Yes, unions do hire felons, and in most of the building trades a felony conviction is not a bar to becoming a member or getting dispatched to work. The real legal restriction is separate: a federal law keeps people convicted of certain serious crimes out of union office and staff positions for up to thirteen years, but it says nothing about working as a tradesperson on a union job. The barriers you are more likely to run into are employer drug tests, state occupational licensing rules, and the specific job sites your conviction may keep you off.
Why Union Hiring Halls Are Different
Construction and maritime unions dispatch workers through a hiring hall rather than the standard corporate application process. Contractors call the hall when they need workers, and the dispatcher refers members out on a rotating basis. You do not have to be a union member to use a hiring hall, and the union cannot discriminate in referrals based on membership status.1National Labor Relations Board. Hiring Halls
That structure matters for anyone with a record. When a contractor asks for four laborers, the dispatcher sends the next four names on the out-of-work list. No HR department is running your name through an automated screening tool. The collective bargaining agreement typically requires the contractor to evaluate workers on performance and safety, not personal history. Once you are on the list, the process is largely first-in, first-out.
Which Trades Are Most Open
Not every trade treats a record the same way. The trades built around raw labor and physical skill tend to be the most accessible. Laborers’ unions have a reputation for focusing on whether you can do the work rather than what happened before you showed up, and some laborers’ locals state on their applications that a felony conviction will not prevent membership.
Operating engineers, ironworkers, cement masons, and roofers are other trades where the work itself does not require a state license. That removes one of the biggest barriers. Trades that do require licensure, mainly electrical and plumbing, add a separate review by a state board on top of anything the union or contractor does. If you need to start earning quickly, the unlicensed trades give you the shortest path from application to paycheck.
Job Sites Your Record May Keep You Off Of
A union hall that accepts you as a member can still have limited placements available if your conviction restricts where you can physically work. Government-funded projects, work inside schools or hospitals, and jobs requiring a security clearance may be off-limits depending on the offense. That is worth asking the dispatcher about directly before you count on steady work in a particular local.
Applying to an Apprenticeship
An apprenticeship is the standard entry point into most union trades. Most programs require you to be at least 18 and to hold a high school diploma or GED. Applications are available at the local union hall or through the Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee website for that trade, and many programs have specific enrollment windows rather than rolling admissions.
Before you apply, pull together:
- Proof of age, such as a birth certificate or government-issued ID.
- High school transcripts or a GED certificate.
- Your own criminal history record, requested from your state’s criminal records repository, so your disclosures match what the program sees.
- A valid driver’s license or state ID and your Social Security card.
The criminal history section of the application is where honesty counts more than a clean record. Disclosing a conviction upfront and explaining what you have done since is almost always viewed more favorably than having an undisclosed record surface later. An investigator finding something you hid is grounds for immediate disqualification in most programs, and dishonesty during the application has no mitigating factors the way a conviction does.
Many programs require an aptitude test after your application is accepted. Electrical apprenticeship programs, for example, use a standardized test covering algebra and reading comprehension. Applicants who pass move to an oral interview with a panel of union members and contractor representatives. The interview is your chance to address your record directly. The entire process from application to first dispatch can take a few weeks or several months depending on local demand.
The Probationary Period
Every registered apprenticeship includes a probationary period at the start, and this is the phase where a record is most likely to create problems. Federal regulations cap the probationary period at 25 percent of the total program length or one year, whichever is shorter. During that window, either party can cancel the apprenticeship agreement without stating a cause.2eCFR. 29 CFR Part 29 – Labor Standards for the Registration of Apprenticeship Programs
A sponsor who discovers an undisclosed conviction, or who simply decides the fit is not right, can end the arrangement without the procedural protections that kick in after probation ends. Once you clear probation, termination requires documented cause and often triggers a formal review. Show up on time, stay clean, and perform. That carries more weight during probation than anything on your record.
Drug Testing Catches People Off Guard
Drug testing trips up more applicants than criminal background checks do. Construction unions almost universally include drug testing provisions in their collective bargaining agreements, particularly for safety-sensitive work. Pre-employment testing is standard, and random testing during employment is common on larger commercial and industrial projects.
Most testing panels still include marijuana, even in states where recreational use is legal. Operating heavy equipment, working at height, and handling electrical systems while impaired creates liability that no contractor or union wants to absorb. If you know a test is coming, the time to prepare is before you submit your application, not after the hiring hall calls.
