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Why Go Union?

Belonging to a union means you have an entire team of experts supporting you, fighting for you, and elevating you in the workplace. Unions do far more than provide manpower for projects. They ensure workers are properly trained for the job before them, are afforded a safe work environment, are respected for their workplace rights, and are paid a fair day’s wage and benefits for the quality work performed. Your union leaders are prepared to literally go to battle for you at a moment’s notice with a contractor or all the way up to the National Labor Relations Board. In addition to all of this, union membership promotes solidarity and camaraderie among a group of like-minded trades people and their families.

Some non-union contractors have been in business, left unchecked, for years, cheating their employees of fair wages and benefits, cheating the public with less than qualified workers performing crucial construction work and, many times, cheating the government of employment taxes when undocumented workers are hired. Becoming a union member means you gain better working conditions, better pay, benefits and a voice in your workplace.

Eligibility

Your employer pays the cost of this coverage. It is NOT a deduction from your hourly wage, but a contribution over and above your hourly wage. There are no premium payments made by you or any of your eligible dependents for this coverage while you meet the eligibility requirements. If you fail to meet these requirements, you will be allowed to pay to continue your coverage. It’s possible that you will not be eligible for benefits three months from the date that you begin working.

Availability of benefits is based on employment. You become initially eligible on the first day of the benefit month corresponding to the eligibility month in which you first accumulate at least 140 hours of worked and reported or 200 hours worked and reported in two consecutive months. If the Fund Office receives contributions for 140 hours worked during one month, you will be eligible for benefits for one month, but three months ahead. For example, if 140 hours are reported for June, you will be eligible for benefits in September.

Available Benefits

Prior to the start of your eligibility, you will be sent a notification from the Fund Office as well as more detailed information regarding the benefits summarized below. These benefits are available for you and your family when medically necessary and not the result of a work-related accident.

Medical Coverage

After you have met the yearly deductible of $350 per person or $1050 per family, the FMCP will pay 85% of the plan allowance for: 

 • doctor visits

 • preventive services and wellness benefits for children (Prevented Services 100% See Attached for more details)

 • annual pap smear

 • annual mammogram for women aged 35 or over

 • annual physical exam for members and their spouses

 • x-rays

 • diagnostic laboratory and pathology tests

 • surgeons' fees in or out of the hospital

 • emergency medical care expenses

 • anesthesiologists' charges

 • equipment such as splints, braces and crutches, chiropractic care and physical therapy

 • inpatient and outpatient

 • mental health benefits including alcohol/substance abuse with prior approval

Hospitalization

A $100 deductible applies to each occurrence of hospital emergency room treatment, whether the treatment is
for an accident or illness, and whether the hospital is a PPO or non-PPO hospital.
This includes outpatient hospital stays as well.

Prescription Drug Program

When you use your card at a participating pharmacy, you pay 0% for generic drugs, 20% for preferred drugs and 30% ($40 minimum) for non-preferred for a 30-day supply ($80 for 90-day supply). Most grocery store pharmacies and drug store pharmacies are participating pharmacies. Wal-mart and Sam's Club are NOT in your network. The annual out-of-pocket limit is $1000/person or $2000/family.

Dental Plan

Preventive Care (80%)

  • Routine oral examination and prophylaxis (scaling and cleaning of teeth, including periodontal maintenance
    prophylaxis), up to two per calendar year.

  • Emergency palliative treatment.

  • Dental x-rays, including full mouth x-rays (once in a period of 60 consecutive months), supplementary
    Bite-wing x-rays (one per calendar year), and such other dental x-rays as are required in connection with the
    Diagnosis of a specific condition requires treatment.

  • For dependent children under age 19 (only):

    • Topical application of fluoride once per calendar year.

    • Space maintainers that replace prematurely lost teeth.

    • Sealants on permanent molars and bicuspids, no more than once every five years.

Basic Restorative Care (80%)

  • Extractions.

  • Oral surgery.

  • Amalgam, silicate, acrylic, synthetic porcelain, and composite filling restorations to restore diseased or accidentally broken teeth.

  • General anesthetics when medically necessary and administered in connection with oral surgery.

  • Treatment of periodontal and other diseases of the gums and tissues of the mouth.

  • Endodontic treatment, including root canal therapy.

  • Injection of antibiotic drugs by the attending dentist.

  • Repair or cementing of crowns, inlays, onlays, bridgework, implants or dentures, up to one repair per prosthetic every twelve months; or relining or rebasing of dentures

Vision Care

Whether you use a VSP doctor, an out-of-network provider, or a combination of both, you can receive benefits.
for:

  1. One vision examination per calendar year.

  2. Either of the following per calendar year:

    1. One frame with a pair of corrective lenses; or

    2. Contact lenses. The contact lens allowance includes the lens fitting and evaluation fee. As long as your contact lenses contain a prescription, your allowance remains the same for all types of contact lenses. ($150 for VSP providers, $120 for out-of-network providers). If the contact lenses, fitting and evaluation fees exceed the allowable amount, you are responsible for the payment of any remaining balance. VSP has guidelines and limitations regarding certain disposable contact lens materials. Please contact VSP at 1-800-877-7195 for more information.

