A JATC is a Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee: the group that runs the union electrical apprenticeship in an area. "Joint" means two parties run it together: the local union of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) and the local chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), whose member contractors employ the apprentices. If you want to become a union electrician, the JATC is where you apply. You don't apply to the union hall or to a contractor.
This guide explains what a JATC is, how it fits with the IBEW, NECA and the electrical training ALLIANCE, and what applying involves, step by step. Everything below comes from those organizations' own pages, from federal apprenticeship rules, and from individual JATCs' sites, as published when we checked in October 2026. Each JATC sets its own rules, so treat the local examples as examples and confirm the details with the JATC you apply to.
What "joint" means
Federal apprenticeship rules allow a program to be run by a committee, and define a joint committee as one "composed of an equal number of representatives of the employer(s) and of the employees represented by a bona fide collective bargaining agent(s)" (29 CFR 29.2). In the electrical trade, the employers' side is NECA and the employees' side is the IBEW.
The Local 26 JATC, which covers the Washington, D.C. area, shows what that looks like in practice. Its committee is made up of four representatives from IBEW Local 26 and four from the Washington DC Chapter of NECA. The committee "sets the standard for training and employs staff to conduct the training." When someone is accepted, they sign an agreement and are placed with a signatory contractor of Local 26, that is, a contractor that has signed an agreement with the union.
Behind the local committees is the electrical training ALLIANCE, previously called the NJATC, created more than 70 years ago as a joint training program between NECA and the IBEW. It developed uniform standards that are used nationwide to select and train apprentices, describes itself as "the only curriculum endorsed by" the IBEW and NECA, and says it has trained more than 350,000 apprentices to journeyman status "through local affiliate programs." Houston's and Louisville's JATCs both say their curriculum is written by the electrical training ALLIANCE, and Houston says most of its instructors are IBEW and NECA members who work in the field.
Is a JATC the same as the IBEW?
No. They are connected, but they are different organizations with different jobs:
| Organization | What it is | Your contact with it |
|---|---|---|
| IBEW local union | The electrical workers' union in an area | One of the two parties that run your JATC |
| NECA chapter | The electrical contractors' association in that area | The other party; its member contractors employ apprentices |
| JATC | The joint committee of the two that runs the apprenticeship | You apply to it, train with it and are placed through it |
| electrical training ALLIANCE | The IBEW and NECA's national training organization | Writes the curriculum; its locator lists training centers |
| Signatory contractor | A company that has signed an agreement with the IBEW local | Employs you and pays you while you train |
The union points newcomers to the JATC as well. IBEW Local 401's site, for example, tells them to "apply to a local Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (JATC) program," and describes these programs as part of the electrical training ALLIANCE, "a partnership between IBEW and NECA."
When and how apprentices join the union varies by local. The Paducah Electrical JATC in Kentucky says apprentices are eligible for union membership "immediately once accepted into the program," with the full benefit package after 2,000 hours of on-the-job training and the first year of school. Ask your JATC how membership, dues and benefits work in its program.
The names vary
Not every JATC calls itself one. The electrical training ALLIANCE itself talks about local JATCs and area-wide programs (AJATCs). Some examples of how programs present themselves:
- Chicago: IBEW Local 134's apprenticeship registers applicants at its school in Alsip, the IBEW-NECA Technical Institute.
- Louisville: interviews take place before a panel from IBEW Local 369, the NECA-IBEW Electrical Training Center and NECA.
- New York City: IBEW Local 3's apprentice applications are handled with the Joint Industry Board of the Electrical Industry.
- The Northwest: outside line work is trained by the Northwest Line Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee.
If you can't find your area's program by name, search for your local IBEW union number together with "JATC" or "apprenticeship," or use the electrical training ALLIANCE's training center locator. The ALLIANCE says there is at least one training center in each state.
What a JATC trains
The electrical training ALLIANCE describes four kinds of electrical work, each with its own apprenticeship programs (apprenticeship training):
- Inside wiremen install power, lighting, controls and other equipment in commercial and industrial buildings.
- Outside linemen install the distribution and transmission lines that move power from the plant to homes and businesses.
- VDV installer technicians install telephone, computer network, video, security and access control systems and other low-voltage systems.
- Residential wiremen install the electrical systems in single-family and multi-family homes.
One JATC may run several programs. The Local 26 JATC lists an Inside Wireman 'A' apprenticeship, a residential training program, a technology services apprenticeship and a communication installer program. Each has its own application.
Outside line work has its own programs. The ALLIANCE's locator lists inside and outside locations separately, and an outside line JATC can cover a wide region: apprentices in the Northwest Line JATC are represented by four IBEW outside locals (77, 125, 483 and 659). If you want to be a lineman, look for a line JATC rather than your city's inside program.
How applying works
The electrical training ALLIANCE lists these requirements as typical for an IBEW/NECA JATC: minimum age 18, a high school education, one year of high school algebra, a qualifying score on an aptitude test, and being drug free. Each JATC "may have additional requirements specific to the geographical area," and applications "must be made to your local JATC or AJATC." Some programs also require drug testing, a physical, a background check or a valid driver's license.
1. Find out when your JATC takes applications
Timing is the first thing to check, because it differs a lot from one program to the next:
- Year-round. Houston's JATC says its committee "interviews and accepts apprentices year-round on a monthly basis based on the needs of the Industry." Southwest Washington's JATC holds interviews year-round.
