For Job Seekers
For Career Exploring
Become a Partner
Search
None. A job with an electrical contractor is enough.
Your city, but only if you want to be a contractor
$67,600 a year, about $32.50 an hour
Pennsylvania has hospitals and universities across both metros, warehouses along the interstate corridors, natural gas and petrochemical work in the west, and a lot of old housing that needs rewiring. Day to day:
There is no Pennsylvania journeyman license, no state master license, and no state board of electrical examiners. The Department of Labor and Industry says the Commonwealth has no licensure or certification for most construction contractors or their employees.
So nothing stands between you and a paid job. Find an electrical contractor who will hire you, work under them, and learn the trade.
Licensing becomes your problem when you want to contract in your own name. Then it depends entirely on where the job is, because Pennsylvania has 2,562 municipalities and each one decides for itself. A license from one city is worth nothing in the next, and there is no reciprocity, because there is no state license to reciprocate with.
Get hired, then get into a program. Nothing gates the first step, and the second is what makes the years count later.
SkillUp houses short, low-cost programs in one place so you’re not calling around. Our Pennsylvania training catalog only lists programs we have checked for cost, length, and whether they lead to work.
Philadelphia counts two years of education in the electrical field as one year of practical experience, up to a maximum of two years substituted.
So the four-year experience rule can become two years of work plus four years of school. That is worth knowing before you decide whether a program is worth paying for, and it is set out in the city’s own information sheet.
Proof of experience is required. Philadelphia accepts tax records showing employment by a licensed electrical contractor, or proof of licensure from another jurisdiction. So keep your tax paperwork, because it is what the city asks to see.
Pennsylvania employs about 22,730 electricians, and the median is $67,600 a year, or $32.50 an hour.
The two largest programs are not just different in their numbers; they are different in kind, which matters if you might work in both:
Everywhere else varies. Some municipalities license electrical contractors, some only issue permits per job, and some ask for nothing. The state does not keep a list, so the building department where you plan to work is the only reliable source.
There is one statewide rule, and it is not a trade license. Under the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act, anyone doing residential home improvement work worth $5,000 or more a year has to register as a Home Improvement Contractor with the Attorney General.
It is a consumer protection registration rather than a test of skill. There is no exam and no experience threshold. But it applies statewide, so it catches people who assumed Pennsylvania asks for nothing at all.
SkillUp is so much more than a job board. Our free tools support you through each step:
No. Pennsylvania issues no journeyman, master, or apprentice electrician license, and there is no state board of electrical examiners. Licensing is handled by individual municipalities.
No. The Department of Labor and Industry states the Commonwealth has no licensure or certification for most construction contractors or their employees. You need a license to contract in your own name, and that comes from the city where the work is.
An Electrical Contractor License from the Department of Licenses and Inspections. Four years of employment doing electrical work for a company licensed through a local jurisdiction, the Philadelphia Electrical Contractor Examination through the International Code Council, eight hours of NFPA 70 coursework, and insurance.
Yes. Two years of education in the electrical field counts as one year of practical experience, up to two years substituted. So four years of experience can become two years of work plus four years of school.
Pittsburgh issues its Electrical Trade License to individuals rather than companies, and asks for six years of combined experience and education plus the National Standard Master Electrician exam. Philadelphia licenses the contracting business.
No. There is no reciprocity between Pennsylvania municipalities, because there is no state license to reciprocate with. If you work across city lines you may need to be licensed in several places at once.
Contact that municipality’s building or permits office. Some license electrical contractors, some only issue permits per job, and some ask for nothing. The state does not keep a list.
The median is $67,600 a year, about $32.50 an hour. The top quarter earns above $95,500, and the top ten percent above $122,620. Helpers have a median of $38,880.
