Hi,

I am considering moving out to the states (not sure which state yet) sometime within the next couple of years. I am just wondering what i would have to do to be able to work here. I was apprentice trained for 5 years and have taken courses such as inspection and testing, fire alarms, e.m. lighting. I also hold a technicians certificate along with 15yrs experiance. i am employed at present as a foreman on contracts up to the value of $450,000 approx (commercial work).
Are there any conversion courses or exams i need to take to be able to trade?

Also what kind of pay is the average. i realise that different states urban/rural reflect upon this.

Any feedback would be a great help.

CHEERS

MARTIN J

First of all, you're likely to get a warmer reception in our neighbor to the north- Canada. There you would have the advantage of still being part of the "family," as well as an opportunity to learn a code, and practices, quite similar to ours.

The major union here, for electricians, is the IBEW, or "Int'l Brotherhood of Electrical Workers." There is a very good chance that they have some sort of arrangement with your trade union- might as well ask!

Our job certifications are not national; the 'rules' for getting your Journeymans' Card vary from place to place. Chances are, simply providing documentation as to your work experience will get you into the test.

Mike Holt ( www.mikeholt.com ) has a selection of superb books that outline our practices, and a Masters' test that is far more thorough than any you'll ever really have to take. For someone in your position, his series "Understanding the NEC" is a good place to start.

Thanks for the reply.

Back over here the union thing is virtually non existant, is it really a big issue over there???

We keep Union / Non Union discussions out of the forum here on the forum, schuby19.
There's too much potential for "flame wars".
(Just part of the format that's been successful for us here on ECN)
There are many Union and many Non-Union shops here in the States. Each has its pros and its cons. As far as that part of the discussion is concerned, I'm afraid we'll have to leave it at that.

With a good basis in theory, you should be able to do fine here. Although mechanically, we do things MUCH differently here than in the UK, the electrons, for some reason, seem to act the same on both sides of the pond

Without getting into the good/bad thing there are lots of right to work states (south and west) where you can start at whatever level you can perform at. You won't make as much money as an hourly employee (compared to the rigid union places) but guys do well if they produce and owning a business is as good as your business skill will allow.

It is also warmer here

Right now things are slow or fixin' to get slow in residential, depending on your local "sold and unbuilt" and the default rates on those contracts. Commercial is still going at a pretty good clip. Commercial does demand a bigger skill set but you might be able to find a guy who will let you learn on the job if you pick up things fast and give him a good day for the dollars.

Hi Martin,

I don't think you'll find any simple "conversion" courses as such. Although the electrons follow the same laws of physics everywhere, American practice has much which is different from the way things are done in the U.K. For example:

* Different cable sizes, derating factors, and so on.

* Different standard circuit arrangements and diversity rules.

* A multitude of supply systems for different purposes: 120/240V 3-wire, 120/208 wye, 277/480 wye, 240 delta, plus a few other "oddball" systems, all in contrast to the U.K. where it's pretty much either 240V single-phase or 240/415V 3-phase.

* Very different grounding (earthing) arrangements in some circumstances, even though the basic service generally resembles our PME/TN-C-S to some extent.

That's just a few things to start thinking about. As I'm sure everyone else will also tell you, the rules for licensing also vary considerably from one state to another.

Take a code course, and be ready to learn something new. I work with a British Fire Alarm contractor who used to be an electrician in the UK about 10 years ago; he has acclimated quite well.

Paul, don't make this too hard

Buy a Time/Life book or one of the other do it yourself basic electrical book to get your head going the right way, then keep the NEC handbook handy, look at the pictures and read the commetaries when you have time on your hands. The handbook is probnably the best NEC primer. Next would be Soares to firm up your grounding/bonding skills.

thanks so far for the advice guys

Hi schuby19,

You might want to consider moving to a industrial part of the US. Or close to a military base. I did my apprenticeship in Ga, and always stayed busy. All kinds of good commercial work on post and plenty of shutdowns at textile and fiberglass plants etc.. during the lean months.

