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What you earn during training — and as a skilled worker
One of the big differences between a vocational education and an academic education is that you get paid while you learn. From the day you sign a training contract with a company, you are employed as an apprentice and receive apprentice pay — even during the periods when you are at school.
Trainee pay is structured in steps (rates) that increase the further you progress through the programme. The principle is that you start at the lowest rate and move up a step as you complete parts of the training — typically when you have passed the basic course and been in the company for a while, and then for each year of the agreement. In this way, the experience and competencies you build are rewarded.
A collective agreement is an agreement between an employers' organization and a trade union about wage and working conditions in an area. For the industrial technician trade the wage typically falls under the industry collective agreement area negotiated between the employers' side and the union. The collective agreement sets a minimum wage for each apprentice tier and a long list of other conditions — and the rates are exactly minimum so you can well negotiate a higher wage.
When you have passed the journeyman exam you go from apprentice wages to significantly higher skilled wages. As skilled you are still covered by a collective agreement if your workplace has one and you have the rights that come with it – e.g. pension allowances and termination notice. A recognized journeyman certificate also gives you a strong negotiating position because there is demand for skilled industrial technicians.
If you get training through school because you haven't yet found a company, you get a school training allowance instead. It is lower than the ordinary apprentice wage, but ensures you income so you can move forward in your education while looking for an agreement.
“You learn the trade by hand — and you get paid while you do it. That's the core of the apprenticeship route.”