How To Apply

To Be Eligible to Apply:

  • Applicant must be at least 18 years of age.
  • Applicant must have a high school diploma or GED
  • Applicant must have a photo I.D and a social security card or I-9 documents.
  • Applicant must have reliable transportation to and from jobsites.
  • All Applicants must first take an Entrance Examination at Gateway Community College or another local Community College.
  • Must be able to pass a 10 year background check.

Every local Community College uses the ASSET, COMPASS, or ACCUPLACER exams for reading and math. The chart below shows which tests are required for each type of exam. In addition, you will be required to take a Feet and Inch test. At Gateway Community College, you will take this when you take the other tests. For all others, you will need to come into the Arizona Pipe Trades Apprenticeship to take the Feet and Inch test. Check with your local Community College to find out which exam type they use.

Math Test Portion

Exam Type Test Required Acceptable Point Range
Compass Pre-Algebra 50-100
Asset Num. Skills 39-55
Accuplacer Arithmetic 60-119

 
Reading Test Portion

Exam Type Test Required
Compass Reading Skills
Asset Reading Skills
Accuplacer Reading Skills


You can only take the test twice the first year and once every year thereafter.

If you are taking this exam at Gateway Community College you may acquire this form by clicking on the link below and printing the referral form or by picking one up at either of the following locations:

ENTRANCE EXAMINATION REFERRAL FORM

Gateway Community College
108 N. 40th Street, Bldg. SO1132
Phoenix, AZ 85034
(40th Street & Washington)
Print a map here		 Arizona Pipe Trades
2950 W. Thomas Road
Phoenix, AZ 85017
Print a map here

 

Once you have taken the test at Gateway Community College, the testing center sends this referral form back to us. If you tested at another local Community College you will need to mail the test results to the Arizona Pipe Trades Apprenticeship (address above). Applicants with acceptable scores will be placed on the list with the highest score placing first on the list. According to your waiting list number, you will be notified when to come in and fill out your application for work.

As needed, applicants from the applicant waiting list will be dispatched to contractors' signatory with U.A. Local 469. When an applicant is called off the list to start work, they must bring in the following documents:

Social Security card or I-9 documents and a picture I.D. Veteran's should bring in a copy of the form DD-214.
Applicants will be referred for a drug test in order to be dispatched to work. If the applicant does not show up for the drug test on the day specified or does not pass the drug test, they will be removed from the list and cannot reapply for one year from that date.

Once the Applicant is dispatched to work, he/she will be required to meet the following minimum requirements in order to be notified of eligibility for placement on the Apprenticeship waiting list.

  • The applicant must have performed a minimum of 500 hours on-the-job training under the jurisdiction of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee's Restricted Pool without quitting, being fired, and/or receiving a not-eligible-for-rehire
    termination. Anything other than a layoff or reduction in force would be considered a bad termination.
  • When the applicant brings in proof of 500 hours worked, a contractor evaluation must be submitted to the J.A.C.

Applicants meeting the above minimum requirements will be assigned a number ranking, and placed on the apprenticeship waiting list. The number ranking will be comprised of the contractor evaluation, scores from the trade related feet and inch test, and the Asset or Compass or Accuplacer reading and math tests. Applicants will be placed on the list according to ranking. Selection into the apprenticeship program is reviewed several times per year by the Joint Apprenticeship Committee. Once accepted, you will start attending classes at the Training Center and work towards your completion of the five year apprenticeship program.

Applicants Waiting List Selection Process

Selection into the Apprenticeship will start with the highest ranking on the apprenticeship waiting list and will work down accordingly *(see exception below). All applicants will be kept on the Apprenticeship waiting list for a period of two years from the time of application and will be included in all subsequent selection procedures for that period. If the applicant has not been indentured into the apprenticeship program at the end of two years, he or she must renew the application at the Apprenticeship Office to remain eligible for selection. If the apprenticeship office is unable to contact eligible applicant within a 24-hour time frame, the applicant's name will be bypassed and the next eligible applicant will be notified. If unable to contact eligible applicant a second time the applicant's name will be placed at the bottom of the list. If an applicant turns down an apprenticeship opportunity, his/her name will be placed at the bottom of the list. The second time an apprenticeship opportunity is refused; the applicant will be removed from the list. It is the applicant's responsibility to keep the Apprenticeship Office informed of any changes in address and/or phone number. If an applicant cannot be located by address and/or phone, or if the applicant indicates he or she is no longer interested in the program, the applicant's name will be removed from the Apprenticeship waiting list and the applicant's application placed in the inactive file. Turning down an apprenticeship opportunity could also be considered as not being interested in the program. *Exception: Applicants who apply for the pipefitter-refrigeration trade will be dispatched to a refrigeration call before applicants who apply for the plumber or steamfitter trades.