Why Get Started with Plumbing Courses?

Plumbing is one of the most recognized professions in America, but the respective plumbing courses are not.  This is one of the fundamental fields of employment and everywhere you look, plumbing is essential to modern life.  The Plumbing profession is a unionized and apprenticeship based profession.  The US Department of labor reports that 31 percent of all plumbers are members of a union, the total number of plumbers and pipefitters, a subset of plumbing, is around 500,000.  However, the unions report over 350,000 total memberships.  This is difficult to track, as many of the unions are independent locals.  Plumbing courses are necessary, as plumbing itself is a very controlled profession.  In almost every state, there are licensures that are required to operate or work in plumbing and to hold a union Journeymen’s card as well.

Getting Started

The apprenticeship is a five-year, paid, on-the-job training program with 246 hours of annual classroom time.  Plumbing courses are available to help get you started.  Once you complete your apprenticeship you will carry the coveted title of “Journeyman Plumber.”  This is significant as entry-level salaries can be $15 to $21 per hour and with even just a little time in, the rates you can expect to garner would be, on average, about $50,000 per year and up.  Nevertheless, as with any unionized profession, membership in the union is half of the value of the profession itself, as it insures benefits packages that just happen to be the envy of the world.  Retirement is another great benefit to this profession.

The Future

There are four major specializations for union plumbers; they are Plumber, Pipe layer, Pipefitter, and Steamfitters.  A plumbing course can help get you started in this field, but it does not end there.  The job field for those who hold these titles can extend all the way up to nuclear reactors, as they are primarily steam driven systems.  The U.S. Bureau of Labor classifies employment for plumbers as “very good,” meaning in will range between 13 to 16 percent over the next ten years.

As to the future, up to 10 percent of all homes will be refitted for solar thermal energy system over the next ten years, and possibly more.  This will certainly drive demand the demand for master plumbers, beyond current estimates and to meet that demand, plumbing courses will need to increase.  Excellent salaries, excellent benefits, retirement, and job demand growth make this one of the most desirable career choices.  With so much competition for this lucrative field, plumbing courses are invaluable in giving you the start you need.