Guide · Nov 11, 2026
How to read a data center job call (real IBEW examples from this week)
Scale, schedule, incentive, total package. What each line on a hall job call means, using real data center calls posted Nov 11, 2026.
The short answer
A job call tells you five things: the contractor, how many hands, the scale, the schedule, and what you need to show up with.
The money is in two places. The scale (your hourly check) and anything extra written in the call text, like an incentive, double time or per diem.
Every hall writes calls a little differently. Here are real data center calls from four halls, read on Nov. 11, 2026.
1. Scale and schedule
Here's a call from IBEW 613 in Atlanta:
Allison-Smith · QTS Fayette · Indefinite call working 4-10's & 2-8's Mon-Sat starting at 6am · 6 workers · Fayetteville QTS · $42.00
$42.00 is the scale. That's your hourly rate before overtime.
4-10's & 2-8's means four 10-hour days and two 8-hour days. That's 56 hours a week.
So you're working 16 hours of overtime every week before anyone asks you to stay late.
Indefinite means there's no set end date. It doesn't mean forever.
Same board, same day: foreman calls on data center jobs post at $46.20. That bump is the foreman rate. IBEW 613 job board
2. The incentive line
Here's IBEW 20 in the Dallas area:
Requesting (17) Journeyman · MORLEY MOSS ELECTRIC · pay scale 40.65 · 4-12's 1-8's 5AM · Long · QTS LANCASTER · THIS CALL IS PAYING AN INCENTIVE. BACKGROUND CHECK. DRUG TESTING MUST BE COMPLETED BEFORE ORIENTATION. ORIENTATION 11/17 @7AM. IF ALL HRS WORKED, AS AN INCENTIVE ALL OVERTIME WILL BE PAID AT DOUBLE TIME RATE.
The scale says $40.65. That's not the whole story.
4-12's and an 8 is 56 hours. If you work every scheduled hour, all overtime pays double time.
Read the condition. "If all hrs worked" means miss a day and you can lose the double time.
Long call means the contractor expects the work to last. And the drug test has to be done before orientation, so plan for that. IBEW 20 job calls
3. Big incentive programs
Here's IBEW 291 in Boise, on Meta's Kuna build:
Requesting (10) Journeyman Wireman · JH Kelly · wage $75.33, JH Kelly Meta Kuna Incentive Program · date 11/13/2026 · Pre-Hire Drug/Alcohol Testing, OSHA 10, Code of Excellence, Valid Driver's License · 5/8's working 5/10's M-F and 8 on Saturday · Start time: 7AM
$75.33 is a lot higher than most scales you'll see. The call ties it to a contractor incentive program on this one project.
"5/8's working 5/10's and 8 on Saturday" means the base schedule is five 8s, but the job is actually running 58 hours right now.
The hours on paper and the hours on the job aren't always the same. The base schedule is what you can count on. IBEW 291 dispatch
4. Check vs. total package
IBEW 683 in Columbus, Ohio posts its rates at the top of the board:
Inside Wireman Total Package: $73.42 · Check: $46.00 · Pension: $7.52 · Annuity: $4.50 · H&W: $12.50
Check is what hits your paycheck per hour. The total package adds pension, annuity and health and welfare.
When someone says a local "pays $73," ask if that's check or package. It's a $27 difference.
A data center call on the same board:
5-JW for a Regular Call(4-10's+8) with TSG at the Marysville Data Center. Tue-Wed orientation.
4-10's plus an 8 is 48 hours.
Per diem shows up in the call text when there is one. A filled solar call on the same board read "6-10's with $100 a day Per Deim." No per diem listed means don't count on it. IBEW 683 available calls
Before you call the hall
- Is the rate the check or the package?
- Is the incentive tied to perfect attendance?
- Is the posted schedule the base, or what they're working now?
- Is there per diem? If the call doesn't say, ask.
- What do you need at orientation: drug test, OSHA 10, license, two IDs?
And follow your own local's rules on traveling and signing books. The hall has the final word, not us.
Sources
All examples are copied (lightly condensed) from each hall's own public job board on Nov 11, 2026 at about 9 AM ET. Calls fill and change every day, so check the board before you travel.
See every open call
- Data center calls from the halls, updated twice a week: toolpull.com/union-calls
- Calls by local: toolpull.com/locals
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