Plumbing Apprenticeships in Arkansas: Programs, Requirements and How to Apply

Registered apprenticeship in Arkansas sits at the federal level: the U.S. Department of Labor lists Arkansas under its Office of Apprenticeship, and where no recognized state apprenticeship agency exists, DOL's Office of Apprenticeship registers programs through its state offices.

There is no state apprenticeship agency to apply to — you apply to the program sponsor itself.

The plumbing-specific state layer is licensing, not program registration: the Arkansas Department of Health licenses apprentice, journeyman and master plumbers through its Plumbing & Natural Gas section and its Committee of Plumbing Examiners, and it points plumbing apprentices to the state Office of Skills Development for apprenticeship rules and information.

On the union side, the UA local our research confirmed covering the state is Local 155; employer and association programs are covered below.

Federally, an apprenticeable occupation must require at least 2,000 hours of on-the-job learning under the industry standard.

Yes — Arkansas licenses plumbing apprentices: working as an apprentice plumber means holding the state's apprentice license.

ADH's licensing rules define an apprentice plumber as someone registered under an Arkansas master plumber and enrolled in the Apprentice Plumber training program outlined in Ark.

Code Ann. §17-31-401, et seq.

The apprentice application asks you to name the Arkansas master plumber you will be working under, and the fee is $25 per year as of the January 2026 fee schedule.

Apprentices who complete the state program can be considered for the journeyman exam.

Keep two registrations apart: your apprentice license is the state's, issued by ADH, while the apprenticeship program itself is registered with the federal Office of Apprenticeship — Arkansas has no state apprenticeship agency.

Finishing a registered apprenticeship earns the registration agency's completion certificate, which is a credential, not the plumbing license.

The UA local our research confirmed covering Arkansas is Local 155, listed in Little Rock.

Nationally, the UA describes its apprenticeships as registered with DOL, typically five years long, and covering plumbing, pipefitting, HVACR, welding and fire protection — a national description of UA programs, not a statement of Local 155's own terms.

Our research confirmed the local's jurisdiction from the UA's own directory, not its application process, so contact the hall to ask what plumbing programs it offers and how to apply.

Also in our research: SMART Sheet Metal Local 78, a sheet-metal local rather than a plumbing one, is listed as Little Rock, Arkansas (office in Sherwood).

Our research did not verify a registered plumbing apprenticeship run by PHCC, ABC or another merit-shop association in Arkansas, so treat the national associations as places to ask rather than confirmed options.

ABC describes itself as founded on the merit shop philosophy and reports more than 24,000 members, and PHCC — the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association — offers apprenticeship content through an online learning academy; which chapters run registered programs is chapter-level detail our research did not verify.

The test for any employer program is the same as for a union one: Arkansas has no state apprenticeship agency, so a registered program is registered by DOL's Office of Apprenticeship — ask who registered it before you sign on.

One Arkansas rule shapes training outside the state apprenticeship program directly: at exam time, applications from unlicensed persons not enrolled in the Arkansas Plumbing Apprenticeship Program must be accompanied by notarized affidavits from current or former employers documenting plumbing and gas-fitting work history, and only legal work history counts.

Enrollment in the state program is what spares you the affidavit route at exam time.

Our research did not confirm a published list of plumbing related-instruction providers, community colleges or training centers in Arkansas, so ask your sponsor where its classroom hours are delivered and confirm with ADH before you rely on any school's claim.

What the state does publish is a pointer: ADH directs plumbing apprentices to the Office of Skills Development for rules, guidelines and information about Arkansas apprenticeship.

On the license side, the instruction backbone is the state Apprentice Plumber training program itself — enrollment is part of the apprentice definition, and apprentices who complete it can be considered for the journeyman exam.

Federally, DOL recommends a minimum of 144 hours of related technical instruction per year of apprenticeship — a recommendation, not a requirement — and program terms may be time-based, competency-based or a hybrid.

In Arkansas, start on the license side: find the master plumber you will be working under, file ADH's apprentice plumber application and pay the $25 annual fee as of the January 2026 schedule; the rules also require enrolling in the state Apprentice Plumber training program.

ADH's public plumbing license search shows whether a plumber license is on the register before you commit.

Then pick the program: contact UA Local 155 to ask about its plumbing programs, or ask merit-shop employers whether they run a registered program — Arkansas has no state apprenticeship agency, so registration is with the federal Office of Apprenticeship.

Federal floors apply too: apprentices must be at least 16 unless a higher minimum age is set by law, there is no federal maximum age, probation cannot exceed 25% of the program length or 1 year, whichever is shorter, and pay follows a progressively increasing schedule tied to skill.

Completion brings the registration agency's certificate — a credential, not the license; the journeyman and master license requirements are on our Arkansas plumbing license requirements page.

Our guide to how to get a plumbing apprenticeship covers the steps, and our plumbing apprentice pay guide explains apprentice rates.