Improving Transition Outcomes of Youth with 

Disabilities by Increasing Access to Apprenticeship 

Opportunities 

ODEP Issue Papers Project 

Contract Number: DOLJ061A20380 – Task Order #6 

Prepared for: 

The U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy 

Prepared by: 

Irene Lynn 

Institute for Educational Leadership 

and 

Dominique Mack 

HeiTech Services, Inc. 

December 2008
The findings and conclusions in this report 

are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views, official 

opinion or policy of the U.S. Department of Labor. 

This document was developed jointly by the Institute for Educational 

Leadership and HeiTech Services, Inc. 

Institute for Educational Leadership 

4455 Connecticut Ave., NW, Ste. 310 

Washington, DC 20008 

HeiTech Services, Inc. 

8201 Corporate Dr., Ste. 600 

Landover, MD 20785 

Individuals may reproduce any part of this document. 

Please credit the source. 

Suggested citation for this publication: 

Lynn, Irene & Mack, Dominique. (2008). Multiple Strategies for Improving Transition 

Outcomes of Youth with Disabilities: Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship 

Opportunities, Washington, D.C. Institute for Educational Leadership and HeiTech 

Services, Inc. 
Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Table of Contents 

Executive Summary........................................................................................................... iv 

I. Introduction................................................................................................................. 1 

II. Background................................................................................................................ 3 

A) History and Legal Framework .......................................................................... 3 

B) Definitions of Apprenticeship and the Requirements for Registering an 

Apprenticeship Program ............................................................................................. 4 

C) On-the-Job Training.......................................................................................... 6 

D) Related Instruction............................................................................................ 7 

E) Administration of Apprenticeship Programs.................................................... 8 

F) Status of Apprenticeship................................................................................. 10 

III. Apprenticeship Initiatives........................................................................................ 14 

A) Interim Certification........................................................................................ 15 

B) High-growth Industry Initiative in Apprenticeship......................................... 16 

C) Other Discretionary Grants with Connections to Apprenticeship .................. 16 

D) Integration with the Workforce System.......................................................... 17 

E) Revision of the Apprenticeship Regulations................................................... 18 

IV. Youth in Apprenticeship.......................................................................................... 19 

A) Participation of Youth in Apprenticeship ....................................................... 19 

B) Youth Feeder Programs for Apprenticeship ................................................... 22 

V. Occupational and Industry Trends—Looking to the Future.................................... 32 

VI. Obstacles to Increasing the Participation of Youth with Disabilities in 

Apprenticeship Programs and Possible Strategies to Overcome Them............................ 36 

VII. Final Thoughts and Suggestions.............................................................................. 43 

VIII. References and Sources of Information................................................................... 45 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Appendices 

Appendix A: Complete list of Apprenticeable Occupations in the U.S. 48 

Appendix B: Apprenticeship Final Rule Fact Sheet 59 

Appendix C: List of Youth Feeder Programs in the U.S., including School-to 

Apprenticeship, Pre-Apprenticeship, and Youth Apprenticeship 63 

Appendix D: High Wage, High-Growth Occupations 76 

Appendix E: American Culinary Federation Foundation Apprenticeship 

Fact Sheet 82 

Appendix F: Apprenticeship Beyond Boundaries: Funding Opportunities for 

Registered Apprenticeship Programs 83 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

List of Figures 

Figure 1: Apprentices by Industry 11 

Figure 2: Top 25 Apprenticeship Occupations Ranked by Total 11 

Figure 3: Apprentices by State 13 

Figure 4: Youth Apprentices by Industry 20 

Figure 5: Youth Apprentices by Occupation 21 

Figure 6: Home Builders Institute 23 

Figure 7: YouthBuild Providence and ProvPlan 31 

Figure 8: Projected Job Growth in Top Apprenticeship Occupations 33 

Figure 9: Mean Annual Wages for Selected Occupations, May 2006 33 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Executive Summary 

I. Introduction 

The transition from adolescence to adulthood is an uneven path and, often, a 

rocky road for youth ages 14 – 25. Many youth make the transition successfully – 

completing their education and moving towards a career path. Unfortunately, for young 

people with disabilities, the challenges are greater and the outcomes sometimes less 

positive. Youth with disabilities are half as likely as their peers to participate in postsecondary education. By the time they reach adulthood their prospects for employment 

are much worse than their non-disabled peers. According to the American Community 

Survey for 2007, the employment rate of working aged people with disabilities was 36.9 

percent compared to 79.7 percent for people without disabilities, a gap of almost 42 

percentage points. 

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), enacted over 15 years ago, was 

intended to address the inequities that people with disabilities face in their daily lives and 

in the workplace. Yet, employers continue to express concern about the need to provide 

employees with “reasonable accommodations” and myths abound about the cost of 

accommodations and the unsuitability of people with disabilities in the workplace. In 

fact, studies have shown that the average cost of workplace accommodations in 2006 was 

$600 or less and the vast majority of workers with disabilities do not require 

accommodations. 

In recognition of the difficulties individuals with disabilities face in finding 

employment, the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) was established within 

the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) in 2000. ODEP is charged with advising the 

Secretary of Labor and assisting Federal agencies in the development of policies and 

practices that increase employment opportunities and the recruitment, retention, and 

promotion of people with disabilities. In keeping with this mission, ODEP has 

commissioned this issue paper to explore apprenticeship opportunities for young people 

with disabilities. 

This paper provides an overview of the apprenticeship system in the United 

States, explores current trends in apprenticeship, examines opportunities specifically for 

youth, particularly youth with disabilities. In addition it identifies obstacles to expanding 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

participation of youth with disabilities and provides strategies for addressing these 

obstacles. The methodology used to develop this paper involved: 1) extensive literature 

research; 2) consultation and interviews with Federal and state apprenticeship 

representatives; and 3) interviews with others who are familiar with apprenticeship, 

operate apprenticeship programs, or represent youth programs that potentially feed into 

registered apprenticeship. 

