UnionPipefitters Local 496 wages 2026 (Alberta)
The hourly rates, overtime, shift, vacation and LOA rules of UA Local 496 in Alberta, read from the four 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 496 Mechanical (Plumbers & Pipefitters) Agreement 2025–2029, industrial work (southern Alberta)
$57.84an hour
Journeyperson, Industrial construction (MECH)
From May 3, 2026. Next step $58.85 on May 2, 2027.
| Classification | From May 3, 2026 | From May 2, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Journeyperson (steamfitter, B-pressure welder, plumber)base rate | $57.84 | $58.85 |
| ForepersonJM + $5.50 | $63.34 | $64.35 |
| General forepersonJM + $7.50 | $65.34 | $66.35 |
| Journeyperson welder with CWB | $52.00 | $52.91 |
| Journeyperson welder without CWB | $49.07 | $49.93 |
| 4th-year steamfitter apprentice | $52.00 | $52.91 |
| 3rd-year steamfitter-pipefitter and welder apprentice (4th-year plumber) | $46.15 | $46.96 |
| 2nd-year steamfitter-pipefitter and welder apprentice | $37.39 | $38.04 |
| 1st-year apprentice (steamfitter, welder, plumber) | $28.62 | $29.13 |
| 3rd-year plumber apprentice | $40.31 | $41.02 |
| 2nd-year plumber apprentice | $34.46 | $35.07 |
- 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, 5-day week (MECH)
CLR-A / UA Local 496 Mechanical Agreement 2025–2029, commercial and institutional work on a five-day week (southern Alberta)
$44.75 an hour, journeyperson, from May 3, 2026; $45.50 from May 2, 2027.
| Classification | From May 3, 2026 | From May 2, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Journeypersonbase rate | $44.75 | $45.50 |
| ForepersonJM + $3.00 | $47.75 | $48.50 |
| General forepersonJM + $6.00 | $50.75 | $51.50 |
| 4th-year steamfitter apprentice | $40.73 | $41.40 |
| 4th-year plumber, 3rd-year steamfitter or 3rd-year welder apprentice | $36.20 | $36.80 |
| 2nd-year steamfitter and welder apprentice | $27.15 | $27.60 |
| 1st-year apprentice (steamfitter, welder, plumber) | $22.63 | $23.00 |
| 3rd-year plumber apprentice | $31.68 | $32.20 |
| 2nd-year plumber apprentice | $29.41 | $29.90 |
- Overtime
- Overtime on a five-day week (16.03(d)): over 8 h a day or 40 h a week, Saturdays included, time and a half; Sundays and the twelve recognized holidays 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
- Negotiated with the Local for the job: $150 a day.
Commercial and institutional, compressed week (MECH)
CLR-A / UA Local 496 Mechanical Agreement 2025–2029, commercial and institutional work on a compressed (4×10) week (southern Alberta)
$44.75 an hour, journeyperson, from May 3, 2026; $45.50 from May 2, 2027.
| Classification | From May 3, 2026 | From May 2, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Journeypersonbase rate | $44.75 | $45.50 |
| ForepersonJM + $3.00 | $47.75 | $48.50 |
| General forepersonJM + $6.00 | $50.75 | $51.50 |
| 4th-year steamfitter apprentice | $40.73 | $41.40 |
| 4th-year plumber, 3rd-year steamfitter or 3rd-year welder apprentice | $36.20 | $36.80 |
| 2nd-year steamfitter and welder apprentice | $27.15 | $27.60 |
| 1st-year apprentice (steamfitter, welder, plumber) | $22.63 | $23.00 |
| 3rd-year plumber apprentice | $31.68 | $32.20 |
| 2nd-year plumber apprentice | $29.41 | $29.90 |
- Overtime
- In Local 496's area "all overtime hours .. shall be paid for at the rate of time and one-half except for work in Local 488's jurisdiction where work on Sundays and Statutory Holidays shall be paid at double time" (17.03): every overtime hour, the off weekday, Saturday, Sunday and the twelve holidays included, is time and a half.
- 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.
Sprinkler fitters
Canadian National Road Sprinkler Fitter Collective Agreement 2025–2028 (CASA / UA), Local 496 schedule
$52.35 an hour, journeyperson sprinkler fitter, from May 1, 2026; $54.35 from May 1, 2027.
| Classification | From May 1, 2026 | From May 1, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Journeyperson sprinkler fitterbase rate | $52.35 | $54.35 |
| Foreman (5 to 15 people)114% | $59.68 | $61.96 |
| Lead hand (a crew of 4)110% | $57.59 | $59.79 |
| Apprentice, 4th year80% | $41.88 | $43.48 |
| Apprentice, 3rd year70% | $36.65 | $38.05 |
| Apprentice, 2nd year60% | $31.41 | $32.61 |
| Apprentice, 1st year (the first 3 months are probation)50% | $26.18 | $27.18 |
- Overtime
- Alberta works the 40-hour week (6.3): 8 hours straight, the 9th and 10th hours of a day at time and a half, then double (7.2).
- Shift premium
- 15% of the rate on every hour worked on shift.
- Vacation and stat holiday pay
- 6% vacation pay and 6% holiday pay on top of wages, taxed with them.
- LOA, subsistence and travel
- Travel and living-out allowances for southern Alberta sprinkler work aren't built in: type your daily amount as the living-out rate.
One 40-hour week, worked out
Week of November 1, 2026Journeyperson (steamfitter, B-pressure welder, plumber), Industrial construction (MECH)
Example| Day | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hours | 0 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 |
| Earnings | |
|---|---|
| Regular40 h × 57.84 | 2,313.60 |
| Vacation pay6% | 138.82 |
| Stat holiday pay4% | 92.54 |
| Gross pay | 2,544.96 |
| Deductions | |
| CPP5.95% | −147.42 |
| EI1.63% | −41.48 |
| Income taxestimate | −583.78 |
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.
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.
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Questions
What does a Local 496 journeyperson make in 2026?
$57.84 an hour under the CLR-A / UA Local 496 Mechanical (Plumbers & Pipefitters) Agreement 2025–2029, industrial work (southern Alberta), from May 3, 2026. The other agreements on this page: Commercial and institutional, 5-day week (MECH) $44.75, Commercial and institutional, compressed week (MECH) $44.75 and Sprinkler fitters $52.35.
When is the next Local 496 raise?
The next step in the Industrial construction (MECH) schedule is $58.85 an hour on May 2, 2027.
What do Local 496 apprentices make?
4th-year steamfitter apprentice $52.00, 3rd-year steamfitter-pipefitter and welder apprentice (4th-year plumber) $46.15, 2nd-year steamfitter-pipefitter and welder apprentice $37.39 and 1st-year apprentice (steamfitter, welder, plumber) $28.62 an hour from May 3, 2026.
How much is the Local 496 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 496 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 18, 2026 from the Pipefitter Cheque app, version 1.0.0.
- MECH agreement 2025–2029 (CLR-A): Local 496 wage schedules 8.01(d) industrial p.19 and 8.01(e) commercial p.20; Articles 6, 14–21, 25, 29
- NMA Alberta wage schedule rev. May 3 2026 (Pipefitters – Local 496, pp.13–14; confirms the 2026 base)
- CLR-A 2026 travel allowances
- CLR-A subsistence rates
- Canadian National Road Sprinkler Fitter Collective Agreement 2025–2028 (CASA, NSCLRA and CLRA NL / UA Locals 56, 170, 179, 254, 325, 488, 496, 740, 853), web version with the Appendix 1 wage schedules (UA Local 179's copy)
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