UCA & MLCC Train Tribal Members in Residential Heat Pump Installation

The Maine AFL-CIO’s Union Construction Academy, Maine Labor Climate Council and IBEW Local 1253’s Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee have partnered on a new pre-apprenticeship program for Maine tribal members to get certified in residential heat pump installation. The new pre-apprenticeship program is funded by a state Training for Residential Energy Contractors (TREC) grant, which MLCC was awarded part of earlier this year and provides $1.2 million in funding to organizations to support energy efficiency workforce training programs in Maine.

Passamaquoddy tribal member Cheyanne Lewey learned of the program from a flyer she saw where she lives on the Indian Township reservation. At the time she was working at Dunkin’ Donuts, but wanted to pursue a career in the trades.

“It's pretty exciting to be taking this course because I had tried going to community college for [HVAC] and I just couldn't make it work,” said Lewey. “I came into this program with like no HVAC experience prior to this, but it's been really exciting. I got my Universal 608 [HVAC certification], so I can start doing more hands-on HVAC, working with industrial and small appliances that retain refrigerant and heat pumps.”

The program is designed to meet the growing demand for skilled trades, support building efficiency, and strengthen partnerships with industry. It also allows the UCA and MLCC to strengthen the relationship between the labor movement and tribal communities in Maine by establishing a pipeline for union home energy contractors.

As construction trade locals such as IBEW 1253, IBEW 567, and UA 716 have sought to grow market share, residential work provides an opportunity to diversify where they have density One of the goals of the pre-apprenticeship program is to sign contractors up to become union signatories, allowing them to qualify for union benefits like great health care coverage and pensions. The pre-apprenticeship program provided hands-on training of handling refrigerant, certifications in CPR and first aid, Efficiency Maine’s 40hr, and EPA 608.Attendees also expressed interest in the upcoming Contractor Development Course to help new or existing contractors getting into and/or scaling up their business in the residential energy efficiency and electrification markets. It also provides a primer on the labor movement and what it means to be a union member.

“Through our overall TREC grant, we have five or six contractors we’re working with. We’re trying to make a pathway for small contractors to become full union signatories and grow their businesses,” said Jacob Norris-Jacobs, MLCC’s Coordinator of External Organizing. “We have two signatory contractors involved.”

Last week, eight pre-apprentices completed the course in Newport, earning certifications that allow them to become registered vendors eligible for heat pump rebates through Efficiency Maine. So far, the UCA and MLCC have certified 19 pre-apprentices and 36 existing workers in EPA 608, a federally mandated requirement for HVAC installers under the Clean Air Act.

Norris said the program ties into the MLCC’s work in helping connect mobile home park residents with union contractors to install whole-home ducted heat pumps in conjunction with Efficiency Maine’s Mobile Home Initiative, helping to grow market share in a largely non-union industry. MLCC is running two pilot programs one in Lewiston and one in Arundel to sign up mobile home owners. By working at scale it allows the contractor to receive a bulk rate for purchasing heat pumps.

“We’re trying to work with local CAP agencies and Efficiency Maine to provide pathways to energy efficiency and prove to the utility and the state that there's a need for more funding for this, thus making it more accessible for everybody,” he said. “When home heating oil is over $6.40 a gallon and you're living off $20,000 a year, you should not have to choose between a warm home and food.”

The goal is to train the workforce and create a stable pipeline of work for union and union signatory contractors, in part by aggregating a bundle of smaller residential jobs into one or two larger projects. Together with IBEW 1253, IBEW 567, and UA Local 716, MLCC is working with a number of union members to help build their own contracting businesses and eventually become union signatories. Under the arrangement, the contractor agrees to pay union negotiated wages and hire skilled union workers to perform the work. Currently, it is working with union signatories Pinkham Mechanical (signed with UA Local 716) out of Brewer and Millinocket-based Pine State Electric (an IBEW signatory).

Passamaquoddy tribal member Justin Harnois, 23, graduated from community college with a heating technology certificate and did his 608 certification through the school, but there was a miscommunication with his community college instructor and he never got back his test scores. The UCA program provided the pathway for him to retest and get his certification along with more hands-on work as the college program was largely focused on book work. He says he plans to get a job with a contractor soon to begin installing heat pumps.

“Down in Indian Township, all the houses were just installed with heat pumps and solar panels through the tribe and it helped a lot in lowering heating costs,” said Harnois. “I’m excited to be doing this work because it definitely is the future.”