Overall Reviews at CARPENTERS UNION
4.0
20 years of acquiring skills and knowledge in commercial/residential construction industry was priceless
Moving up the ladder from journeyman carpenter to job foreman to job superintendent to construction manager was quite a journey. I will be forever thankful to the management and bosses who saw my potential and allowed me to contribute to their companies' success.
5.0
GREAT FAMILY ORIENTATED WORKPLACE
Get up at 4am, leave the house by 430. Clock in at 6am 60 miles later, and get started by doing stretch and flex. I learned over the years to show up early and get prepared for the days work ahead of time rather than rush at the last minute and risk making mistakes. It is a good way to start managing your time for the day and get on the same page with your co-worker and discussing your tasks that are being performed. Make sure everybody has their head in the right place. A smooth running day can be the hardest nightmare if a avoidable mistake gets somebody hurt. WE ALL HAVE FAMILIES THAT LOVE US AND DEPEND ON US. And to have the satisfaction of doing a good days work for a fare wage and go home to their loved ones, and share that with them, is the best part of the day.
ProsGood insurance, Good wages, Work with your hands, Great friends
ConsLong commute, Seasonal work, High gas prices
4.0
Commercial construction
From demo work involving hammer drills and sledge hammers to building forms and pouring concrete including some finishing. Hard work from the beginning of the day until the end of the day. Driving aerial lifts and all types of forklifts.
5.0
It is a life style
Been union carpenter for 20 years with much of it specializing in industrial scaffold. Depending on your area work goes in waves with booms of 5 to 10 years then slow work for up to 5 years. The term journeyman is not just a name but a requirement to work steady for those that do not stay with one company or in one facet of the trade.
If you are willing to go where the work is you can make over $100,000 a year chacing outages and big jobs across a region or the entire country. If you are looking for a 9-5 always local job this will tend to not be for you.
There are times that you get laid off and will collect unemployment for weeks. Currently in western Pa/Pittsburgh we are in the early middle of a 10 to 15 yr boom where a fair carpenter will make around 50,000 plus a year plus bennies and if you are willing to put hrs in some projects will get you well above 100,000 a year.
Training is second to none in the union and benifits are great. Layoffs can be bad but personally I like to get a few weeks of unemployment a year to regroup and unwind with family after jobs on the road or 50 plus hr a week local jobs. 2019 western Pa is in great need of qualified experienced carpenters. Call KML region carpenters
ProsGreat pay and benifits. Can provide great life for you and family
ConsNot easy work and can be dirty. Strong back and mind required as well as strong work ethic
4.0
I enjoyed carpentry,you could always see the project progress, enjoyed the challenge of beating the scheldule.
As a carpenter you would perform a variety of jobs from rebar templates to driving pile coming out of the ground, to hanging pictures and bathroom partitions at the end. I learned to manage and estimate peoples time and material, also the foresight to know what we will need six months from now. In construction you learn to deal with all sorts of people, from educated to just out of jail. You will soon learn to use people assets to accomplish the task at hand. The weather and physical/mental requirements were most challenging. There always was a sense of pride pointing at something you built 25 years ago that is just inspiring today as it was then.
ProsGood Benifits, Ability to go by that building and say I built that from the bottom to the top, healthcare
Consas soon as you started a job you were pulling yourself out of another job, weather and physical demands
3.0
Great job when there is work
Lay out your tools out for the day and be safe, proffessional, and productive. Management and safety is great. Co-workers are all professional. The hardest part of the job is when you are laid off because between 2004-2013, there is a waitng list of 100+ people for employment and unless you know someone or know someone who knows someone, it will be difficult to get the jobs that last longer.
Prosgreat benefits, great pay, unemployment options, trainning
Consonce they lay you off, unless you know someone, it's difficult to get work
5.0
A great job to further your skills and apply inner knowledge.
I have learned numerous skills and work ethics while working at this company. My co workers were very inviting and open to help.
3.0
Overall it was ok.
It was a good job but with all of the benefits and union dues it took out. It left me with under 350 dallors a week. I would have to drive over a hour to work everyday. It was not worth me staying at that job. When I would have to put almost half my paycheck into my gas a week.
ProsGood benifites
ConsTo much money to travel
4.0
Co-workers are easy to get along with
Everyone here is easy to get along with. Most members are friendly and easy to assist. Some can get difficult to talk to. There is a lot of down time.
5.0
Management
This work environment from interview to the actual work has been pleasant Very relaxed environment , great mangers and co workers .. Everyone welcomed me with open arms and was very easy to get along with . The culture and work environment was awesome ! Great benefits , great hours . This was a refreshing experience after being in a position that was all about metrics and not at all concerned with their employees.
5.0
Set up, prep, organize tasks, build, clean up, meet all goals.
I sign in at every job site. I do my walk around and see what I will need to get done for the day and how many days it will take me to finish the whole job. I then organize and set my goals for the day, I then set up all of my tools and PPE up that I will need for the day and where I will need them. I like to accomplish my goals and then some of the goals set for the next day so I am ahead of my work. I then make sure throughout the day my workplace is kept clean of all garbage and hazardous obstructions into the end of the day. I learned how to install doorways, framing walls, insulation and polly, and drywall application for commercial and residential. Also how to drive a cherry picker and a scissor lift as well as power tools that I had not already known how to use in everyday application. The management was usually handled well and organized. When a problem or something that had put our trade behind somehow, there was always something to get accomplished. We got paid by the hour or by piece work with what we did. I am very great at multi-tasking, fast paced enviroments, and working well with others and alone. I also retain information very well and a fast learner.
5.0
Good guys, everyone helps one another
I enjoy working with these guys, everyone works as a team to get the job done. I learned many little tricks from the old timers,
ProsWork well with other Scaffolders
ConsNot enough work in the city
