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Ironworking is a rugged trade. There is more chance of accidents than in other trades. Iron Workers should not be afraid of great heights and must be able to get around slender beams without hesitation.

Because the jobs are so big, Structural Iron, Ornamental Iron, and Reinforcing Iron Workers operate in crews. An experienced man may work up to foreman of a crew, or he may become superintendent.

The outlook for employment of Iron Workers is good. Much of the big increase in construction expected in the near future is in large buildings and bridges, where such workers will be in demand. The great post-war building boom showed what can happen in a trade when construction moves forward on a large scale. In 1940 there were about 30,000 Iron Workers, but by 1976 there were over six times as many.

A good number of our large high-rise buildings have been built with heavy use of metal – steel and aluminum in particular. This means jobs for Ornamental Iron workers. Reinforced concrete is becoming even more popular for large building, and this means jobs for Rodmen. And, of course, any large building means jobs for Structural Iron Workers.

The road to journeyman rating is through apprenticeship training. Job requirements make it necessary for a journeyman to have the through, rounded training that only a planned program of apprenticeship can give.

Apprentices need to be 18 years old and have a high school education or a satisfactory score in the General Education Development Test (G.E.D.) *By “satisfactory score” is meant the achievement of a minimum score of 35 in each of the individual tests and a minimum score of 45 for the entire group of test.

The apprentice program includes schooling, usually 204 hours a year given at various locations, not during work hours. It includes such subjects as mathematics, blueprint reading, drafting and related instruction on various facets of the Iron Worker trade. The program is of three years’ duration.

Iron Workers belong to the International Association of Bridge, structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers, A.F.L. – C.I.O.

*Official G.E.D. testing centers have been established by authorization of the State department of Education and the General Education development Testing Service of the American Council on Education. Information on the location of these testing centers may be obtained from the local county Department of Education.

THE IRON WORKERS’ apprenticeship training program is administered by local Labor Management Joint Apprenticeship Committees.

There is one such local Joint Apprenticeship Committee presently conducting a program in Wyoming, Western South Dakota, and Western Nebraska.

The Multi-State Committee is responsible for all apprentice and journeymen training within the following accepted area:

For further information write to:

Multi-State Iron Workers
J.A.T.C.
P.O. Box 2313
Casper, Wyoming 82602

All applicants for apprenticeship, must have been a resident of the State of Wyoming or the area covered by these standards, for a period of at least one year.

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