Apprenticeship has a long and rich history of preparing workers for skilled jobs to 

support the economy. The Fitzgerald Act of 1937, also referred to as the National 

Apprenticeship Act, officially authorized and formalized a national apprenticeship 

system. This concise piece of legislation has remained unchanged for over 80 years. 

Over time, the specifications and administration of apprenticeship have been shaped 

through regulations issued by DOL. Regulations governing apprenticeship programs are 

found at title 29, part 29.5 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The current 

regulations were published in October of 2008, with an effective date of December 29, 

2008. 

The Federal regulations contain the definitions for apprenticeship and 

apprenticeable occupations, and the standards for establishing and registering 

apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeship recognition is limited to skilled occupations 

and trades that meet the basic criteria as laid out in the regulations. It is important to note 

that apprenticeship is first and foremost a job. It allows the participant to obtain job skills 

while earning an income, involves wage progression over time, and provides a widely 

recognized certificate of completion and proficiency. These core characteristics make 

apprenticeship a highly desirable form of training for many entry-level workers. There 

are currently 950 apprenticeable occupations and new occupations are continually added. 

Training programs must meet basic standards to be registered by a Federal or state 

apprenticeship agency. Currently, there are 23 different standards for recognition of 

apprenticeship programs that relate to: 

• Types of occupations and terms of training (e.g. duration); 

• Methods of training and the contents of the training agreement between the 

apprentice and program sponsor; 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

• Employment and supervision of apprentices, including requirements for wage 

progression; 

• Registration, record maintenance, reporting and certification; and 

• Compliance with equal employment opportunity requirements. 

A training program must include: 1) supervised, structured, on-the-job training by 

a qualified journey-level worker, and 2) outside related instruction, which is generally 

classroom based. Federal regulations recommend at least 144 hours of related instruction 

per year. Apprenticeship programs typically range from one year to up to 6 years in 

length. A training program may be completed based on time (e.g. 2000 hours of work 

experience), based on demonstrating specific competencies, or through a combination of 

time and demonstrated competencies. 

DOL’s Office of Apprenticeship Services (OA) administers the national 

apprenticeship system, with staff located at the national, regional and state levels. The 

OA promotes apprenticeship, recognizes occupations, registers programs, oversees 

compliance with Federal regulations, and maintains an apprenticeship database system. 

While the Fitzgerald Act gave the Secretary of Labor authority over apprenticeship 

programs, the regulations governing apprenticeship provide for recognition of state 

agencies to register and administer apprenticeship programs. Twenty-five states plus the 

District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are recognized by DOL for purposes of registering 

apprenticeship programs and apprentices. 

II. Status of Apprenticeship 

All programs and apprentices, regardless of whether the registration is completed 

by the state or by the Federal agency, are recorded and tracked in the national 

apprenticeship system, the Registered Apprenticeship Partners Information Data System 

(RAPIDS). This database is maintained by the OA, and is the source of all of the 

numeric information contained in this report. RAPIDS records the information for 

registered apprenticeship programs and apprentices for all states, including the states and 

territories that are recognized for apprenticeship purposes. According to the OA, as of 

September 30, 2007, there were 458,108 active apprentices. While registered 

apprenticeships appear in nearly all industries, most are in the construction trades, the 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

historical basis of apprenticeship. Figure 1 shows the top 25 occupations with the most 

registered apprentices along with the number of active programs as of September 30, 

2007. The one notable exception outside the building and construction trades is the 

number two occupation, Heavy Truck Driver, which cuts across several industries, 

including construction. This occupation was not among the top 25 occupations until 

2006, when two large national employers created apprenticeship programs and registered 

sizable numbers of apprentices. These employers are United Parcel Service (UPS) and 

Werner Trucking. 

Figure 1 

Top 25 Apprenticeship Occupations Ranked by Total, As of September 30, 2007 

Rank Occupation 

Total 

Active 

Enrolled 

Number of 

Active 

Programs 

Average 

Enrollment/ 

Program

1 Electrician 45,609 3,209 14.2 

2 Heavy Truck Driver 37,805 39 969.4 

3 Carpenter 33,027 446 74.1 

4 Plumber 18,578 2,644 7.0 

5 Construction Craft Laborers 9,836 94 104.6 

6 Pipe Fitter (construction) 9,542 722 13.2 

7 Sheet Metal Worker 8,754 518 16.9 

8 Structural Steel Worker 8,659 131 66.1 

9 Roofer 5,943 139 42.8 

10 Elevator Constructor 5,746 62 92.7 

11 Drywall Installers 5,541 44 125.9 

12 Sprinkler Fitter 5,433 124 43.8 

13 Operating Engineer 4,837 131 36.9 

14 Painter (construction) 4,795 248 19.3 

15 Boilermaker 4,089 32 127.8 

16 Bricklayer (construction) 3,729 194 19.2 

17 Millwright 3,185 381 8.4 

18 Heating/Air ConditionerInstaller 3,099 601 5.2 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Rank Occupation 

Total 

Active 

Enrolled 

Number of 

Active 

Programs 

Average 

Enrollment/ 

Program

19 Powerline Maintainer 3,087 297 10.4 

20 Powerline Installer & 

Repairer 

2,886 92 31.4 

21 Insulation Worker 2,328 101 23.0 

22 Correction Officer 2,290 58 39.5 

23 Child Care Development 

Specialists 

2,282 971 2.4 

24 Cook (hospitality & cruise 

ship)* 

2,259 1 2,259.0 

25 Cement Mason 2,240 127 17.6 

Source: RAPIDS 

* Note that a related occupation Cook (restaurant and hotel) also has 1,107 apprentices in 316 active 

programs.

History and tradition are not the sole reasons why apprenticeship remains 

strongest in the building and construction trades. Federal laws provide incentives for 

hiring and training apprentices in the building and construction trades. The most wellknown is the Davis-Bacon Act of 1931, which requires any Federal contract over $2,000 

for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings or public works pay workers 

the prevailing wage in the local area. One of the exceptions to the Davis-Bacon Act 

pertains to apprentices and trainees. They may be paid less than the prevailing wage if 

they are in a program approved by DOL. Instead, they would receive the wages that are 

set out in the apprenticeship training plan and agreement. It should be noted that to date, 

DOL’s OA recognizes only apprentices for the prevailing wage exception; not trainees. 

