UnionPipefitters Local 488 wages 2026 (Alberta)
The hourly rates, overtime, shift, vacation and LOA rules of UA Local 488 in Alberta, read from the three agreements built into the Pipefitter Cheque app. An independent guide: the agreement and your hall have the final word.
Industrial construction (MECH)
CLR-A / UA Local 488 Mechanical (Plumbers & Pipefitters) Agreement 2025–2029, industrial work (Alberta)
$57.71an hour
Journeyperson, Industrial construction (MECH)
From May 3, 2026. Next step $59.06 on May 2, 2027.
| Classification | From May 3, 2026 | From May 2, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Journeypersonbase rate | $57.71 | $59.06 |
| ForepersonJM + $5.50 | $63.21 | $64.56 |
| General forepersonJM + $7.50 | $65.21 | $66.56 |
| Welder with CWB ticket90% | $51.92 | $53.14 |
| Welder without CWB ticket85% | $49.03 | $50.18 |
| 4th-year apprentice90% | $51.92 | $53.14 |
| 3rd-year apprentice (4th-year plumber)80% | $46.14 | $47.22 |
| 2nd-year apprentice65% | $37.46 | $38.34 |
| 1st-year apprentice50% | $28.78 | $29.46 |
| 3rd-year plumber apprentice70% | $40.35 | $41.30 |
| 2nd-year plumber apprentice60% | $34.57 | $35.38 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 4th year85% | $49.03 | $50.18 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 3rd year75% | $43.25 | $44.26 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 2nd year65% | $37.46 | $38.34 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 1st year55% | $31.67 | $32.42 |
- Overtime
- 5×8 (16.01, 16.03): 8 h straight, the first 2 h of overtime at time and a half, then double. 4×10 (17.01–17.03): 10 h straight, then double; a Friday worked on a Mon–Thu schedule is time and a half for 10 h, then double (17.02); the Monday of a Tue–Fri schedule is treated the same way, as 17.02(b) does for the 10-on/4-off pattern.
- Shift premium
- $4.50 an hour on every hour worked on shift.
- Vacation and stat holiday pay
- 6% vacation pay and 4% holiday pay on top of wages, taxed with them.
- LOA, subsistence and travel
- Alberta-wide rate: $150 a day; Fort McMurray: $200 a day; Edmonton or Calgary (only by agreement for the job): $180 a day; Grande Prairie: $205 a day; Wabasca: $200 a day; 14 more in the app.
Commercial and institutional (MECH)
CLR-A / UA Local 488 Mechanical Agreement 2025–2029, commercial and institutional work (Alberta)
$45.20 an hour, journeyperson, from May 3, 2026; $46.37 from May 2, 2027.
| Classification | From May 3, 2026 | From May 2, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Journeypersonbase rate | $45.20 | $46.37 |
| ForepersonJM + $4.00 | $49.20 | $50.37 |
| General forepersonJM + $6.00 | $51.20 | $52.37 |
| Welder with CWB ticket90% | $40.67 | $41.72 |
| Welder without CWB ticket85% | $38.40 | $39.39 |
| 4th-year apprentice90% | $40.67 | $41.72 |
| 3rd-year apprentice (4th-year plumber)80% | $36.13 | $37.07 |
| 2nd-year apprentice65% | $29.33 | $30.09 |
| 1st-year apprentice50% | $22.53 | $23.11 |
| 3rd-year plumber apprentice70% | $31.60 | $32.41 |
| 2nd-year plumber apprentice60% | $27.06 | $27.76 |
- Overtime
- All overtime, including Saturdays, is time and a half; Sundays and the twelve recognized holidays are double time (16.03(d), 17.03).
- Shift premium
- $4.50 an hour on every hour worked on shift.
- Vacation and stat holiday pay
- 6% vacation pay and 4% holiday pay on top of wages, taxed with them.
- LOA, subsistence and travel
- Negotiated with the Local for the job: $150 a day.
Maintenance (NMA / GPMA)
National Maintenance Agreement for Alberta 2025–2028 and the General Presidents' Maintenance Agreements (Suncor/Syncrude, CNRL and others), UA Local 488
$57.71 an hour, journeyperson, from May 3, 2026; $59.06 from May 2, 2027.
| Classification | From May 3, 2026 | From May 2, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Journeypersonbase rate | $57.71 | $59.06 |
| ForepersonJM + $5.50 | $63.21 | $64.56 |
| General forepersonJM + $7.50 | $65.21 | $66.56 |
| Welder with CWB ticket90% | $51.92 | $53.14 |
| Welder without CWB ticket85% | $49.03 | $50.18 |
| 4th-year apprentice90% | $51.92 | $53.14 |
| 3rd-year apprentice (4th-year plumber)80% | $46.14 | $47.22 |
| 2nd-year apprentice65% | $37.46 | $38.34 |
| 1st-year apprentice50% | $28.78 | $29.46 |
| 3rd-year plumber apprentice70% | $40.35 | $41.30 |
| 2nd-year plumber apprentice60% | $34.57 | $35.38 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 4th year85% | $49.03 | $50.18 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 3rd year75% | $43.25 | $44.26 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 2nd year65% | $37.46 | $38.34 |
| Instrument mechanic apprentice, 1st year55% | $31.67 | $32.42 |
Rates differ by site; this table shows Fort McMurray (NMA, subsistence). The app has the others.
