IBEW trains, represents electrical workers

Michael S. Mills is training director for the electrical joint apprenticeship and training committee, a joint effort of IBEW Local Union 453 and the Springfield division of the National Electrical Contractors Association.

In 1891, 10 men met above Stolley's Dance Hall in St. Louis in hopes of bringing a better life to those in the electrical trade.

At that time, apprenticeship training was unheard of and safety consisted of trial and error and hoping for the best.

Those 10 men later became the founders of the National Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which became the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in 1899, when jurisdiction extended to include Canada.

The IBEW has lasted through two world wars, the Great Depression, internal disputes and hostile government leaders to become the oldest and largest electrical union in the world today. The IBEW represents workers' rights in all areas of the electrical industry. IBEW Local 453 was chartered in Springfield in August 1929, and has grown to the point that it represents workers at Southwest Missouri State University, KOLR-10, KDEB-27, Missouri Neon Company, Modern Neon and Plastic Company, Payne Sign, 15 electrical construction contractors and the maintenance group at Fort Leonard Wood.

IBEW Local 453 has always had one of the finest apprenticeship programs, but in 1996 it raised the bar and built a nearly half-million dollar school for its electrical apprentices and journeymen update classes. In addition to the journeymen receiving ongoing education, there are 45 apprentices at the training center.

The school teaches the National Electrical Code, electrical theory, fiber optics, programmable controllers and many other hands-on and computer simulated projects.

An apprentice attends school two nights a week for five years, in addition to receiving 8,000 hours of on-the-job training before being tested for their journeymen's card.

The mission of Local 453 is to provide the highly skilled work force necessary to meet customers' needs and to ensure job satisfaction for the electrical workers.

IBEW Local 453 does just that by providing the very best apprenticeship program available.

Jack Bauer, business manager of Local 453, and the rest of the officers of the local work very closely with the National Electrical Contractors Association to see that labor and management work together to provide the licensed journeymen and wiremen for the future in Springfield and the surrounding area.

This team of labor and management IBEW and NECA works together on many fronts to help the electrical industry be the best it can be in the 21st century. With a no-strike, no-lockout clause in its contract, it has been able to work out a higher standard of living for the members of Local 453 and their families. This same team also has worked together on many area charities, supplying labor and material to many projects, including Skateport, The Kitchen, Habitat for Humanity and Little League ballpark lighting.