Over the years, the prevailing wage provisions have been added to about 60 other statutes 

related to construction. In addition, over half of the states have their own prevailing 

wage laws that apply to state-funded construction projects, although the dollar thresholds 

are generally larger than the Federal statute. 

III. Youth in Apprenticeship 

Apprenticeship is predominantly a program for training adult workers. The 

average age for an apprentice is 27 years old. However, there are significant numbers of 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

older youth who participate in apprenticeship programs. Age data for youth is broken 

down into two ranges: 16-18 and 19-23 years old. Relatively few youth age 18 and under 

participate in apprenticeship programs. One reason for this is that most apprenticeship 

programs require applicants to possess a high school diploma. Additionally, many 

apprenticeship programs are in occupations that are considered hazardous under Federal 

and state child labor laws, and even though there are exceptions for apprenticeship, 

employers in these occupations tend not to hire anyone under the age of 18. 

Figure 2 shows participation of youth ages 16 to 23 in apprenticeship programs 

across 12 industry clusters. The data is broken down by age ranges and includes new 

registrants, active apprenticeships, and completions for Fiscal Year (FY) 2006. It should 

be noted that these figures represent activity during FY 2006. Thus, the columns “Active 

Youth,” “New Registrants,” and “Completed” should not be compared to one another. 

Apprenticeship programs are generally longer than one year, so the “Active Youth” and 

“New Registrants” would not be expected to complete their training within the same year. 

Figure 2 

Youth Apprentices by Industry 

Industry Cluster 

Active 

Youth 

16 -18 

Active 

Youth 

19 - 23 

New 

registrants 

16 -18 

New 

registrants 

19 - 23

Completed 

16-18 

Completed 

19-23 

Advanced 

Manufacturing 

933 3,235 197 939 48 198 

Automotive 161 230 41 72 15 40 

Biotechnology 5 32 2 12 0 3 

Construction 9,120 53,350 3,692 21,638 877 6,271 

Energy 75 1,227 35 594 6 153 

Financial 

Services 

19 37 8 29 1 2 

Geospatial 

Technology 

48 145 23 90 2 6 

Healthcare 69 141 38 95 4 4 

Hospitality 197 701 73 228 17 50 

Information 

Technology 

56 56 1 26 0 4 

Retail Trade 216 53 33 15 9 1 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Industry Cluster 

Active 

Youth 

16 -18 

Active 

Youth 

19 - 23 

New 

registrants 

16 -18 

New 

registrants 

19 - 23

Completed 

16-18 

Completed 

19-23 

Transportation 49 1,035 8 747 2 14 

Total 11,099 62,224 4,231 25,600 997 7.191 

Source: RAPIDS 

The percentage of youth that participate in apprenticeship programs varies by 

occupation. Figure 3 contains data on the participation of youth ages 16 to 23 in 

apprenticeships by occupation in FY 2007. 

Figure 3 

Youth Apprentices by Occupation 

Occupational Title Number of Youth 

16 -23 

Percent of all 

apprentices 

Electrician 22,714 50 

Bricklayer (construction) 1,751 47 

Sheet Metal Worker 4,083 47 

Carpenter 15,602 47 

Pipe Fitter (construction) 4,395 46 

Pipe Fitter (sprinkler systems) 2,514 46 

Painter (construction) 2,091 44 

Plumber 8,191 44 

Structural Steel Worker 3,679 42 

Operating Engineer 1,963 41 

Construction Craft Laborer 3,991 41 

Dry Wall Applicator 2,205 40 

Millwright 1,265 40 

Line Maintainer 1,219 39 

Roofer 2,325 39 

Line Erector 1,111 38 

Boilermaker 1,533 37 

Heating & Air Conditioning 1,154 37 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Occupational Title Number of Youth 

16 -23 

Percent of all 

apprentices 

Elevator Constructor 1,382 24 

Truck Driver, Heavy 1,194 3 

Source: RAPIDS

School and non-school-based youth programs can serve as feeder programs for 

youth to enter registered apprenticeship programs. Some of these programs have formal 

linkages with apprenticeship programs while others provide training in the major 

apprenticeable occupations, though they may not have formal ties to apprenticeship. 

Youth apprenticeship and school-to-apprenticeship programs tend to be secondary-school 

based while pre-apprenticeship programs tend to operate outside the public secondary 

school system. School-to-apprenticeship and youth apprenticeship programs are, as their 

names suggest, oriented to youth, generally under the age of 21. Pre-apprenticeship 

programs may have both youth and adult participants. 

Youth apprenticeship programs largely seem to be clustered in two states: 

Georgia and Wisconsin. Wisconsin in particular has a long history with apprenticeship. 

Pre-apprenticeship programs are spread among a number of states, but there is a 

noticeable concentration of these programs in the states of Washington, California, Ohio, 

and Oregon. The largest concentration of school-to-apprenticeship programs is found in 

Ohio, which is also one of the states with the largest number of active apprentices. 

Two programs that provide education and training in the top apprenticeship 

occupations are the Job Corps and YouthBuild. Both have the potential to serve as feeder 

programs into registered apprenticeship. While YouthBuild focuses on the building and 

construction trades, Job Corps provides more variety in course offerings, ranging from 

culinary arts to automotive technology. Job Corps and YouthBuild are highlighted as 

feeder programs for youth because they are nationally available programs, provide 

education and training to significant numbers of youth, and focus on occupations that 

have the most registered apprentices. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

IV. Apprenticeship Initiatives

ETA has launched multiple initiatives in its attempts to expand apprenticeship and 

to better integrate apprenticeship within the workforce development system. 

• In August of 2004, the OA Administrator formally approved the first 

“Certificate of Training” interim credential. This credential is defined as “a 

credential issued by the registration agency [e.g. Federal or state] upon request 

of the appropriate sponsor as certification of competency attainment by an 

apprentice.” Career lattice apprenticeship occupations offer individuals an 

opportunity to move laterally or upward within an industry. The first 

approved career lattice apprenticeship occupation was in the healthcare 

industry, but more have been added. 

