to answer this calling, apply today for the next available
cohort. You can apply up to six months from your discharge from the military as
we run two classes a year. Our spring cohort starts the first week of March and
graduates mid-June. Our fall cohort starts the first week of September and
graduates in mid-December.


Most of your questions can be answered on the website www.in2veep.com. To
apply, select the Outside Lineworker Program and submit the applicable
paperwork. A representative will be in contact with you as it gets closer to
the cohort you apply for.


There is an inside electrician program that is separate from this one. Any
questions about that program can be answered on the website.  

SAMPLING OF TRAINING OFFERED
• Barehand Live-Line Training
• Automatic Ultrasonic Training (AUT)
• Weights & Forces
• Pipeline Data Analyst
• Robotic Arm
• Safety Accident Investigation Workshop
• Work Procedure Training
• Hot Stick
• Crane Training
• Tool Testing
• Fundamentals of Pipeline Inspection
• MT & UT Training & Certification
• Lineman Training
• Fiber Splicing
• Micro-Trenching
• Directional Drilling
• Indoor Installation of Fiber Optic Cable
• I&R
• Inside Plant
• Lead Remediation
• Research & Development
• Cable & Conduit Placement Training
• Residential & Multi-Unit Installation Training
• Central Office Electronics Placement Training
• Wireless Training
• Copper Twisted Pair Cable Maintenance
Training
• Paper Insulated Lead Covered Cable Splicing