- Overtime
- 5×8 (15.300(a)): 8 h straight, 2 h at time and a half, then double. 4×10 Mon–Thu or Tue–Fri (15.300(b)(c)): 10 h straight then double; the off weekday is time and a half for 10 h, then double.
- Shift premium
- $4.50 an hour on every hour worked on shift.
- Vacation and stat holiday pay
- 6% vacation pay and 4% holiday pay on top of wages, taxed with them.
- LOA, subsistence and travel
- Fort McMurray (NMA, subsistence): $200 a day; Elsewhere in Alberta (rate less $0.75): $150 a day; Grande Prairie: $205 a day; Wabasca: $200 a day; Canmore / Exshaw: $195 a day; 13 more in the app.
One 40-hour week, worked out
Week of October 25, 2026Journeyperson, Industrial construction (MECH)
Example| Day | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hours | 0 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 |
| Earnings | |
| Regular40 h × 57.71 | 2,308.40 |
| Vacation pay6% | 138.50 |
| Stat holiday pay4% | 92.34 |
| Gross pay | 2,539.24 |
| Deductions | |
| Building Trades Council and Fraternal Societyper hour earned | −9.60 |
| CPP5.95% | −147.08 |
| EI1.63% | −41.39 |
| Income taxestimate | −578.29 |
What's missing
Where the app can't follow a rule to the letter yet, its notes say so, and say how to allow for it when you enter your hours. From this page's agreements:
- Industrial construction (MECH). A break missed inside the double-time hours of a day is owed at double time, paid here at time and a half. On a day over 10 h the count also stands for the overtime meal not given, and adds once: a paid 15-minute break at the rate in force at that hour (double time past the 10th hour) plus a $45 meal allowance, in place of the paid half-hour (20.01(a)). The $45 is owed for each meal missed (a meal is due after the 10th hour and every 4 hours after that), so on a day past 14 hours with two meals missed add another $45 yourself.
- Maintenance (NMA / GPMA). On an unscheduled day of 12 h that isn't a turnaround shift, where the meal was given, add half an hour of straight time yourself.
- Maintenance (NMA / GPMA). The $40 is added on every day over 12 h unless Living-out is ticked, so on scheduled overtime take it off.
Enter your own hours in the Pipefitter Cheque app: it applies these rates, the overtime and holiday rules, dues and tax, and keeps a year of cheques. Free for a month.
Your agreement isn't here, or a number is wrong? Send us your agreement from the app's Settings tab. If the app doesn't have it yet, you get a free year when it's added.
Questions
What does a Local 488 journeyperson make in 2026?
$57.71 an hour under the CLR-A / UA Local 488 Mechanical (Plumbers & Pipefitters) Agreement 2025–2029, industrial work (Alberta), from May 3, 2026. The other agreements on this page: Commercial and institutional (MECH) $45.20 and Maintenance (NMA / GPMA) $57.71.
When is the next Local 488 raise?
The next step in the Industrial construction (MECH) schedule is $59.06 an hour on May 2, 2027.
What do Local 488 apprentices make?
4th-year apprentice $51.92 (90%), 3rd-year apprentice (4th-year plumber) $46.14 (80%), 2nd-year apprentice $37.46 (65%) and 1st-year apprentice $28.78 (50%) an hour from May 3, 2026.
How much is the Local 488 LOA?
Alberta-wide rate: $150 a day; Fort McMurray: $200 a day; Edmonton or Calgary (only by agreement for the job): $180 a day; Grande Prairie: $205 a day; Wabasca: $200 a day; 14 more in the app.
How is Local 488 overtime paid?
5×8 (16.01, 16.03): 8 h straight, the first 2 h of overtime at time and a half, then double. 4×10 (17.01–17.03): 10 h straight, then double; a Friday worked on a Mon–Thu schedule is time and a half for 10 h, then double (17.02); the Monday of a Tue–Fri schedule is treated the same way, as 17.02(b) does for the 10-on/4-off pattern.
Sources
The agreements and schedules these numbers were read from. Built October 15, 2026 from the Pipefitter Cheque app, version 1.0.0.
- MECH agreement 2025–2029 (CLR-A)
- Local 488 ICI wage pages 2025–2029
- CLR-A 2026 travel allowances
- CLR-A subsistence rates
- Local 488 bylaws (dues, June 2025)
- NMA Alberta 2025–2028 v4
- NMA Alberta wage schedule rev. May 3 2026 (Pipefitters 488 p.13)
- GPMA Suncor / Syncrude 2025–2028 v4
- GPMA Alberta wage schedule rev. May 3 2026
Independent. Not affiliated with any union. Check your agreement.