Linemen are union and go through a multi-year training/apprenticeship program before they are certified to work on the grid. To become a lineman apprentice, you must be at least 18 years of age, have a high school diploma or GED certificate, and submit an application to a local Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee (JATC). Some JATCs have additional requirements: a grade of C or better in algebra and a commercial driver’s license.
Once someone applies to an apprenticeship program, they have an interview and safety orientation before being paired with power company linemen and starting on-the-job training and classroom instruction. An apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading).
Apprenticeship also enables practitioners to gain a license to practice in a regulated profession. Most of their training is done while working for an employer who helps the apprentices learn their trade or profession, in exchange for their continued labor for an agreed period after they have achieved measurable competencies. Apprenticeships typically last 3 to 7 years. People who successfully complete an apprenticeship reach the “journeyman” or professional certification level of competence.