• To promote integration with the workforce system, ETA awards a significant 

amount of funds under its discretionary grant programs. A few of these 

programs have direct connections to apprenticeship, while for others 

apprenticeship may be incorporated into the grant project.

• Since early FY 2007, ETA has been promoting the integration of 

apprenticeship within the workforce system, including the One-Stop Career 

Centers. ETA has also hosted webinars on the subject as a way to educate and 

promote the integration of apprenticeship within the workforce system.

• Each year, the OA provides its staff with written program guidance 

establishing goals and objectives for the fiscal year. For FY 2008, the first 

priority task listed was the integration of apprenticeship within the public 

workforce investment system. 

• For the first time in 30 years, DOL issued revisions to the apprenticeship 

regulations on October 29, 2008. The changes are intended to update the 

apprenticeship system so that it is in tune with the economy and is responsive 

to workforce challenges. Many of the changes formalize trends that have 

been incorporated into the apprenticeship system in the last decade.

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

V. Obstacles and Opportunities 

There are a number of obstacles to expanding opportunities for youth with 

disabilities in apprenticeship. Among the obstacles are: 

• Apprenticeship is mostly an adult program, limiting opportunities for all youth 

to enter registered apprenticeship programs. 

• While most opportunities are in the construction trades, little effort is directed 

to encouraging youth with disabilities to consider careers in construction or to 

overcome the perception on the part of construction employers that youth with 

disabilities are not able to perform the job. 

• Apprenticeship is not widely understood. Organizations that typically work 

with individuals with disabilities are likely unaware of the potential that exists 

for creating apprenticeship programs with employers and supporting 

individuals in apprenticeship programs. 

• Apprenticeship programs can be costly to operate and, outside of the building 

and construction trades, the financial incentives for employers to develop and 

operate apprenticeship programs are limited or nonexistent. 

• While the Federal and state agencies are the registrant for apprenticeship 

programs, individual employers make the decisions around hiring. 

• Apprenticeships outside the construction trades do offer new opportunities for 

all youth, including youth with disabilities; however, the numbers of such 

programs and apprentices are fairly small when compared to the building and 

construction trades. 

• There is no identifiable system of professional development for the on-the-job 

instructors. Thus, there are no apparent avenues for providing training in 

working with youth and particularly youth with disabilities. 

 For each of these obstacles there are opportunities to address the issues. ODEP 

in collaboration with other Federal agencies (particularly the OA, Job Corps, ETA’s 

Youth Office, and the Department of Education’s Vocational Rehabilitative Services) can 

pursue a strategic agenda to promote apprenticeship for youth with disabilities. ODEP 

can provide substantive technical assistance and support to other agencies. Carefully 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

constructed and targeted strategies could produce substantive results. Following are 

some thoughts on strategies. 

Any efforts around registered apprenticeship will need to be jointly developed and 

closely coordinated with OA. For example, OA maintains a list of all current program 

sponsors that ODEP might tap into for outreach to employers. ODEP should consider 

working with OA to identify a few of the emerging, in demand occupations (such as the 

culinary arts, pharmacy, and medical fields) that offer career lattice opportunities for both 

youth and adults with disabilities. ODEP’s relationships with CVS Caremark and the 

American Culinary Federation are two examples of existing connections with numerous 

expansion opportunities. In addition, by working with OA, it might be possible to partner 

with a large, multi-state healthcare employer or association that is interested in 

establishing apprenticeship programs in high demand occupations with a shortage of 

workers. 

This does not mean that the traditional apprenticeship occupations should be 

ignored. There are opportunities among pre-apprenticeship, school-to-apprenticeship, 

and youth apprenticeship programs that may include youth with disabilities. Again, the 

approach should be strategic and targeted to specific states with a large number of 

programs, or to organizations that operate in a number of different states, such as the 

Home Builders Institute (HBI). Expanding opportunities in apprenticeship will require 

that all stakeholders involved come together and work collaboratively. This should be a 

comfortable role for ODEP as it is within its mission and methods of operation. 

Service providers that target individuals with disabilities, such as Vocational 

Rehabilitation, and that focus on youth and youth with disabilities, such as YouthBuild 

and Job Corps, are potentially strong feeder programs into apprenticeship. However, 

YouthBuild and Job Corps will need to strengthen their linkages with registered 

apprenticeship to make these programs more viable options for youth to directly enter 

registered apprenticeship. ODEP should also work with the Federal staff in DOL to 

secure better data on outcomes for youth with disabilities that participate in YouthBuild 

and Job Corps programs. Such data is essential for ODEP in developing policies and 

strategies. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Moreover, registered apprenticeship is not widely understood by many service 

providers, particularly those that work with individuals with disabilities. A toolkit of 

materials concerning registered apprenticeship could very useful for this audience. 

ODEP should consider working with appropriate Federal agencies to disseminate the 

toolkit. 

Finally, there needs to be an educational campaign that promotes understanding of 

apprenticeship among youth, parents, and service providers, as well as understanding 

among apprenticeship employers around individuals with disabilities. Targeted mailings, 

presentations, and the development of materials appropriate to the audience are 

recommended. Pilot efforts that involve states and local service providers (specific to 

youth or disability) can yield data and examples that can inform continuing initiatives 

around apprenticeship and individuals with disabilities. These pilot programs need not be 

large-scale or expensive; they should merely demonstrate the viability of apprenticeship 

for individuals with disabilities. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship 

Opportunities

I. Introduction 

The transition from adolescence to adulthood is an uneven path and often rocky 

road for youth ages 14 – 25. Many youth make the transition successfully by completing 

their education and moving towards a career path. Unfortunately, for young people with 

disabilities, the challenges are greater and the outcomes less positive. Youth with 

disabilities are half as likely as their peers to participate in post-secondary education. By 

the time they reach adulthood, their prospects for employment are much worse than their 

non-disabled peers. The unemployment rate for people with disabilities is more than 

double the national unemployment rate and a significant percentage of individuals with 

disabilities are underemployed. 

