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Open Your Own Shop

Finally the Building Trades have taken a look back at union history and have seen how union shops have started, which was mostly by union members who wanted to be their own boss. These people already knew what the union was about and knew the trade, and if treated properly, they’d become good union shops. One way to get a union sheet metal shop in their area is for workers to start their own shop. It’s not as hard as it might seem. I started out as a so-call shop boy and then I became a journeyman sheet metal worker. After gaining some experience a friend and I opened our own sheet metal shop. We did stripe malls, custom houses, housing tracts, and multi-story apartments. We were and stayed union and had good union workers. It’s not as complicated as it might seem. The person who hired me as a shop boy was a sheet metal worker and started his shop, True Temp in Ventura County. Then there was a shop started by a worker in Oxnard-Ventura County, and there were four shops started by sheet metal workers as well, that I recall. It worked out and most all sheet metal HVAC work was done by union workers in the 1960-’70s in Ventura County-Santa Barbara County. So, I think the unions are smart to help our workers who would like to build their own shops. This has worked for other trades, like the electricians, plumbers and carpenters. Once they become owners, then the union must work hard to keep them union by working together and not each shop working against each other. I have also seen some of these shops go nonunion for whatever reason, and most could have been saved had the union just reached out to them to keep them engaged in the union. The union needs to let the owners work, pay dues and be able to have a union retirement just like the other workers. The owners could work like a foreman-owner if they wanted to. This way they keep in touch with the work and this makes them better in the bidding of jobs for their business. This is the best and fastest way to get more union hours of work and more union members. If interested in opening your own shop, the SMART Sheet Metal is offering online courses, beginning April 15. Check out their classes at the ITI Business Development and Service Academy Courses. http://www.sheetmetal-iti.org/serviceacademy
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