heres some incentive and food for thought for you and your crew. i just turned 2nd step apprentice through the cal/nev jatc and the wage hourly is $28.91. every six months i am eligible for an approx. $2 pay raise if i meet certain requirements which include ojt hours, monthly progress reports, monthly schooling and pass a step test. whatever contractor i work for they put $6.25 an hour into a pension for me on top of that hourly wage. additionally, they also pay 100% of my medical. all overtime is DOUBLETIME. sat. and sundays are DOUBLETIME. best part- on top of that they are paying for my apprenticeship. books, teachers, training etc. imagine putting yourself through 4 year college, how much do you think that would cost nowadays. on a low end maybe 40-50K. we get college credits too. i'm sure theres more i'm missing.
i'm not sure where you live but i think it would be to your benefit to check into your local union hall and do what it takes to get in.