Auburn plumber named Apprentice of the Year by ABC NorCal Chapter

Lindsay Fitzgerald had no idea she was in the running for an award, so she was "surprised and excited, kinda taken aback a bit" to learn recently she was named Apprentice of the Year in the plumbing category by the Associated Builders and Contractors Northern California Chapter. An Auburn resident since 1996, Fitzgerald was among several award winners to be honored as part of ABC NorCal's 24th annual Apprenticeship Program Graduation Ceremony in Livermore. Foresthill resident Allen Perkins (plumbing) was among those specially recognized with Outstanding Performance Awards for their craft. Fitzgerald is three years into her apprenticeship. She said the program combines school with on-the-job training. In her last school session, she said she earned the highest overall score in the class, including midterms and finals. She also said she was "certain" she received good reviews from her employer. "They just called me one day and told me I had been nominated. I have no clue about it," Fitzgerald said. "It was very uplifting and made me feel good and confident that I had been doing a good job and somebody was watching." Fitzgerald said ABC NorCal contracts with several companies that offer prevailing-wage jobs, and those companies are required by the state to fill a certain amount of apprentice hours. Said Fitzgerald, "Companies that contract with ABC a lot of times will say, 'We need an apprentice for 40 hours' to fulfill their requirements, so ABC will dispatch an apprentice, kick back to ABC and wait for the next job to come along." The hope for apprentices is to receive a full-time job offer. "That's the case with me," Fitzgerald said, explaining she worked a three-hour job for KS Plumbing in Rancho Cordova. "They called me the next day and said, 'Hey, you want a full-time job?' And I've been with them ever since. "I'm super fortunate. They're the most amazing company to work for, family owned and operated and they're nothing short of amazing for sure."