Licensing Boards Add a Second Review
If your trade requires a state license, your criminal record gets reviewed by the licensing board separately from anything the union or employer evaluates. Electricians, plumbers, and HVAC technicians are the most common examples.
A growing number of states now prohibit licensing boards from denying an application unless the conviction has a direct or substantial relationship to the duties of the occupation. Around 40 states use some version of this standard, and many also require individualized review that considers how long ago the offense occurred, your age at the time, and evidence of rehabilitation. A drug conviction from a decade ago has an uphill argument for being substantially related to pulling electrical wire.
Licensing fees generally run between $175 and $375 for the application and exam, separate from union dues and apprenticeship costs. If your conviction could present a licensing issue, many states allow you to request a preliminary determination before you invest years in an apprenticeship. That step can save significant time and money.
The One Place the Law Says No: Union Leadership
Here the law draws a hard line, and it is important to understand exactly where that line sits. Section 504 of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act prohibits people convicted of certain crimes from serving in any staff or leadership role within a labor organization for thirteen years after conviction or release from prison, whichever comes later.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 504 – Prohibition Against Certain Persons Holding Office
The disqualifying offenses include robbery, embezzlement, grand larceny, burglary, extortion, bribery, murder, rape, assault with intent to kill, assault inflicting grievous bodily injury, arson, narcotics violations, and any felony involving abuse of a position in a labor organization or benefit plan.
The ban covers more positions than most people expect. It reaches any officer, director, trustee, manager, organizer, consultant, adviser, or employee of the labor organization in any capacity, and anyone with decision-making authority over union funds or property. Violating the prohibition carries penalties of up to $10,000 in fines and up to five years in federal prison.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 504 – Prohibition Against Certain Persons Holding Office
The critical distinction: none of this prevents you from working as a rank-and-file tradesperson under a union contract. When the hall dispatches you to wire a building or pour concrete, your employer is the contractor, not the union. Section 504 governs who can run the union, not who can work through it.
Getting the Thirteen-Year Bar Reduced
The thirteen-year disqualification is not always locked in at its full length. The statute provides two paths for early relief, both of which run through the courts.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 504 – Prohibition Against Certain Persons Holding Office The sentencing court can reduce the disqualification period on the convicted person’s motion, but cannot set it below three years after conviction or release. For federal offenses, the sentencing judge can also determine that the person’s service in a union role would not be contrary to the purposes of the law. For state or local offenses committed after November 1, 1987, the appropriate U.S. district court handles exemption applications; for offenses before that date, the U.S. Parole Commission reviews them.4Department of Justice. Prohibition Against Certain Persons Holding Office and Employment Full restoration of citizenship rights following the conviction also removes the bar. If you have ambitions beyond rank-and-file work, get labor-law counsel before filing.
Programs That Make Contractors Want to Hire You
Two federal programs give contractors financial reasons to bring on workers with records, and both are worth raising when you are on the fence with a sponsor.
The Work Opportunity Tax Credit gives employers a credit of up to 40 percent of the first $6,000 in wages paid to a formerly incarcerated worker during their first year of employment, a maximum of $2,400 per hire.5Internal Revenue Service. Work Opportunity Tax Credit Workers need at least 400 hours of service for the full credit; 120 to 400 hours qualifies the employer for a reduced 25 percent rate. WOTC is authorized through December 31, 2025, and Congress has renewed it repeatedly.6Internal Revenue Service. The Work Opportunity Tax Credit Is Available Until the End of 2025 Check the IRS site for current status.
The Federal Bonding Program provides free fidelity bond insurance to employers who hire people with records.7Federal Bonding Program. The Federal Bonding Program – Fidelity Bonds for Hard-to-Place Job Seekers The bond covers the employer against theft, forgery, and embezzlement by the bonded employee for the first six months, with no deductible. That removes a quieter objection contractors have about the insurance risk. Neither program requires you to do anything; the employer claims the credit, and bonding is arranged through the local workforce development office.
What Joining Will Cost You
Joining a union is not free. Initiation fees for apprenticeship programs vary by trade and local but commonly run from $50 to a few hundred dollars. Monthly or quarterly dues are typically modest during the apprenticeship years and increase after you reach journeyman status.
You will also need a basic set of hand tools. First-year apprentices in most trades can expect to spend $100 to $300 on a starter kit, though some locals provide exact lists. Buying used tools from retiring journeymen is common and cuts costs. If your trade requires a state license, add $175 to $375 for application and exam fees. Some programs also require a physical exam or CPR certification, usually $50 to $150 out of pocket. Most of these costs are front-loaded, and union wages tend to recover them fast.