Ironworkers are trained to work on the erection of buildings and structures using iron and steel girders -- but today the majority of buildings are constructed with steel girders. Workers help in the construction of buildings and bridges; placing and securing steel mesh within concrete structures is also the responsibility of ironworkers. Ironworkers also maintain and repair older iron and steel structures and buildings.
Apprenticeship programs are completed as a mixture of on-the-job training and theoretical training in a classroom environment. These programs are either three or four years in length and require the apprentice to complete at least 8,000 hours of on-the-job training with a certified ironwork professional or organization. At the outset of an apprenticeship program offered through a local contractor's organization or union, the apprentice signs an agreement with the local apprenticeship committee of the organization. In the U.S., this agreement is used to register the apprentice with the Bureau of Apprenticeships & Training, the Department of Labor and a state apprenticeship agency.
Through the three- or four-year apprenticeship program, the apprentice is required to attend classroom-education courses; these courses are mandatory, with absenteeism resulting in dismissal from the program, according to Iron Workers Local 402. Around 800 hours of classroom education are required throughout the apprenticeship in courses such as mathematics, structural engineering, rigging, and the safe use of ironworker tools. Ironworkers apprentices are required to be 18 years of age and hold a high school diploma; random drug testing is also provided throughout the apprenticeship program.
The International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Ironworkers has introduced a certification program that awards certification to local apprenticeship programs that meet specific standards. This program attempts to standardize the quality and information provided for apprentice ironworkers to ensure the required level of education provided for apprentices. By introducing the certification program, the association is attempting to increase the confidence of ironworkers' customers and to assure employers of ironworkers of the competency of ironworker apprentices.