Planning New Hires in 2022?

When you make a new hire for your field crew, it can take some time to evaluate their skills and see if they will be a good long-term fit for your company. That can cause you to hold back from enrolling new hires into a full apprenticeship training program or other cost-intensive training during their first months of employment.

 

With this in mind, the Foundation created our new Plumbing Pre-Apprentice course. The online program focuses on general industry knowledge, safety, science and math of plumbing, systems & products, and basic service and repair work. The course helps new hires develop the skills required to be a productive helper benefitting the business while giving you time to evaluate their long-term potential.

 

Thanks to our donors and sponsors, the program is rolling out at an introductory cost of only $29. 

 

That low cost of entry gives you a way to kickstart the learning curve of a new hire without the risk of enrolling an untested new team member in a high-cost training program. And once you have determined that the hire is a good fit and interested in furthering their education, you can help them choose which path to take - traditional apprenticeship training or the Foundation's Fast Track to Service and Repair course. 

For more information, please hit the button below.

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"I AM AN AMERICAN PLUMBER"

"I Am AN American Plumber" is launching a program that will collect more stories from around the nation that will help positively impact the next generation of plumbers. 

Sharing your story is simple! By visiting here, plumbers will be asked a few questions and attach an image of themselves. We will select the best entries and reshare them on American Plumber Stories social media accounts!

Submit your story today!

PHCC Joins Industry Lawsuit Against EPA

By Mark Valentini:

PHCC has joined alongside HARDI (Heating, Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International) and Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) as petitioners in a lawsuit in Federal court (DC Circuit) against the EPA in their rulemaking to ban one-time use cylinders for refrigerants as part of its broader phasedown of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). Under the rulemaking, EPA seeks to require refrigerant cylinders be recyclable and tracked using a QR code system. The rulemaking puts undue responsibility on contractors and distributors to manage the tracking of these cylinders amongst other issues. PHCC filed comments with the EPA voicing our concerns back in July (see here), ergo we have an established position on this matter.

The lawsuit essentially does the following:

1. Challenges EPA authority: This goes beyond their statutory authority and/or have an overly broad interpretation of what their authority is in this regard under the AIM Act.

2. Argues that the rule is arbitrary and capricious in that it is irrational to expect distributors and contractors to keep track of product to this extent.

3. Argues that this is beyond the intent of Congress when it passed the AIM Act. Customs and Border Protection already ensure that illegal product does not enter the market. Also, the intent of the AIM Act was to put the onus on manufacturers for reporting and it was not meant to trickle down to the bottom of the distribution chain the way EPA intends it.

PHCC Colorado Survey Regarding Plumbing Licensing Exams and the Unavailability of Tests in Spanish

As you probably know, the journeyman and master plumber licensing exams in Colorado are not currently offered in Spanish. 

Given the state of our workforce and the need to bring more people into the industry, PHCC Colorado is trying to better understand if and how this may be impacting plumbing contractors in Colorado.

Please take our very brief survey to let us know how and if this is impacting your company.

Please respond no later than by end of day next Wednesday, November 17.

Take Survey Here