Good luck!
Luke

Not to forget: Check with the US Embassy!

The UK will not issue me a work visa unless I have secured employment while outside the UK. I believe we return the favor.... you'ld have to get hired first ... leave the US... apply for visa ... then return to work.

I don't think you'ld have this problem if you went to Canada.

As someone who has done what you are thinking I can pass on my experience.

I served a 4 year apprenticeship, with 5 years college parallel. I was 5 years out of my apprenticeship when I left the UK. I saved money and got a tourist visa which allowed me to stay 6 months. When I got here I started looking for jobs and finally got my current job. Before I got it though, I had to go through immigration to change my visa. Do not over stay your welcome like I did, I got an official certificate from the US Immigration, but was told I had to go to the US Embassy in London to change my status. When I got there they refused my visa saying I had been working. Luckily I had bank statements showing I had money transferred over by my parents from my UK account. My company was my sponsor and I got a 3 year working visa. We had to prove there was no-one in the area to do my job, which my boss had interviewed and advertised the position. My qualifications translated over here to 3 years of a degree and then 3 years work experience amounted to 1 year of a degree. After 2 years of working I applied for my Green Card. The company had to advertise my Job again and go through the same procedure of showing nobody in the area could do my job. I am still on my Green Card and have worked here for 10 years. The pay scale cannot be compared to the UK easily as it does differ greatly from area to area.

Good Luck on your adventure.

I know this is a sensitive issue, but feel someone should explain, without rancour, that Trades Unions in the UK cannot be equated in any way with the 'union' in the US. UK Unions do no more than negotiate terms of employment for their members, [ ie. the employees ], with the management or owners' of companies, on subjects such as pay, pensions, redundancy situations, manning, retraining, local or national disputes, safety etc.; and they also are committed to educational courses and sponsorships to universities. It is illegal for them to take any action [ on strikes or stoppages ] without secret balloting of their members and gaining a majority mandate for specific actions.

It is also illegal to discriminate between union-members and non-members in any organisation, which is why schuby19 questioned whether it was a 'big issue' in the US .

UK unions do not organise labor; if you want a job, you find it yourself. The UK unions were at one time, historically, closely allied with the Labour Party, [ ie. Tony Blair's party ]. This is also less of an issue now, some unions support Liberals others the Conservatives, with donations, which by the way are open and tranparent to all. All part of how the Brits fund their democratic parties- nothing sinister. I wouldn't say the UK unions are dead- just more sensible and realistic as to the economic realities of the global economy!

Alan

Thanks for the info, Alan!

I did not mean to get anyone upset by referring to trade unions. It was simply my experience as a union member (once) was quite an education for me; my little local had all sorts of agreements with trade unions in every corner of the world.

Had someone appeared at Union Hall with papers from their "allied" association back in Mongolia (or wherever), chances are the local would find some way to accomodate them as a "guest" member. This is somewhat different from the welcome an aspiring new apprentice recieves, BTW.

Politics aside, those who 'know the secret handshake' have a resource available to them that 'outsiders' do not.

One of the biggest hurdles to employment (for a non-citizen) can be the need to find a job before they come across the pond. I may be mistaken, but I believe a trade union is legally able to 'sponsor' someone, just as an employer can.

Not that I'm a shill for any union; I am not a union contractor ... and I bet I could find a way to put a Brit to work ... assuming he had the proper visa!

And that visa process can be another load of redtape.

I had to wait ages while the Neb. Dept. of Labor went through all the formalities, checking that local advertising had failed to secure suitable applicants, etc. Then another wait that went to the INS in Washington and then on to the U.S. Embassy in London.

My application was to go straight for permanent residency (the "Green Card") though, so an initial work visa might be simpler. Then again, my application was about 11 years ago, so it may all be different by now anyway.