Greater Western Washington Pipe Trades Apprenticeship Committee
HVAC/Refrigeration Mechanic
Burlington, Washington · Union · SOC 49-9021
Tuition
$0
Registered apprenticeships are paid employment.
Year-one pay
$35.45/hr
First step on the registered wage scale.
Journey rate
$70.89/hr
Paid once you turn out, not during the term.
Term
10,000 hours
Plus 1,080 hours of classroom instruction.
Four years from now
Our estimate, calculated by TradeFooting from this program's published first-step wage, journey rate and registered term. The registry publishes those three facts. The projection below is ours, and the workings are shown.
Year
Rate
Gross pay
Year 1
$37.93/hr
$75,861
Year 2
$42.89/hr
$85,784
Year 3
$47.85/hr
$95,707
Year 4
$52.81/hr
$105,629
Total earned
$362,981
Tuition paid
$0
Debt
$0
How this is worked out
Assumes 2,000 paid hours a year. No overtime.
Pay rises evenly from the registered first step to the registered journey rate. Real schedules usually rise faster later, so the early years here are, if anything, generous and the four-year total is not overstated.
Gross pay before tax. Tools, dues and exam fees are not deducted.
The first-step and journey rates are published by the registry. The steps between them are not, so they are spread evenly across the term.
What hvacs earn in Washington
$75,660median, per year
Half earn more, half less, across all experience levels. National median $61,010.
