A message from…
Bill Hite
UA General President
For the past 27 years, the United Association of Union Plumbers, Pipefitters, Sprinkler Fitters, Welders and HVACR Technicians — better known as the UA — has called Washtenaw Community College home during one week in August. The UA holds our Instructor Training Program here, where we train the trainers. These individuals then return to local unions in the U.S. and Canada to train the 42,000 apprentices, as well as the 340,000 journeymen of the UA who are continuously upgrading their skills. We love coming to WCC and to Ann Arbor, where we always receive a great welcome.
Our training programs have grown and evolved over the years, and now we have a presence year round at WCC. We have a true partnership that has served us well and that we believe has been beneficial to WCC and the surrounding community. The past few years, representatives from our affiliated organizations in Australia and Ireland have also been on campus.
As WCC begins its new school year, so too will the UA’s local unions across North America begin classes for the thousands of apprentices in training in our organization. The instructors who were on campus in August will now be home in their local unions, preparing lesson plans and exercises and all the other parts of preparing young people for lucrative careers.
We wish WCC the best in the coming year, and look forward to 27 more years of partnership with the college, as we pursue our common goal of preparing future generations to build the cities, communities and towns of North America. Keep up the good work, WCC!