[ Focus: Apprentice exchange ] Jeannie Lockwood, USA


Jeannie is a third-year adult apprentice based in Queens, New York. While in the UK, she spent time working with ECA registered members SPIE Matthew Hall and J Brand. As part of her apprenticeship programme, back home Jeannie is also completing a Bachelor’s Degree in Labour Studies.


Where did you fi nd the main diff erences between how UK and US industry works? Overwhelmingly, there are more similarities than diff erences, in terms of the working


environment, the people and how they interact, and the work itself. There are some technical diff erences – voltages and frequencies are diff erent and so you have to take a lot more care working with live currents. At home, we generally get tools from one or two manufacturers; over here there are a lot of manufacturers from many diff erent countries – there is a wider variety to choose from. Conduit bending is also diff erent. At home, ours


are electronic; here, it’s done manually and you need a lot of muscle to bend each one. There’s a universal art and technique to bending conduit, but over here it’s not just the technique, it’s also the physical strength and stamina to repetitively bend it.


What types of work did you experience during your trip? With SPIE Matthew Hall, I worked on the Barnado’s new corporate headquarters where I


got most of my experience with the hand bender. I also learned about trunking, which we don’t really use at home; we have a plastic version for teledata wires. With J Brand, we worked at the Royal Academy of


Music on a voltage optimiser and various cable trays, and on replacing light fi ttings. This was very similar to at home, apart from the voltages. It’s not like in the States where we have 110 volts, the UK’s 230/400 volts is serious voltage and so safety was always of utmost importance. I also got to work on teledata cables for cash registers at a new B&Q store – again, this was all very familiar to me.


What do you think were the main cultural


diff erences? Working as an apprentice is diff erent; we have duties at


home that don’t really happen in the UK. For instance, when you arrive in the morning usually the


62 ECA Today November 2012


apprentices will go for coff ees, teas, and fetch breakfast for the rest of the team before starting the day. I was told that doesn’t really happen here –but I get the impression that some of the operatives quite liked the idea!


As a woman in the industry, did you learn anything about the Wired for Success: ECA


women into electrical contracting initiative? Ultimately, when you’re on the job you don’t really notice – you’re all there to do the job


I’m learning a real trade and skill, and no matter what happens to the economy, I’ll always have this trade and knowledge, and be able to work somewhere at home or aboard


together. But I’ve learnt that there are far fewer women in industry here than what I’ve experienced in the USA. The ECA’s Wired for Success initiative is great – I was really pleased to hear about it, and it’s an excellent foundation from which to recruit more females in the future. In the States, they are also looking to continually bring more women into the industry – I joined via a group called Non-traditional Employment for Women after being made redundant, and was successful in gaining an apprenticeship place.


How important has your apprenticeship been to you so far? The apprenticeship process for me has been extremely benefi cial. I’m learning a real trade and skill, and no matter what happens to the economy, I’ll always have this trade and knowledge, and be able to work somewhere at home or aboard. Once I become a fully-fl edged electrician, I plan


to work as a Local 3 electrician [the equivalent to a UK apprentice achieving their grading as an electrician once fully qualifi ed] in New York. There may be other paths open to me; I’m not setting any specifi c goals. I’m letting myself be guided by more experienced people who can advise on where my skills can be best utilised – people like my journeymen colleagues, foreman, teachers, and brothers and sisters in the union.


What are your thoughts as you head home? Excited to go back but sad to leave. I’ve learnt a lot and had a


great time. People have been very welcoming; on the job, everyone is very professional – they have taken every opportunity to teach me and have been very generous. I’ve had a totally positive experience and am going back with a whole bunch of amazing memories and the drive and determination to come back again one day.


Positive Image/J Brand


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