FAQs

By completing application forms either at the nearest Local office or online.

No. You only have to show that you have been earning a living doing carpentry. It is our goal to help you get your ticket in the trade. We offer financial support for schooling. There are also excellent opportunities to start apprenticeships for those who have an interest in the trade.

There is currently no initiation fee to join the Union.

Yes. However, consider that we can best protect the standards and gains in wages we have made as a union by resisting work with employers who are non-union and don’t subscribe to union standards and wages. The Union may also have policies or have passed motions to prohibit members from working for unfair or rat-union employers such as Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLAC).

Members stay informed and have a voice in the affairs of the Union when they participate at meetings. Attendance is encouraged but not required.

You will only need hand tools. The employer supplies all the power tools at the site.

The wage rate depends on the terms of the agreement you are working under and your qualifications. There are different agreements covering different sectors of the industry.

Our agreements call for certain minimums; however, the employer may pay more than the agreed rates.

Our agreements allow for piecework on certain projects in the drywall sector.

Conditions and wage rates in the agreement are negotiated with the employers and the Union negotiating committee. Members have the final say when a vote to ratify the agreement is concluded.

Each Local has a dispatch system that shows who is available for work. If a member is not available or declines the job, the dispatcher simply moves to the next member available.

Yes. Monthly dues are required to maintain your membership in the Union.

Most construction agreements do not have seniority provisions.

United Brotherhood of Carpenters members may transfer their membership from Local to Local anywhere in North America six months after becoming a member of the Brotherhood.

Yes. As demand grows for a particular course, the Union will provide courses taught by professionals.

Apprentices have a schedule for pay increases. Journeypersons can become foremen and superintendents based on experience and ability.

Most labour disputes are concluded without strikes or lockouts. The last lockout was in 1986.

A Union is a family in that members support one another and stand together on common issues.

‘Rat’ unions are employer-dominated organizations established to prevent bonafide unions from representing workers and getting better wages and conditions.

Yes. Through a union workers have a fair say in their wages, benefits, and conditions. Unions set the standard in the industry. Without unions, non-union bosses would continue to drive down wages and conditions, making it more difficult for workers to earn a living wage.

Unions provide opportunity, training, benefits, better wages and working conditions, assistance in WorkSafeBC and employment insurance issues, and representation in the workplace. The Union provides the way for a better life for you and your family.