According to the 2007 American Community Survey (ACS), 12.8 percent of the 

civilian non-institutionalized population ages 21 to 64 years in the United States reported 

a disability, more than 22 million people. There is a wide range of disabilities 

represented among this population, but individuals with learning disabilities are most 

prevalent. Data on the school age population is illustrative. According to a National 

Longitudinal Transition study funded by the National Center on Education Statistics, 

almost two-thirds of students receiving special education are classified as having a 

learning disability (62 percent). Other common disabilities include emotional 

disturbance, health impairments, physical and speech impairments, and mental 

retardation. 

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), enacted over 15 years ago, was 

intended to address the inequities that people with disabilities face throughout their daily 

lives and within the workplace. However, continued reluctance by employers to provide 

employees with “reasonable accommodations” is fueled by myths surrounding the cost of 

accommodations and the unsuitability of people with disabilities to enter the workplace. 

In truth, studies have revealed that the average cost of workplace accommodations in 

2006 was under $600 for an individual with a disability, and the vast majority of workers 

with disabilities do not require any accommodations. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

In recognition of the difficulties individuals with disabilities face in finding 

employment, the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) was established within 

the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) in 2000. ODEP is charged with advising the 

Secretary of Labor and assisting Federal agencies in the development of policies and 

practices that increase employment opportunities and recruitment, retention, and 

promotion of people with disabilities. To promote its mission, ODEP has commissioned 

this issue paper to explore apprenticeship opportunities for young people with disabilities. 

The purpose of this work is to: 1) introduce the apprenticeship system as it exists 

today; 2) explore trends in apprenticeship; 3) examine opportunities for youth, 

particularly youth with disabilities; 4) identify obstacles to expanding participation of 

youth with disabilities; and 5) provide strategies for addressing these obstacles. Because 

formal apprenticeship is not generally well understood, a considerable portion of the 

paper will be devoted to providing basic information on the formal U.S. apprenticeship 

system. It is important to understand the apprenticeship system before exploring 

opportunities and challenges to enhancing participation in the system. 

The methodology used to develop this paper involved: 1) extensive research of 

existing literature; 2) consultation and interviews with Federal and state apprenticeship 

representatives; and 3) interviews with others who are familiar with apprenticeship, 

operate apprenticeship programs, or represent youth programs that potentially feed into 

registered apprenticeship. We would particularly like to acknowledge the substantial 

assistance we received from the leadership and staff of the Office of Apprenticeship (OA) 

in the DOL’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA). They provided us with 

background information for the paper and suggested interviewees and individuals for an 

expert panel that we convened to review this paper. 

In developing this paper, we have elected to focus on formal registered 

apprenticeship programs and those programs that we believe feed most directly into 

registered apprenticeship. The apprenticeship model combines on-the-job learning with 

classroom instruction and may be utilized by a variety of occupations. This model is an 

effective education and training tool for both youth and adults. While there is certainly 

value in looking at broader apprenticeship-like programs, we believe that it would detract 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

from our focus on how to increase opportunities for youth in formal apprenticeship 

programs. 

II. Background 

A) History and Legal Framework 

Apprenticeship has a long and rich history of preparing workers for skilled jobs in 

the economy. Apprenticeship legislation in the United States dates back to 1911 when 

Wisconsin passed a law placing authority for apprenticeship under the jurisdiction of an 

industrial commission. It was the first state to do so. Previously, Wisconsin had passed 

legislation requiring apprentices to attend classroom instruction five hours a week, thus 

creating an early model combining on-the-job learning, work experience and classroom 

instruction that would become the basis for formal apprenticeship in the U.S. 

The Fitzgerald Act of 1937, also referred to as the National Apprenticeship Act, 

officially authorized and formalized a national apprenticeship system. It was the result of 

a concerted effort of national employer and labor organizations, educators, and 

government officials. Construction industry leaders were in the forefront of this effort, 

thereby establishing a strong apprenticeship base within the construction industry. The 

law authorizes the Secretary of Labor to: 

Formulate and promote the furtherance of labor standards necessary to 

safeguard the welfare of apprentices, to extend the application of such 

standards by encouraging the inclusion thereof in contracts of 

apprenticeship, to bring together employers and labor for the formulation 

of programs of apprenticeship, to cooperate with State agencies engaged 

in the formulation and promotion of standards of apprenticeship, and to 

cooperate with the National Youth Administration and with the Office of 

Education of the Department of Interior... 

This straightforward piece of legislation (less than a page in length) has remained 

unchanged for over 80 years. The specifications and administration of apprenticeship 

have been shaped through regulations issued by DOL. One major stipulation in 1937 was 

the formation of an office within DOL charged with the administration of the Federalstate apprenticeship system. The OA (formerly Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training) 

is located within ETA and its staff works at the national, regional and state levels to 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

promote and regulate apprenticeship within the U.S. In addition, certain states are 

directly involved in apprenticeship. 

The Fitzgerald Act also authorized the formation of a national advisory committee 

for apprenticeship including representatives of employers, labor, educators, and other 

executive agencies. This national advisory group, now called the Advisory Committee 

on Apprenticeship, has operated continuously since the 1930s. The current Committee 

has 30 members representing employers, labor and the public, and all have been 

appointed by the Secretary of Labor for one or two year terms. 

Regulations governing registration of apprenticeship programs are found at Title 

29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 29. A final rule amending the regulations 

was published on October 29, 2008, with an effective date of December 29, 2008. As 

outlined: 

(b) The purpose of this part is to set forth labor standards to safeguard the 

welfare of apprentices, promote apprenticeship opportunities, and to 

extend the application of such standards by prescribing policies and 

procedures concerning the registration, for certain Federal purposes, of 

acceptable apprenticeship programs with the U.S. Department of Labor, 

Employment and Training Administration, Office of Apprenticeship. 

These labor standards, policies and procedures cover the registration, 

cancellation and deregistration of apprenticeship programs and of 

apprenticeship agreements; the recognition of a State agency as an 

authorized agency for registering apprenticeship programs for certain 

Federal purposes; and matters relating thereto. 

