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Notes -
Electricians have to pass trigonometry. Plumbers must be able to contort themseves into rather small, awkward spaces, which is more weight and age than IQ limited. Poster Plumber on DSL said there’s a standardized test to become an apprentice plumber in CA.
In CA, probably. In Texas if you’re a citizen you just find someone willing to hire you for a few years and then take the journeyman’s exam.
Electricians additionally need to have a record of a passing grade in algebra 2 from high school, or college algebra from community college, to be accepted for an apprenticeship. They also have to take a math for electricians class as part of it, but I don’t know what exactly is entailed(quite possibly trig).
In both cases the apprenticeship length is four years except classes and overtime can cut down on it somehow. The formulae are complicated but generally an associate’s degree cuts a year off. There’s a journeyman’s test afterwards. After a few more years you can get a master’s license to own your own company but most don’t bother.
For HVAC you get your EPA license(you can self study and just pay for a written test through HVAC suppliers) then register with the state and find someone to hire you. There’s a test to become a contractor after four years but most techs don’t bother. HVAC tends to have a much stronger commercial/residential distinction than the other two trades because it’s so easy to get into; most HVAC guys start out with residential(and usually residential installs, which is shittier work) and after some experience the smarter ones tend to switch to commercial.
Welders aren’t regulated by the state. Basically all welders go to school and get some kind of certificate, but you don’t technically need one.
In all three cases union apprenticeships have their own process which is different from the standard one but has an identical end result in the eyes of the government- the union apprenticeship is generally seen as higher quality, and union trained tradesmen tend to be paid more even if they aren’t part of the union. Trades unions themselves are basically guilds; tradesmen work for, and are paid by, the union itself and technically leased out to union shops in a temp agency like arrangement. In practice in DFW union members only switch companies when they want to.
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