    3. One pair of safety glasses per calendar year for active eligible employees. VSP doctors will use materials certified as safe for a work environment by meeting the required test standards as set forth by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Visually necessary contact lenses received from a VSP doctor are provided in full, subject to prior authorization from VSP. “Visually necessary contact lenses” are prescribed for treatment following cataract surgery, to correct extreme vision problems not correctable with prescription glasses, and for certain conditions of anisometropia and/or keratoconus. An allowance of $210 is provided when visually necessary contacts are purchased from an
out-of-network provider. Coverage is subject to review and authorization from VSP’s optometric consultants, regardless of whether the lenses are obtained from a member doctor or an out-of-network provider.

Hearing Aid

The hearing aid allowance is one standard hearing aid per ear per lifetime.

Death & Dismemberment Benefits

These benefits are available only to the employee -- not to the dependents. The Plan pays:

 • $10,000 death benefit for active employees

 • $7,500 death benefit for retired employees

Supplemental Worker's Compensation Accident Benefits ensure that you receive the same benefits regardless of where the accident occurred.

Greater Job Stability

A Better Future, Now! An Exciting Career In The Electrical Industry!! Great benefits!!!

Qualified competent journeymen stand ready to teach deserving apprentices. We do not limit our training to teaching individuals to simply perform manual labor (job tasks). We train men and women to craftsmanship status. The IBEW-NECA apprenticeship programs pride themselves on their product; an individual with unmatched job skills, knowledge, and ability. We train individuals to have PRIDE, DIGNITY and SELF-RESPECT.

IBEW Electrical members are not just ordinary workers. They are America's electricians and are at the heart of the American dream.

Over 85 percent of our apprentices complete the program and have meaningful careers as highly paid Journeymen electrical workers. This success rate is virtually unmatched in the electrical industry and testifies to our personal commitment to you.

Our journeymen wiremen have not only passed our hands-on exam, but obtained important industry certifications, such as OSHA 30, CPR First Aid, NFPA 70E, and Code of Excellence. If they have come out of one of our training programs, ie. the Apprenticeship program or CE/CW program, they have acquired the Asheville City Card at minimum. With that we encourage those who have not taken the Asheville city test to do so (as long as they have the hours to do so). This sets our Journeymen Wiremen apart from the Non-Union workers. For more information on the different licenses, please review the information below.

Asheville City Card:

Journeyman Electrician’s License

Journeyman licensing marks the second step in the apprenticeship-journeyman-master electrician licensing process. To work independently under a licensed North Carolina electrical contractor in Asheville, individuals must obtain a journeyman electrician’s license.

Electrical apprentices become eligible to apply for the journeyman electrician’s license following 8,000 hours of documented work. This license must be renewed every 3 years.

Once licensed, a journeyman electrician may supervise up to two helpers or apprentices on-site. A helper or apprentice is anyone using or handling any tools or materials of the electrical construction trade. View Electrician’s Code of Ordinances through MuniCode.

License Application

To begin the process of becoming a journeyman electrician, submit the Journeyman Exam application form online or in-person.

To submit online, click here to complete the online Journeyman Exam application form. Follow the instructions at the bottom of the online application to pay the application fee.

To submit in person, print off the Journeyman Exam application form and pay the application fee in-person at the Development Services Department (DSD) located at 161 S. Charlotte St. 

The Asheville Board of Electrical Examiners will determine your eligibility to take the Electrical Journeyman test. Once your eligibility has been approved, you will be automatically registered for the Electrical Journeyman Test offered by the City of Asheville. You will receive a letter from DSD with details about the exam location and time. Click here for the calendar of application deadlines and testing dates. 

The test will examine your knowledge of rules and regulations related to electrical wiring devices, applications and equipment installation as set forth in North Carolina statutes, City of Asheville ordinances and the National Electrical Code (NEC). You must receive a score of 75 or above to pass and become licensed as a Class I journeyman electrician. 

License Renewal

Licenses expire three years after issuance on June 30. Renewal can be made any time within 30 days before expiration. To renew, visit DSD in-person with the following items:

  • Current non-expired license
  • Renewal fee (currently $30)
  • Proof of 8 hours of continuing education courses approved by the North Carolina Board of Examiners for Electrical Contractors (NCBEEC)

Applicants will be subject to a fee for late renewal and complete reexamination if license renewal lapses over one year.  

For more information about a Class I journeyman electrician’s license, contact:

Development Services Department

828-259-5658

North Carolina State License

  • Limited License

The Limited (L) license allows the licensee to engage in a single electrical contracting project of a value not in excess of sixty thousand dollars ($60,000) and on which the equipment or installation in the contract is rated at not more than 600 volts.

  • Intermediate License

The Intermediate (I) license allows the licensee to engage in a single electrical contracting project of a value not in excess of one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000). 

  • Unlimited License

The Unlimited (U) license allows the licensee to engage in any electrical contracting project regardless of value.

How to apply for an NC State License:

Please visit https://www.ncbeec.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Exam-Application-NEW.pdf

License Reciprocity

Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee, Ohio, Florida, Mississippi, Virginia, Texas, Georgia, South Carolina, and West Virginia.

For more information, please visit https://www.ncbeec.org/reciprocity/

Pursuant to G.S. 87-50 it , the Board may grant licenses of the same or equivalent classification to electrical contractors licensed by other states without written examination.  The Board has entered into formal reciprocal licensing agreements with contractor licensing boards of several states, whereby electrical contractors licensed by these other state boards may obtain a North Carolina electrical contracting license without written examinations. 





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Page Last Updated: Sep 20, 2022 (11:24:00)
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IBEW Local 238
46 New Leicester Hwy
Asheville, NC 28806
  828-505-0216

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