Electrical · Talent network
This is a first job in electrical work, built for people with no experience. You start as a helper to a licensed electrician, usually on new construction. At rough-in you drill studs, mount boxes, and pull wire through the framing to the layout the electrician marks out. Weeks later the crew comes back to trim out: devices, cover plates, fixtures, and making up the panel. In between you stage material, keep the truck organized and clean up the site, which is what gets a helper trusted with more. Expect to carry basic hand tools, such as lineman's pliers, strippers, screwdrivers and a voltage tester. Safety is not negotiable: you test before you touch, every time.
Starting as an electrician in San Antonio, you register with the TDLR as an apprentice on day one, and your shop sponsors your hours from there. Texas asks for 8,000 logged hours before the journeyman exam, and because the record is held by the state, it follows you to any shop in Texas. Beginners here start on residential new construction on the north side and up I-35 toward Schertz and New Braunfels, or on commercial maintenance tied to the bases and the medical center, which runs steadier than construction does. Living costs run lower than in Austin or Dallas, so a starting wage covers more here. Loop 410 and Loop 1604 set the shape of most commutes, and it is worth checking the drive at rush hour before you say yes to a shop across town.
In San Antonio, the first rung, apprentice, pays $35K-50K a year, roughly $17-24 an hour. Once you can work without someone at your elbow, journeyman pay is $60K-85K, and lead or foreman roles start around $95K+. Market ranges, not an offer. With no experience, expect the low end at first.
TDLR: Register as an apprentice day one, shops sponsor your hours.
From helper, the path is apprentice, journeyman, then master. Some states register you on day one, and others leave the record to you and the shop. Either way, in most states the journeyman exam asks for years of logged, supervised work, so keep a careful record of your hours from the start.
Openings come from shops across San Antonio, New Braunfels, Schertz and Converse. Tell us how far you will drive and your profile only goes to shops within it.
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