B) Definitions of Apprenticeship and the Requirements for Registering 

an Apprenticeship Program 

The Federal regulations contain the definitions for apprenticeship and 

apprenticeable occupations, and the standards for establishing and registering 

apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeship recognition is limited to skilled occupations 

and trades that meet the following basic criteria as laid out in section 29.4 of the 

regulations: 

(a) Involved skills that are customarily learned in a practical way through 

a structured, systematic program of the on-the-job supervised learning. 

(b) Be clearly identified and commonly recognized throughout an 

industry. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

(c) Involved the progressive attainment of manual, mechanical or 

technical skills and knowledge, which in accordance with the industry 

standard for the occupation would require completion of at 2,000 

hours of on-the-job learning to attain; and 

(d) Require related instruction to supplement the on-the-job training. 

It is important to note that apprenticeship is first and foremost a job. It allows for: 

1) learning job skills while earning an income; 2) wage progression; and 3) a widely 

recognized certificate of completion and proficiency. These core characteristics make 

apprenticeship a highly desirable form of training for many entry-level workers. There 

are currently 950 occupations that are recognized by OA as apprenticeable and new 

occupations are continually added. States may also approve occupations not formally 

recognized by OA. A complete list of apprenticeable occupations recognized by OA, 

organized by industry, can be found in Appendix A. 

Training programs must meet basic standards to be registered by a Federal or state 

apprenticeship agency. There are currently 23 different standards for recognition of 

apprenticeship programs, as outlined in Section 29.5. These standards relate to: 

• Type of occupations and terms of training (e.g. duration); 

• The methods of training and the contents of the training agreement between 

the apprentice and program sponsor; 

• Employment and supervision of apprentices, including requirements for wage 

progression; 

• Registration, record maintenance, reporting and certification; and 

• Compliance with equal employment opportunity requirements. 

A training program must include supervised, structured, on-the-job training by a qualified 

journey level worker and related instruction outside of the training that is generally 

classroom-based. Federal regulations recommend at least 144 hours of related instruction 

per year. The training plan outlines the work processes that the apprentices will receive 

instruction in, along with an estimation of the amount of time to be spent in each major 

process. Once a program is recognized, individual apprentices are also registered by the 

Federal or state agency. Completions and terminations of apprentices are tracked for 

purposes of issuing certifications of completion. The minimum age to become an 

apprentice is 16 years old. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

 The term of apprenticeship is established as part of the registration process for a 

new program. While there are some programs that require only 2,000 hours of on-the-job 

learning, apprenticeship programs are generally within the 4,000 to 8,000 hours range 

(two to four years). Some trades, such as metal patternmaker, require five years of work 

experience and training along with the related instruction. Federal rules permit the term 

of apprenticeship to be met through demonstration of skill acquisition or competencies, 

rather than through completing a set number of on-the-job learning hours. Alternatively, 

an apprenticeship program can be a “hybrid,” which is a combination of the time-based 

and competency-based requirements. 

A common misconception is that apprenticeship programs are “union programs.” 

In fact, employers and employee representatives sponsor apprenticeship programs jointly. 

Often the “employee representative” is represented by organized labor and labor 

agreements typically provide for contributions to the training fund that support the 

apprenticeship program. This is likely the reason that apprenticeship programs have 

remained strong in occupations represented by organized labor, as the labor agreement is 

an effective vehicle to cover the costs of the apprenticeship program. However, there are 

many registered programs in which there is no union involvement. Many of these 

programs are in the more recent occupations to receive apprenticeship recognition, such 

as child care and healthcare. 

The military also sponsors apprenticeship programs in a number of different 

occupations. The U.S. Military Apprenticeship Program is a formal apprenticeship 

training program for active duty Coast Guard, Marine Corps and Navy service members. 

Apprenticeships are offered in over 100 occupations, providing opportunities for service 

members to complete an apprenticeship program in an occupation related to their military 

trade. 

C) On-the-Job Training 

Formal on-the-job training defines apprenticeship as both a job and a training 

program. The apprenticeship program, as well as the individual apprentice agreement, 

details the elements of the work that must be mastered for the individual to have 

satisfactorily completed an apprenticeship program. The work schedule along with a 

progressive wage schedule is included in all registered programs. Additionally, most 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

apprenticeship program registrations include an estimation of the number of hours of 

work experience that are needed to master the major categories of work processes. A few 

programs are entirely competency-based, which means that there are no established work 

experience hours and apprentices complete work processes based on demonstrated 

competency rather than having completed an established number of work hours. Most 

programs that are time-based also provide credit based on prior work experience. A 

“hybrid” training approach, which is gradually becoming more prevalent, is a synthesis of 

the competency- and time-based approaches. 

A journey level worker administers training on-the-job. In the major 

apprenticeship trades of the construction and manufacturing industries, the journey level 

worker is typically an individual who has completed an apprenticeship program and has a 

certificate of journey level status. Federal regulations mandate a specific ratio of 

apprentices to journey level workers within a program to insure proper safety, training, 

and supervision of the worker. The rule Section 29.5(b)(7) stipulates, “The ratio 

language shall be specific and clear as to application in terms of job site, work force, 

department or plant.” Typically, for potentially hazardous occupations, like those in 

construction and manufacturing, ratios of apprentices to journey level workers are low - 

no more than one apprentices for each journey level worker. 

While the journey level worker is integral to the success of an apprentice, there 

are no formal qualifications required for the job. Moreover there are no specific training 

requirements for journey level workers in providing instruction to apprentices on-the-job. 

D) Related Instruction 

Federal rules require that all apprentices participate in related instruction. The 

rules suggest that apprentices take at least 144 hours of related instruction per year, which 

many apprenticeship programs choose to require. The rule does not specify who may 

provide related instruction or that the instruction be provided by an accredited body. 

Typically and traditionally, related instruction has been classroom training. The new 

Federal rules support the use of technology-based and distance learning for the related 

instruction. 