- Weekly registration hours. Chicago's program takes registrations in person during posted hours (every Wednesday morning when we checked).
- A short window. When we checked in October 2026, IBEW Local 3 in New York City was accepting letters requesting applications from Monday, October 19 until October 30 "or until 2,000 letters are received, which typically happens by the first day." Letters had to go by registered mail.
If your JATC uses a window, find out the dates well ahead. Our list of electrical apprenticeships accepting applications now tracks the ones we've confirmed.
2. Apply and pay the fee
How you apply, and what it costs, depends on the program:
| JATC | How you apply | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| New Mexico | Online only; paper applications aren't accepted | $25 |
| Southwest Washington | Mail in an application request form, or pick up an application at the office | $50 for inside wireman and low voltage; none for residential |
| Puget Sound | Online; you have 60 days to finish the application and send documents | $75 |
| Chicago (IBEW Local 134) | In person, twice: pick up the application, then return it on a later visit | $50, plus a $500 processing fee and a one-time administrative fee if selected |
The electrical training ALLIANCE lists official high school transcripts among the typical requirements. Puget Sound, for example, counts a transcript as official only if it arrives in a sealed envelope from the school or comes directly from a transcript service. Order yours early, and include proof of the algebra requirement.
3. Take the aptitude test
If you meet the basic requirements, you are scheduled for an aptitude test, if the program uses one. What the test covers, how it's scored and which programs use which test are in our guide to the electrical apprenticeship aptitude test.
4. Interview with the committee
With a qualifying score, you interview with a committee representing both NECA and the IBEW. Louisville's JATC describes a ten-to-fifteen-minute interview with four or five questions, and invites applicants to bring anything they'd like the panel to consider, "cover letter, resume, letters of recommendation, photos of your projects." Not every applicant is offered an interview there.
5. Wait on the ranked list
After the interview you get an overall ranking and go on an eligibility list. Apprentices are taken from the list in ranking order as positions open. How long you stay on it varies: the electrical training ALLIANCE describes two years, while Louisville's and New Mexico's JATCs keep applicants on their lists for one year. If you aren't selected in that time, you reapply.
6. Get placed with a contractor
Once you're selected, the JATC finds your employer. Houston explains that when its sponsoring contractors need apprentices they contact the JATC, which then places apprentices with them. In Chicago, apprentices are assigned to one of the program's union contractors after completing the first-year program.
How long it takes, and how competitive it is
Louisville's JATC says the process from application through test and interview takes two to three months, before you go on the ranked list. Houston's says there are usually about 10 applicants for every available position: some people are accepted on their first application, some apply several times, and "some try repeatedly and never make it." Openings change from year to year.
If you have experience or served in the military
Experience can change the requirements:
- The electrical training ALLIANCE says minimum requirements "can be waived" for applicants who have worked in electrical construction and meet specific work-hour requirements, with documentation.
- Houston's JATC exempts applicants who can document 4,000 hours of electrical construction experience from the algebra and aptitude test requirements.
- New Mexico's JATC says honorably discharged veterans, and applicants with 2,000 or more hours of on-the-job electrical experience, may be exempt from the aptitude test.
- Louisville's JATC evaluates documented work experience or trade school education and may award credit toward the apprenticeship.
For people leaving the military, the Veterans Electrical Entry Program (VEEP) is a free pre-apprenticeship that runs over several weeks. VEEP says participants who complete it receive automatic entry into the apprenticeship, "at the training center of their choosing." Houston's JATC says its program is recognized by the VA and that many of its students use their veterans' benefits.
Do you need a job or a sponsor first?
Chicago's program answers this directly: you don't need a sponsor, because selection considers the aptitude test and its Personal Experience Form. At the JATCs we checked, the committee places you with a contractor after you're selected. Open-shop programs work differently; our union vs open-shop apprenticeships guide compares the two routes, including who pays for school and how wages progress.
What it costs
Beyond application fees, costs vary. Louisville's JATC says there is currently no tuition and books are covered as long as certain requirements are met, and that it spends $13,000 to $15,000 a year to train each apprentice. Apprentices still buy their own school supplies, computer, work clothes, boots and tools. Chicago's program covers the cost of education with an industry scholarship loan that apprentices pay off by working for signatory contractors.
Questions to ask a JATC
- When do you take applications, and how will I know when the next window opens?
- What do I need to send, and does my transcript need to come directly from the school?
- Do you use an aptitude test, what score qualifies, and how soon can I retake it?
- How long does a ranking stay on your list?
- Which programs do you run (inside, residential, telecommunications), and can I apply to more than one?
- Do you give credit for experience, military service or trade school?
- When do apprentices join the union, and what are the dues and benefits?
- What does the program cost me, and do I owe anything if I leave?
Find a JATC near you
Our union electrical apprenticeship listings are organized by state, and each one links to the program's own application page. Programs mentioned in this guide include the Chicago (IBEW Local 134), Houston, Louisville, New Mexico, Southwest Washington, Puget Sound, Local 26 (Washington, D.C. area) and IBEW Local 3 (New York City) programs.
For the whole path into the trade, see how to become an electrician. If you're changing careers, see our guide to electrical apprenticeships for career changers.