So, you want to be a Drywall Finisher

leonel palos, reporter

Drywall finisher is a job that is part of the union. The general task of this job is putting walls on new buildings and prepared them for painters to paint them.

There is actually no private or for-profit colleges for drywall finishers. The schools that offer this career are local community colleges. The most economical option would be to go to an apprenticeship and training committee program. The program is a two-year apprenticeship program where you get paid and the wage increases during the 2 year period of time. The starting wage is at $18.62/hourand it rises up to $46.55/hour upon completion of a 2-year term. This program is located in 1101 n Taft Ave, Berkeley, IL 60163. Also, the name of the place is the Chicago Area Drywall.

My uncle, Rodrigo Palos has been working as a Drywall finisher for over 20 years for the Union.

Q: Was it difficult to do this job?

A: At first it was, but you would eventually get used to it.

Q: What is the earliest that you could retire?

A: the earliest for a person that could retire is at the age of 45, that’s if you start working at a young age.

Q: Are wages worth it for this job?

A: yes, because you don’t just get a good paying job, but you also get great benefits out of the union.

Q: what benefits do you get?

A: some benefits straight forward are; great medical insurance, you get the highest compensation after retirement, another benefit is you get to change the company you want to work and still get the same paying wage and benefits.

Q: How did you get into drywall?

A: I applied for an apprenticeship program at Chicago Area Drywall, back then it used to be for 5 months now it is a 2-year program.

Q: Is it fun working as a drywall finisher?

A: It actually is; you don’t get bored at all because you are working at different buildings?

Q: is it a great career to go after leaving high school?

A: This career is a good career to get after high school if you don’t have any plans of going to college because there is always going to be work.

Q: Is this a laborious job?

A: yes, it does get you tired after you have been the union for a while, but at the same time its worth it tours the end of the day.