Guides

Apprentice rates and ratios on New York prevailing wage jobs

Apprentices can lower your labor cost on a New York prevailing wage job, but only when the paperwork is right. This guide covers who counts as an apprentice under Article 8 of the Labor Law, how apprentice rates appear on the NYSDOL wage schedule, how the journeyworker to apprentice ratios work, and what happens when a worker is paid as an apprentice but is not registered.

One rule before anything else: apprentice rates differ by trade and by county. The wage schedule for your project is what counts. The rates quoted below come from the Albany County schedule for July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027, last published October 1, 2026. They show how schedules are written, not what you owe on your job.

Who counts as an apprentice on New York public work?

Labor Law Section 220 is short and strict on this. No employee is an apprentice unless they are individually registered in an apprenticeship program that is registered with the Commissioner of Labor under Article 23 of the Labor Law. Section 220 subdivision 3-e says the same thing another way: apprentices may work as apprentices only when they are registered, individually, under a bona fide program registered with the New York State Department of Labor.

What this means in practice:

• Both must be registered. The program has to be registered, and the worker has to be registered in it by name. A worker who is learning the trade on the job but is not registered is not an apprentice under Section 220.
• Apprentices are not common labor. The law says serving laborers, helpers, assistants and apprentices shall not be classified as common labor.
• Have proof before day one. Under subdivision 3-e, the contractor or subcontractor must furnish written evidence of the registration of its program and apprentices, and of the appropriate ratios and wage rates for the area, before using any apprentices on the contract work.

NYSDOL describes registered apprenticeship as a formal training relationship between an employer and an employee that combines hands on work experience with classroom instruction. A sponsor registers the program with NYSDOL, and sponsors must tell NYSDOL about any changes in their program or apprentices.

How do apprentice rates appear on the wage schedule?

Look under each classification on the wage schedule for a section headed REGISTERED APPRENTICES. It has two parts, just like the journeyworker rate: wages per hour and supplemental benefits per hour.

Wages are usually a percentage of the journeyworker wage, by term. The apprentice moves up a step at the start of each term. How long a term lasts depends on the trade. Some examples from the Albany County schedule:

Supplements are listed separately, usually as dollar amounts. They are not always a percentage. Again from the Albany County schedule:

• Carpenter, Building: $13.51 per hour in the 1st and 2nd terms, $16.11 in the 3rd and 4th.
• Insulator, Heat and Frost: one amount for all apprentices, $28.30 per hour worked.
• Boilermaker: a dollar amount for each term plus $1.49, and the $1.49 "is NOT subject to the SAME PREMIUM as shown for overtime."
• Elevator Constructor: in the first six months, "6% of the regular hourly apprentice rate paid, no additional supplemental benefits." For all other terms, the same supplements as the journeyworker.

Read the notes too. They often change the answer:

• Indenture date. The Tile Setter and Tile Finisher listing has one set of terms for apprentices indentured before July 1, 2024 and a different set for those indentured on or after that date.
• Extra amounts for some work. The Carpenter, Building listing adds $0.25 per hour for pile driving or dock building work, $3.00 per hour when the apprentice must be a certified welder and does that welding, and $1.50 per hour for work in a contaminated area on a designated hazardous waste site where protective equipment is required.
• Amounts added to every hour. The Glazier listing adds $5.15 to the apprentice wage for all hours, straight or premium.
• Pointers to another listing. The Laborer, Tunnel listing says that for apprentice rates you refer to the Laborer, Heavy and Highway rate for the county and location of the work.

Rates change during the year. The schedule says updates are made quarterly, so check the current schedule for each payroll period. For overtime codes and supplement premiums, read the classification's overtime section as explained in how fringe benefits and overtime are calculated on New York prevailing wage jobs.

What are the journeyworker to apprentice ratios?

A ratio sets how many journeyworkers must be on the job for each apprentice. NYSDOL says ratios exist to ensure the proper safety, training and supervision of apprentices, and that a ratio sets the number of journeyworkers required for each apprentice in a program and on a job site.

Section 220 subdivision 3-e says the allowable ratio of apprentices to journeyworkers in any craft classification may not be greater than the ratio the registered program allows the contractor for its work force on any job.

How to read a ratio. The wage schedule explains it with the example 1:1,1:3:

1. One journeyworker must be in place on the project before the first apprentice is allowed.
2. Then three more journeyworkers are needed before a second apprentice is allowed.
3. The last ratio repeats. Three more journeyworkers must be present before a third apprentice, and so on.

The Albany County schedule lists these ratios of registered apprentices to journeyworkers:

For questions, the schedule points to NYSDOL's Apprentice Training Central Office.

What if a worker is not a registered apprentice?

Subdivision 3-e answers this directly: any employee listed on a payroll at an apprentice wage rate who is not registered must be paid the wage rate NYSDOL set for the classification of work they actually performed.

That is why the registration check comes first. Before a worker goes on the payroll at an apprentice rate, confirm the program is registered with NYSDOL, the worker is registered in it, and the term you are paying matches.

How do apprentices show on the NYSDOL certified payroll?

The NYSDOL bulk upload format has a required field for every worker, nysRegisteredApprentice, which must be true or false. So each weekly payroll you submit says, worker by worker, whether that person is a New York registered apprentice. Mark it true only when the registration above is in place.

Section 220 also lists apprenticeship training among the supplements an employer can provide, and the upload format has an "Apprenticeship/Training" type for benefit contributions. For where these fields sit in the portal, see how to submit certified payroll to the NYSDOL portal.

Common questions

Who counts as a registered apprentice in New York? A worker who is individually registered in an apprenticeship program that is itself registered with the New York State Department of Labor. Only then may you pay apprentice rates on public work.

How is an apprentice paid on a New York prevailing wage job? At the apprentice rate on the wage schedule for the classification. Wages are usually a percentage of the journeyworker wage for each term, and supplements are listed separately for each term.

What does a ratio like 1:1,1:3 mean? One journeyworker must be on the project before the first apprentice. After that, three more journeyworkers are needed for each additional apprentice.

What if someone paid as an apprentice is not registered? They must be paid the wage rate NYSDOL set for the classification of work they actually performed, not the apprentice rate.

How WeeklyCert helps

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This guide is general information, not legal advice. Your project's wage schedule, your registered program and NYSDOL decide what you owe.