Free progression worksheet. Official sources read 2026-10-30; site guides checked 2026-10-26 to 2026-10-27.
Texas Lineworker Apprentice to Journeyman: A Progression Record You Fill In
Your sponsor or employer sets the steps, hours and reviewers. This record gives you one place to copy those rules, track your evidence against them and see the next gap before a review, not after it.
This is a blank, non-authoritative template. It is not a TDLR, Department of Labor or program form. It does not set hours, approve a step, interpret a labor agreement, count training toward a license or guarantee a position or wage. Copy every threshold from the current written source for your own program and keep the source date beside it.
What the public sources already fix
The license. The TDLR Journeyman Lineman page lists two routes: 7,000 hours of training in an apprenticeship program approved by the US Department of Labor, or 3.5 years of experience as a journeyman lineman for a Texas electric utility, electric cooperative, municipally owned utility or electrical contractor. On the experience route a supervising electrician signs the experience section, and TDLR may contact that person. Our Journeyman Lineman license guide walks through both routes.
Not the same as the electrician license. If you are on the inside wiring route instead, the TDLR Journeyman Electrician page asks for 8,000 hours of on-the-job training under the general supervision of a Texas Master Electrician. You may apply with at least 7,000 hours, and each supervisor signs the ELC017 experience verification form. Keep the two routes in separate records.
The program. A registered apprenticeship program sets its own term and rules inside the federal standards at 29 CFR 29.5. The sponsor chooses a time-based term (at least 2,000 hours of on-the-job learning), a competency-based term or a hybrid (29.5(b)(2)). The section recommends at least 144 hours of related instruction per year (29.5(b)(4)) and calls for a progressively increasing wage schedule (29.5(b)(5)), periodic review and evaluation with records kept (29.5(b)(6)), a stated apprentice to journeyworker ratio (29.5(b)(7)) and a rule for credit for previous experience (29.5(b)(12)).
So TDLR looks at your hours for the license, while class hours, demonstrations, evaluations, make-up rules and wage steps come from your program or employer. A sponsor such as SWLCAT describes apprentices working under journeyworker supervision with orientation, classroom and field training; see our supervised training entries page. Find your own program’s standards through the TDLR apprentice program list or the DOL apprenticeship finder, then copy them into the tables below.
Advancement thresholds by program type
One program per table. The two license rows are filled from TDLR; every program row stays blank until you copy it from your program standards. If a field is not in writing, leave it blank and ask; a blank does not mean yes.
| Route or program type | Hours required | Stage or step name | Evidence type | Who reviews or signs | Source and date read | Your status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TDLR Journeyman Lineman, apprenticeship route | 7,000 hours in a DOL-approved apprenticeship | License application and exam | Program training records | TDLR decides | TDLR, 2026-10-30 | ________________ |
| Comparison only: TDLR Journeyman Electrician | 8,000 hours; may apply at 7,000 | License application and exam | ELC017 from each supervisor | Supervising Master Electrician signs; TDLR decides | TDLR, 2026-10-30 | ________________ |
| Registered program, time-based | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | ________________ | ________________ |
| Registered program, competency-based | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | ________________ | ________________ |
| Registered program, hybrid | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | [ ] (copy from your program standards, page __) | ________________ | ________________ |
Status words to use: Met with evidence, In progress, Not started, Need confirmation.
Learning map: distribution theory, line equipment and drawings
Map each topic to the official outline that will actually test you: your program competency list for steps, and the candidate bulletin linked from our license guide for the TDLR exam. Write the competency ID exactly as your program numbers it; this page does not invent course numbers.
| Topic | Program competency ID | Where it appears in your official outline | Evidence you can already show | Gap to close | Date reviewed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| System and theory (distribution basics) | [ ] | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Protection | [ ] | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Transformers and line equipment | [ ] | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Fault reading | [ ] | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Grounding and bonding | [ ] | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Reading construction drawings, staking sheets and maps | [ ] | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
Skill demonstration, supervised practice and assessment
Each task moves through the same records. Ask your supervisor who is qualified to demonstrate and assess each task, and how crew rotation is scheduled so you see every task in your step. This record is not an official evaluation; the program’s own sign-off is.
| Task | Date demonstrated | Demonstrated by (qualified person) | Supervised practice dates | Formal evaluation date | Evaluator | Result: pass, retrain or retest | Retest date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
Rotation log: crew, foreman, dates and the tasks you performed. Keep it in the same folder so a reviewer can match tasks to hours.
Safety, rescue and PPE training: is it still valid for this employer?
The employer has to train you for the hazards of the work. The OSHA rules to read are 1926.21 (construction safety training), 1926.95 (PPE), 1910.332 (electrical safety training) and, for line work, 1910.269 paragraph (a)(2) (training). Refresher intervals come from the employer, so those fields stay blank until you have them in writing.
| Training | Provider | Date completed | Expiry or retraining interval | Work scope it covers | Proof you hold | Who confirmed it for this employer, and how |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pole-top or bucket rescue | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Climbing and fall protection | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| PPE and rubber goods | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| First aid and CPR | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
Where to look for more training entries: rescue, safety and CDL training entries and first-year tools and PPE questions.
Pay check at each step up to journey
A registered program has a progressively increasing wage schedule (29 CFR 29.5(b)(5)); the amounts are in your program standards or labor agreement, not on this page. For federal overtime basics, the DOL overtime page says covered nonexempt workers get at least one and one half times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. Check every pay line separately. Our total rewards comparison explains why travel time and storm work need their own rows.
| Pay line | Written source to request | Rate or rule as written | Effective date | What you were actually paid | Match? If not, who you asked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hourly rate for the new step | Program wage schedule or controlling agreement | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Overtime and premium time | Agreement and payroll policy | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Benefits | Current plan documents and eligibility notice | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Travel time | Assignment terms and time policy | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Per diem and expense reimbursement | Reimbursement policy and assignment letter | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| On-call and callout | On-call policy or agreement | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
| Applicable agreement | Name and effective dates of the CBA or program wage schedule | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
Take a mismatch to payroll or your union representative with the source and your pay stub. This worksheet does not decide what you are owed.
Sources
- TDLR Journeyman Lineman license, read 2026-10-30
- TDLR Journeyman Electrician license, read 2026-10-30
- TDLR ELC017 Electrician Experience Verification Form (PDF), cited on this site
- 29 CFR 29.5, standards of apprenticeship (eCFR), read 2026-10-30
- TDLR apprentice program list, cited on this site
- DOL apprenticeship job finder, cited on this site
- OSHA 1926.21 safety training and education, cited on this site
- OSHA 1926.95 personal protective equipment, cited on this site
- OSHA 1910.332 electrical safety training, read 2026-10-30
- OSHA 1910.269 electric power generation, transmission and distribution, cited on this site
- DOL Wage and Hour Division, overtime pay, read 2026-10-30
