Iron Workers Union

Did you know that the Golden Gate Bridge was built by ironworkers? What about the testing and building facilities for the Stealth Fighter and Space Shuttle or the famous "Gateway to the West" - the St. Louis Arch? How about the Oil Sands Plant Expansion in Alberta? That's right - ironworkers erected those projects too. Think about it. Nearly every structure you can think of - schools, sports stadiums, shopping malls, hospitals, bridges, office and industrial buildings - all required the skills of trained ironworkers.

In 1983, the Iron Workers set out to establish standardized reciprocal agreements that would be acceptable throughout the U.S. and throughout Canada. Did the Iron Workers achieve their goal? We came close. However, special issues arise if you work outside the U.S., including Canada. You need to know that with the exception of a few outside local unions noted below, a few local unions, most are signatory to the Iron Workers International Health and Welfare Reciprocal Agreement and the Iron Workers International Reciprocal Pension Agreement have been signed by all of the remaining Iron Worker local unions, see the Directory listing.

The International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers Union, AFL-CIO (IW), is a proud trade association whose beginnings go back to the 1890s. The IW represents 120,000 members in North America. Members of our union have worked on nearly every major construction project you can think of - the Golden Gate Bridge, the Sears Tower, the St. Louis Arch, the Oil Sands Plant Expansion in Alberta, the World Trade Center and Freedom Tower. We represent ironworkers who work on bridges, structural steel, ornamental, architectural, and miscellaneous metals, rebar and in shops.

The shop department of the Iron Workers organizes and bargains for thousands of employees who work for the approximately 500 employers in the steel fabrication and related industries. Like the rest of the Iron Workers, the shop department operates in both the United States and Canada. The shop department offers employees as well as their employers the opportunity to participate in the National Shopmen's Pension Plan, the Canadian National Shopmen's Pension Plan and a National Health Care Plan managed by IMPACT.