Industrial News

“Earl Oliver was both a realist and a visionary,” said current Council President Martin C. Umlauf. “As the leader of our regional council he understood our strength depended on expanding the number of skilled carpenters that could serve Chicago’s development community. He also believed that given access to training, Chicagoans would flock to the center, building skills and better lives.”

Earl Oliver created the vision of a Chicago apprenticeship center in the mid-1990s, nearly a decade after the Washburne Trade School had closed, drastically decreasing the presence of union training programs in Chicago.

Boldly leading the way for other unions, in 1996 Oliver announced that the carpenters, working together with labor management, would establish a training center at the corner of Union and Cermak to ensure that urban minority residents had access to construction trade training and that Chicago, with its robust construction market, had a diverse and well-trained cadre of carpenters.

Joining Umlauf at the dedication at 2141 S. Union Avenue were Cook County Board President, John Stroger; Esther Lopez, Deputy Chief of Staff, Department of Labor and Professional Regulations, Office of the Governor; 25th Ward Alderman Daniel Solis; Council First Vice President Jeffrey Isaacson; and Regional Council Second Vice President Frank Libby.

“Our city has a long, proud tradition of building and re-building and there will always be a need for highly skilled carpenters,” said Solis. “The expanded Oliver Center brings hope to young people who want to change their lives and increase their earning power, not just in the 25th Ward, but in neighborhoods throughout the City of Chicago.”

When the center opened in 1998, it was an immediate success. Within a year, the center was graduating more than 250 people from its pre-apprenticeship programs, and demand exceeded capacity. Today, with the opening of the 38,000 square-foot addition, the Council doubled the number apprentices that can be trained each year.

“Today’s expansion of the center, which will now graduate 500 pre-apprentices each year, is a testament to Earl’s vision, tenacity and sense of fairness and justice,” said Cook County Board President John Stroger. “Earl may be gone, but his legacy will help train thousands of area residents for well paying jobs and provide Cook County contractors with the most skilled carpenters available.”

At 76,000 square feet, the expanded training center will provide state-of-the-art training to 500 pre-apprentices annually as well as continuing training for apprentice and journeymen carpenters. Over 100 apprentices per week are expected to attend daytime weekday classes, and just as many experienced carpenters are anticipated weekly for evening and weekend continuing education.

Members of the Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters earn steady and rewarding wages at all levels. Apprentices are paid while they receive an education, and earn between 40 and 80 percent of the journeymen rate, depending on their year in the program.

Journeymen wages are $35.32 per hour for commercial and residential carpentry. This means even first-year apprentices earn wages of $14.13 per hour. Pre-apprentices receive benefits that include a stipend for five weeks of their training and money towards the purchase of tools and union dues upon the completion of training.

Applicants for the Council’s pre-apprenticeship program must be at least 17 years old, reside in the 10-county Chicago area (Cook, DuPage, Grundy, Iroquois, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, McHenry or Will counties), have successfully completed two years of required high school (a high school diploma or GED is preferred), have an original Social Security Card and be physically fit to work as a carpenter. Applicants must also pass an aptitude test. For more information, call the Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters at 847-640-7373.

Media usable photographs of the dedication can be viewed at the union’s web site at http://www.carpentersunion.org/Members.htm by scrolling down to “Photos.” Contact Gene Tenner to request 600 dpi photographs via email.

The Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters represents over 47,000 men and women working throughout 81 counties in Northern Illinois, Southeast Wisconsin, and Eastern Iowa. It is the largest Regional Council of Carpenters in the United States.

Members of the Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters include carpenters with these specialties: General Carpenter and Joiner, Residential Carpentry, Exhibit and Display Installer, Interior Systems Carpenter, Lather, Cabinetmaker and Millworker, Flooring Installer, Pile Driver, Millwright, Insulation Installer, Roofing and Siding Installer.

Since 1881 The Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters has been a positive force in building communities and improving the lives of its skilled members and their families.