Often, community colleges play a large role in providing related classroom 

training for apprenticeship programs. Most, if not all, community colleges offer training 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

that meets the requirements for the related training of an apprenticeship program. These 

courses are typically offered through the colleges’ continuing education departments and 

may be taken as credit courses in an individual’s pursuit of an associate’s degree. 

Related training may also be provided by the program sponsor, or by a group of 

program sponsors, who operate a training center. This type of training is most typically 

offered in the construction trades. One notable example of related training is the St. 

Louis Carpenters Joint Apprenticeship Program, the nation’s largest apprenticeship 

program with almost 1,500 registered apprentices. It has been in operation since the mid1950s and covers 44 eastern counties in Missouri, including St. Louis, and 33 counties in 

Southern Illinois. Three full-time training centers are located in Missouri and Illinois, 

with the largest center located in St. Louis. Apprentices typically attend two full weeks 

of training per year. In addition, articulation agreements are in place with six area 

community colleges that provide opportunities for apprentices to earn an associate’s 

degree. There is also an agreement with the National Labor College at the George Meany 

Center, an accredited four-year institute at which apprentices can earn a Bachelor’s 

Degree. 

The instruction provided by the St. Louis program includes not only technical 

training but also basic safety training. Safety training is a crucial part of the instruction 

for hazardous occupations. The St. Louis program also teaches apprentices labor history 

and construction supervision. The program director believes that providing this 

background to apprentices promotes strong labor and management relationships. 

E) Administration of Apprenticeship Programs 

While the Fitzgerald Act gave the Secretary of Labor authority over 

apprenticeship programs, the regulations governing apprenticeship provide for 

recognition of state agencies to register and administer apprenticeship programs. 

Twenty-five states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are recognized by DOL 

for purposes of registering apprenticeship programs and apprentices. This formal 

designation of a state is particularly important as it relates to the Federal prevailing wage 

laws, which are discussed on page 11 below. Recognition conveys upon the state the 

same authority as DOL in terms of the exceptions for apprentices from the prevailing 

wage requirements. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

States must meet certain basic requirements, outlined in Section 29.13, in order to 

be recognized. A State Agency (SAA) must be designated to oversee apprenticeship and 

is the officially recognized apprenticeship registration agency. Another requirement is 

the maintenance of a State Apprenticeship Council (SAC) that includes individuals 

familiar with apprenticeship and has an equal number of employer and employee 

representatives. Other members may be appointed to the SAC so long as the number 

does not exceed the number of either employer or employee representatives. Other 

requirements include: 1) insuring equal employment opportunity, 2) registering programs 

only in occupations that are apprenticeable according to the Federal regulations, and 3) 

providing reciprocity for multi-state programs in trades other than building and 

construction. Once a state is recognized, it must reapply to DOL for recognition every 

five years. 

States that have elected to participate in the apprenticeship program are known as 

SAA states and all duties related to registering apprenticeship programs and apprentices 

are performed at the state level. The job of registering programs is generally assigned to 

the state’s labor agency, and designated members of the staff perform the registration and 

administration functions. However, the level of staffing varies greatly and a few states 

have very limited staff assigned to apprenticeship programs. This is an issue that the 

DOL has addressed in its rule changes, discussed later in this paper. 

The National Association of State and Territorial Apprenticeship Directors 

(NASTAD) was originally established, according to their Web site, “to promote and 

achieve an effective national apprenticeship system.” This organization, which has been 

in existence for more than 50 years, represents the interests of the SAA, and provides a 

forum for the exchange of ideas and technical support for its members. In addition, the 

National Association of Government Labor Officials (NAGLO) is involved in the 

apprenticeship system since the administration of state activities is housed within the 

labor agency. Both of these associations are represented on the Advisory Committee on 

Apprenticeship. 

In the 25 states without a recognized SAA, Federal staff have the responsibility 

and function of registering programs and apprentices. Federal and state apprenticeship 

staff register programs, provide assistance to those interested in establishing an 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

apprenticeship program, and oversee compliance with Federal and state rules, including 

compliance with equal employment opportunity provisions. In terms of assistance, a 

unique function performed at the Federal level is the approval of “pattern standards.” 

These are apprenticeship program standards that apply to an industry segment, group of 

employers, or large multi-state employers. While not binding, these national standards 

for apprenticeship provide a prototype for individual programs and facilitate the 

establishment of individual programs. In the case of pattern standards for large multistate employers, local programs often closely reflect the national standards. Once 

national standards are approved, they are disseminated widely by OA in the form of 

bulletins that go out to both state and Federal apprenticeship staff and are posted on the 

agency’s web site under “What’s New.” 

F) Status of Apprenticeship 

 OA maintains the Registered Apprenticeship Partners Information Data System 

(RAPIDS), a national database of registered apprenticeship programs and apprentices in 

25 DOL-managed states and 8 SAAs. RAPIDS is the source of all of the numeric 

information contained in this report. According to OA, as of September 30, 2007, there 

were 458,108 active apprentices. While registered apprenticeships appear in nearly all 

industries, most are in the building and construction trades, the historical basis of 

apprenticeship. Figure 1 is an industry breakdown of active apprentices for the top ten 

industries with registered apprentices. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Figure 1 

Apprentices by Industry 

Industry Number of Active Apprentices Percent of Total 

Construction 200,945 69 % 

Transportation/Communication 47,934 16% 

Manufacturing 16,290 6% 

Public Administration 14,611 5% 

Service 7,730 1% 

Trade 3,168 1% 

Agriculture 1,009 <1% 

Mining 227 <1% 

Finance and Related 150 <1% 

Total 292,065 100% 

Source: RAPIDS 

The majority of occupations with the most apprentices are those within the 

building and construction trades. Figure 2 shows the top 25 occupations with the most 

registered apprentices along with the number of active programs as of September 30, 

2007. The one notable exception outside the building and construction trades is the 

number two occupation, Heavy Truck Driver, which cuts across several industries, 

including construction. This occupation was not among the top 25 occupations until 

2006, when two large national employers created apprenticeship programs and registered 

sizable numbers of apprentices. These employers are United Parcel Service (UPS) and 

Werner Trucking. 

