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How the fire brigade works during an alert
One of the big advantages of a vocational education is that you earn money while you learn. As soon as you have a training contract with a company, you receive apprentice pay. Here we look at how pay is structured, what a collective agreement means, and what conditions come with holding your journeyman's certificate.
As an apprentice you receive wages from the day your training agreement comes into force. It is not state educational grant — it is real wages that your employer pays. A consistent principle in vocational apprenticeships is that apprentice wages increase in steps through the course. The further you are in your training the more you can do and the greater value you create for the company — therefore the rate typically increases for each new training year.
A collective agreement is an agreement between employers and employees about salary and working conditions. On the green sector it is the employers' association for horticulture agriculture and forestry and the trade union 3F that negotiate terms for among others greenkeepers and their apprentices. The agreement describes among other things wage scales working hours allowances and other rights and it gives you a known framework to lean on instead of having everything negotiated individually.
Greenkeepers in golf clubs are covered by the Golf Agreement between the employers' association GLS-A and 3F Den Grønne Gruppe. The new agreement applies for 2026-2029. Apprentices are paid weekly, both during on-the-job training and at school:
| Year of training | From 1 March 2026 | From 1 March 2027 | From 1 March 2028 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | DKK 3,076.66/week | DKK 3,184.34/week | DKK 3,295.79/week |
| Year 2 | DKK 3,556.23/week | DKK 3,680.70/week | DKK 3,809.52/week |
| 3. år | DKK 4,245.92/week | DKK 4,394.53/week | DKK 4,548.34/week |
| Year 4 | DKK 5,106.69/week | DKK 5,285.42/week | DKK 5,470.41/week |
Pay is counted backwards: for the last 12 months before the journeyman's test you get the year-4 rate (§ 38(1)). You have the right to an annual pay negotiation, which must be held no later than the first week of March.
When you are 18 and have been in the programme for 3 months, you join an occupational pension scheme in PensionDanmark. From 1 June 2026 the total contribution is 13.00% when you are 18-19 (employer 11.00% + you 2.00%), and 13.99% once you are 20 (11.66% + 2.33%). If you are not yet in the pension scheme, the employer pays for an insurance scheme for you (§ 38(2) and (5)).
When you are fully trained and have your journeyman certificate you go from apprentice wages to skilled wages. As skilled you have a recognized competence that typically provides better wages and conditions than unskilled work in the same area. Many greenkeepers are employed in golf clubs stadiums and sports facilities and here collective agreement terms often apply with fixed wages pension and allowances according to the agreement on the area.
After the journeyman's test you get the skilled hourly rate. For greenkeepers, groundsmen and others with relevant vocational training, the hourly rate in the Golf Agreement is DKK 172.60 per hour from 1 March 2026, DKK 177.35 from 1 March 2027 and DKK 181.85 from 1 March 2028 (§ 7, A).
If you are 25 or older when you sign the training agreement, you are an adult apprentice. Under the Golf Agreement you are paid as an adult employee if you have worked at least 12 months in the company before, or if the company receives wage reimbursement from AUB while you are at school. In other cases the agreement recommends adult pay, and the company must have an objective reason to say no (§ 38(6)).
“Becoming a skilled tradesperson is not just a certificate — it is a key to better pay and more secure conditions for the rest of your working life.”