New Jersey Electrical License CEU Requirement, IMPORTANT!

[infinity]

A colleague is starting a petition to ask the State to lower the number of CEU credits that NJ EC's must take to renew their contractor's license. This would help to save a few hundred dollars and two days of classroom time in these hard economic times. They have setup an online petition for any NJ EC's are interested in this matter. The link is in the quote below.

Friends,

I just created a petition entitled The NJ Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors: Lower the amount of continuing education hours for Electrical contractors, because I care deeply about this very important issue.

We are proposing to lower the 24 hour CEU requirement to 16 hours and the 10 hour update to 8 hours.
This will save two days of continuing education and save you over $200.

We are trying to collect 100 signatures, and we could really use your help.

To read more about what we are trying to do and to sign our petition, click here:
http://www.change.org/petitions/the-...SfLAxmh&pe=pce

It'll just take a minute!

Once you're done, please ask other licensed electricians to sign the petition as well.




Thank you,

 

[M4gery]

Personally, I don't think 34 hours every 3 years is really that bad. I wish NJ would make a Journeyman qualification (that they actually use) and require CEU's for that too.

In the last contract negotiation at my local union they now require all Journeyman Wiremen to have CEU's every 3 years. This can be accomplished in the form of the CEU classes that the hall offers to it's members who hold NJ State Contractor Licenses or by taking other courses that are offered for free to all members (Solar, H.V. Splicing, Codeology, Health Care Facilities, NJ Rehabilitation and Barrier Free Subcode, etc.).

I don't think the current requirement for the Contractor License is excessive and I think more is better than less. Just my opinion.

 

[infinity]

Personally, I don't think 34 hours every 3 years is really that bad. I wish NJ would make a Journeyman qualification (that they actually use) and require CEU's for that too.

In the last contract negotiation at my local union they now require all Journeyman Wiremen to have CEU's every 3 years. This can be accomplished in the form of the CEU classes that the hall offers to it's members who hold NJ State Contractor Licenses or by taking other courses that are offered for free to all members (Solar, H.V. Splicing, Codeology, Health Care Facilities, NJ Rehabilitation and Barrier Free Subcode, etc.).

I don't think the current requirement for the Contractor License is excessive and I think more is better than less. Just my opinion.

Have you ever taken the required 34 hours?

 

[krisinjersey]

No problem with the 34

No problem with the 34

I don't have an issue with the 34 hours. It's spread over 3 years and 10 of them are the code update. What would be nice, is if the state let you use the NFPA training courses for CEU's, but since NFPA won't pay the instructor fees, that won't happen. This entire endeavor helps to pay for the electrical board and taking funding away isn't going to happen. Be realistic, this is Jersey and the establishment won't listen until you get the backing of an organization with some money to throw around for support of someone's election campaign. I just booked a 2 CEU class with Warshauer for $25 including dinner. There are more affordable options for CEU's that the one stop shops that hammer it all out in a few days. And if anything we should be making obtaining and maintaining the license more stringent to ensure the value of the license. If there were less active license numbers, we'd be in higher demand and the cost of maintaining the license would simply be a byproduct covered under operating expenses.

 

[infinity]

My problem with many of the CEU classes that I've attended over the years is that there is no incentive to learn anything. The board merely requires you to sit there for the prescribed number of hours and that's it. And as with most things there are good CEU's and worthless CEU's. The concept is great, better educated electricians, but the reality is that many guys are just there because they have to be not because they're interested in learning something. You could learn more on this forum in a weekend then in some of the lousy classes that I've taken. I've seen guys put there books on the table, sign in and disappear. They miraculously reappear hours later right when the class is about to end. Don't get me wrong the 10 hour code update is great, albeit a little too long, if you really want to learn the new stuff. The bad part is that only the guy holding the license is required to take the code update so the average Joe with a tool pouch has no idea of what's changing around him unless he's motivated to learn on his own.

 

[M4gery]

Have you ever taken the required 34 hours?

No, not the "required" 34 hours, as you apparently know. However, I have taken dozens and dozens of hours per year of extra courses. I took these courses not out of requirement, but to better myself and make myself more employable.

And if anything we should be making obtaining and maintaining the license more stringent to ensure the value of the license.

Agreed 100%

 

[M4gery]

My problem with many of the CEU classes that I've attended over the years is that there is no incentive to learn anything. The board merely requires you to sit there for the prescribed number of hours and that's it. And as with most things there are good CEU's and worthless CEU's.

While what you say is accurate, I still can't see it as being a reason to remove or lesson the CEUs. Let's take it one step further and look at the initial requirements to get the Contractor's License. We can say the same thing you are saying here about all of them. I know people who went thru their entire apprenticeship without opening a book. I know people who went thru their first 5 years as "go-fors" and coffee boys. However, they now have the required qualifications to get a Contractor's License. So now looking at that, should we get rid of those initial requirements just because they are not all equal (and the other reasons you mentioned above)?

 

[Hv&Lv]

Aren't most states 8 hours a year? Your additional hours of code changes and administrative law would seem to be helpful wouldn't they?

 

[Ken9876]

If there were less active license numbers, we'd be in higher demand and the cost of maintaining the license would simply be a byproduct covered under operating expenses.

No you?re never going to be in higher demand until the state and the board starts actively going after unlicensed people, and educating the public as to the dangers of unlicensed work. Or until the economy picks up enough that you?re not competing against unlicensed electricians.
Furthermore I believe the CEU requirement total nonsense I can take engineering classes, however they wouldn?t count toward an ounce of CEU credit. But I can sit all day long at some horrible class and that counts.

 

[M4gery]

Furthermore I believe the CEU requirement total nonsense I can take engineering classes, however they wouldn?t count toward an ounce of CEU credit. But I can sit all day long at some horrible class and that counts.

So it seems like the best bet here would be to petition the board on why other classes should count towards your CEU's.

 

[RICK NAPIER]

I may be biased but I support the CEU requirements. While it's true that a number of a number of people just put in time at these seminars a majority of the participants are engaged and interested in the very issues that affect thier livelyhood. If this argument where to prevail we should have given up on high schools a long time ago.
There are many opportunities to acquire CEU's from trade organizations, trade shows and private groups. The Electrical Board of Examineers are pretty liberal in what they accept for CEU's seminars the geatest impedimant is the unwillingness of groups to apply for recognition of their courses. Perhaps a criteria of accepting courses recognized by other organizations such as NFPA could be proposed. The board currently accepts courses approved by the DCA for electrical inspectors so maybe this could be acheived.
Having attended and given many seminars, my current inspector licenses requires 60 hours in 3 years, I understand the value of a good seminar. A good seminar is when I walk away with more knowledge on a topic than I began with. A great seminar is when I leave with more knowledge and a desire to research some issues to discover more. A bad seminar is when I know more about that instructors family, hobby, boat or any other topic than the one the seminar was on.

 

[coffeebean]

I will agree that some seminars turn into a BS session. I have my NJ contractors license and electrical sub code license which requires me to take an administrative seminar which I sometimes find more informative then the electircal ceu's. I try to go to the closest facility rather then travel across the state for the mind numbing courses sometimes given by salesmen but that is only because the state of NJ is cheap and won't pay for the proper instructors or better facilities.I have no problem with the 34 hrs the courses I attended were available in the evening or Saturday & Sunday