A journeyman is a tradesperson who has completed an apprenticeship but does not yet have the qualifications to own a business or manage employees. While this term technically refers only to men, some people use it to refer to both men and women. Journeymen are fully trained, but their level of experience is only intermediate because they have not worked independently and lack the skills that come with years of experience in a particular trade. This term can also refer to a worker with intermediate skills in a broader sense.
Many trades that retain an apprenticeship system are governed law to ensure that people receive adequate training to practice safely before being allowed to advertise their services and work independently. When an apprentice begins work, he or she is required to register and may be required to pass a basic skills test before being allowed to work as an apprentice. After completing an apprenticeship for two to four years, the apprentice can apply to take the exam for journeyman status. Depending on the industry, professional organizations or government regulatory agencies may administer exams.
After passing a journeyman test, an apprentice can work in another tradesperson’s shop. Journeymen do not have employees or apprentices, and they are not permitted to own their own businesses, but they can work independently and gain skills that will allow them to advance to master status. It is possible to own a shop, hire journeymen, and work with apprentices after becoming a master of a trade.
Working as a journeyman provides a former apprentice with numerous opportunities to gain valuable experience in the real world while still having a mentor nearby. When a journeyman faces a new challenge or a situation that is unfamiliar, the journeyman’s employer can offer advice or suggestions. When someone is a master of a trade, on the other hand, it is assumed that he or she will not require the assistance of a mentor.
Journeymen plumbers, electricians, linemen, metalworkers, carpenters, and roofers are examples of journeymen. Journeymen are part of a centuries-old apprenticeship tradition; in many trades, the only way to learn skills is to practice them, and apprenticeships provide a structured environment for doing so safely and effectively. Apprentices and journeymen can eventually become masters who can teach the next generation of tradespeople.