CEMENT mason

I started at TPJCC in May of 2017.

Before coming to TPJCC I worked for 28 years in commercial construction as a union cement mason.

I grew up in southeast Portland. I started my apprenticeship with Portland, Oregon cement masons local # 555 in 1989. I worked in the field as an apprentice, a journeyman, a foreman and a field supervisor. I have worked on high rise buildings, bridges, schools, hospitals, highways, dams, and other large structures like parking structures, and tilt up buildings.

I have three children and four grandchildren. I have been married for 30 years.

I got into cement masonry in my twenties.  At the time I was making $6.00 an hr and was stuck in dead end jobs. I needed a second roommate to help with rent so a friend introduced me to a cement mason who was looking for a place to live. After he moved in I discovered he was making more than twice the money I was making per week. He waited a couple of months to see if I was responsible and made sure I wouldn’t make him look bad if he recommended to the union. He introduced me to the apprenticeship coordinator after he saw that I was a hard worker and took my job seriously.  I joined the union apprenticeship and bugged contractors to hire me by showing up early in the morning with my tools even if they hadn’t hired me yet. P&R concrete was the first contractor that hired me.

After 28 years of working on construction sites and volunteering to work with apprentices at the union I heard about the instructor position at TPJCC. I liked working with and helping people just starting their careers because people helped me when I was first starting out.  I decided to move to the next step in my career and applied for the position.

My favorite part of the job is learning. Every student is different, learning their stories teaches me something about them and myself.  Figuring out different projects and how to teach them to each individual is a challenge that keeps me moving forward as a person.

The most important thing a student can learn from me is self-confidence, value and worth.

The best advice I can give is to “wear sun screen” and think about what you learned that day. Ask yourself what went right and what went wrong? Then think about how you will improve tomorrow.

When students complete we get them a personal cake and sing “happy completion”. We have pizza parties a few times a year as well as donuts on Fridays.

Students are trained in placing and finishing concrete as well as concrete repair. We do concrete carpentry and form setting. We do many different specialties finishes like staining, stamping, coloring, polishing, epoxy, and other types of overlays and engraving. All of this requires different tools and equipment that student can learn to use.

Students are trained in safety and get an OSHA 10 card after completing the certification course. We also teach green building, environmentally responsible construction that students can get a certification for. Scaffold training, respirator training and fit testing are two other certification courses we provide. We also provide each student a set of hand tools that they get to keep if they complete the program.

All of these training goals are to help prepare you for a union apprenticeship.

All students who complete the program are eligible for direct entry into “any” union apprenticeship.

The training goals are met through the completion of the TAR items. This usually takes eight months to  a year or longer, depending on the student.

There are many career opportunities from working with the tools or working on the business end with the union. There is opportunity for men and women in concrete to advance your position and pay.

The average journey person makes between $50,000- $65,000 per year plus medical and pension retirement benefits.

Concrete is the most widely used building material in the world and the demand for concrete workers will continue to increase as technology moves forward. 

Work Force Council Assessment Form

The assessment form that you fill out will greatly aid us in keeping our training programs relevant for your industries. Please take a few more minutes of your time at the end of today's meeting to complete this form. 

Hover over the image to the left and then click the upper left corner in the box with the arrow in it, the form will open in a new tab. When you are done with the form just click the submit button.