The United Association Veterans in Piping (UA VIP) Program commends the students in Camp Lejeune Welding Class 31 on their recent graduation. Once they transition out of the military, they will begin their new civilian careers in the pipe trades.
A DoW SkillBridge program, UA VIP, is open to active-duty service members who will be in their 180-day transition window when the course begins and ends.
During the program’s 118-day training schedule, Class 31 members learned basic welding skills through a combination of classroom instruction and hands-on training, laying the foundation they will need to succeed as apprentices in the pipe trades.
A Proven Pathway: UA VIP
For more than a decade, the UA VIP Program has helped transitioning active-duty service members prepare for good-paying, in-demand civilian careers.
During the 720 hours of on-base pre-apprenticeship training, VIP students learn basic pipe trade skills in one of three crafts: HVACR, welding or sprinkler fitting.
Once VIP participants graduate and transition out of the military, they enter the UA’s five-year Registered Apprenticeship Program, where they will build on their newly acquired skill set without taking on student debt.
VIP graduates are also guaranteed jobs with a UA signatory contractor in an agreed-upon geographic location. They will receive direct entry into a UA Local Union and receive all the benefits of being a UA member, including good wages, excellent full-family medical insurance and great retirement benefits.
Where Our Graduates Are Going
Thanks to UA VIP, graduates are guaranteed employment upon leaving the military, without having to use their G.I. Bill benefits. Plus, they have direct entry into a DOL-registered UA apprenticeship.
Working with program administrators, Class 31 graduates agreed on the geographic area where they will begin their civilian careers. Once they transition out of the military, Camp Lejeune Welding Class 31 graduates will head to the following areas and become members of the respective Local Unions:
- Milwaukee – UA Local 601
- Boston – UA Local 537
- North Carolina/South Carolina – UA Local 421
- Baton Rouge, La. – UA Local 198
- Omaha, Neb. – UA Local 464
- Jacksonville, Fla. – UA Local 234
- Billings, Mont. – UA Local 30
- Chattanooga, Tenn. – UA Local 43
- Richmond, Va. – UA Local 10
- Wyoming – UA Local 192
Good Program, Great Instructors
For Welding Class 31 graduate and Army Motor Transportation Operator Dennis Skyles, the experience of his teachers was critical.
“Good program with amazing instructors,” he said.
That kind of instruction — delivered by experienced journeymen is central to what makes the UA VIP program effective for transitioning active-duty service members.
When asked to offer advice to future VIP students, Skyles kept it simple and direct.
“Give it 100 percent, 100 percent of the time,” he said.
Congratulations, Camp Lejeune Class 31 Graduates
For members of Welding Class 31, graduation from the UA VIP Program marks the completion of one chapter and the beginning of the next. These graduates proved they could quickly learn the skills needed to work in the pipe trades, and the UA family is proud of what they have accomplished.
Congratulations to the members of Camp Lejeune Welding Class 31. The UA family is happy you will be joining us.
Interested in the UA VIP Program at Camp Lejeune? Visit uavip.org/lejeune to learn more about training opportunities for transitioning service members at Camp Lejeune.
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