Figure 2 

Top 25 Apprenticeship Occupations Ranked by Total, As of September 30, 2007 

Rank Occupation 

Total 

Active 

Enrolled 

Number of 

Active 

Programs 

Average 

Enrollment/ 

Program

1 Electrician 45,609 3,209 14.2 

2 Heavy Truck Driver 37,805 39 969.4 

3 Carpenter 33,027 446 74.1 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Rank Occupation 

Total 

Active 

Enrolled 

Number of 

Active 

Programs 

Average 

Enrollment/ 

Program

4 Plumber 18,578 2,644 7.0 

5 Construction Craft Laborers 9,836 94 104.6 

6 Pipe Fitter (construction) 9,542 722 13.2 

7 Sheet Metal Worker 8,754 518 16.9 

8 Structural Steel Worker 8,659 131 66.1 

9 Roofer 5,943 139 42.8 

10 Elevator Constructor 5,746 62 92.7 

11 Drywall Installers 5,541 44 125.9 

12 Sprinkler Fitter 5,433 124 43.8 

13 Operating Engineer 4,837 131 36.9 

14 Painter (construction) 4,795 248 19.3 

15 Boilermaker 4,089 32 127.8 

16 Bricklayer (construction) 3,729 194 19.2 

17 Millwright 3,185 381 8.4 

18 Heating/Air ConditionerInstaller 3,099 601 5.2 

19 Powerline Maintainer 3,087 297 10.4 

20 Powerline Installer & 

Repairer 

2,886 92 31.4 

21 Insulation Worker 2,328 101 23.0 

22 Correction Officer 2,290 58 39.5 

23 Child Care Development 

Specialists 

2,282 971 2.4 

24 Cook (hospitality & cruise 

ship)* 

2,259 1 2,259.0 

25 Cement Mason 2,240 127 17.6 

Source: RAPIDS 

* Note that the related occupation Cook (restaurant and hotel) also has 1,107 apprentices in 316 active 

programs.

History and tradition are not the sole reasons why apprenticeship remains 

strongest in the building and construction trades. Federal laws provide incentives for 

hiring and training apprentices in the building and construction trades. The most well12
Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

known is the Davis-Bacon Act of 1931, which requires any Federal contract over $2,000 

for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings or public works pay workers 

the prevailing wage in the local area. One of the exceptions to the prevailing wage 

requirements in the Davis-Bacon Act pertains to apprentices and trainees. Apprentices 

and trainees that are in a program approved by DOL may be paid less than the prevailing 

wage. Instead, they would receive the wages that are set out in the apprenticeship 

training plan and agreement. It should be noted that to date, DOL’s OA recognizes only 

apprentices for the prevailing wage exception; it does not recognize trainees. Over the 

years, the prevailing wage provisions have been added to about 60 other statutes related 

to construction. In addition, over half of the states have their own prevailing wage laws 

that apply to state-funded construction projects although the dollar thresholds are 

generally larger than the Federal statute. 

As of September 30, 2007, ten states accounted for over 25 percent of active 

apprentices in the U.S. California has the most apprentices, more than double the next 

leading state. Figure 3 shows the top ten states and the corresponding number of 

apprentices. 

Figure 3 

Apprentices by State 

State Active Apprentices 

California 40,779 

Illinois 19,661 

Ohio 17,069 

Pennsylvania 16,228 

Florida 14,932 

Missouri 14,662 

Indiana 13,176 

Texas 10,838 

Nevada 10,750 

Michigan 9,477 

Source: RAPIDS 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

 The number of active apprentices has increased modestly over the last two 

decades, from nearly 300,000 in the late 1980s to more than 400,000 today. Over the 

past five years, the number of new apprentices registered increased by almost 30 percent, 

from 134,340 in 2003 to 212,017 in 2007. As noted earlier, one occupation, Heavy Truck 

Drivers, accounted for a significant portion of the increases in 2006 and 2007, when over 

15,000 new apprentices were registered in each of the two years. 

III. Apprenticeship Initiatives 

 If apprenticeship is so great, why hasn’t it grown more? This question is asked 

periodically by policy makers in ETA. Apprenticeship has always thrived in the 

traditional building and construction trades, and to some extent in manufacturing, as 

evidenced by the construction trades’ hold on 69 percent of registered apprentices in FY 

2007. However, its popularity outside of the traditional trades has always been somewhat 

limited. To address this issue, and to determine opportunities to expand registered 

apprenticeship, ETA has launched multiple initiatives. Some efforts have been industry 

focused, like the attempt to encourage the growth of apprenticeship in the child care 

industry through the child care development specialist occupation in the late 1990s. 

Grants helped to defer the costs of implementing programs in the child care field, and the 

initiative displayed moderate results. For FY 2001, registered child care development 

specialists were not listed among the top 25 apprenticeship occupations. In 2003, the 

occupation was listed at 25 with 2,390 active enrolled apprentices, and in 2007, it was 

listed as at 23, with slightly fewer apprentices - 2,282. According to the Bureau of Labor 

Statistics (BLS) data as of May 2006, there were 572,950 child care workers in the U.S., 

an occupation that is known for having a high turnover of staff. 

 Most recently, in July 2001, ETA felt that the National Apprenticeship System 

was being underutilized, particularly in high-growth industries. This led to the 

“Advancing Apprenticeship Initiative.” Five teams were formed to develop and 

implement the initiative, which was jointly led by OA and NASTAD representatives. 

The planned three-phased effort included data gathering, implementation and evaluation. 

As part of this effort, staff training on outreach was undertaken and materials developed 

to inform and recruit potential new apprenticeship program sponsors. A directory of 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

sponsors for registered apprenticeship programs was developed for eight high-growth 

industries: healthcare, information technology (IT), social services, security 

transportation, energy, geospatial, and aerospace. The results of this initiative were never 

fully evaluated; however, this initiative did launch the series of actions described below. 

A) Interim Certification 

 In August 2004, the OA Administrator formally approved the first “Certificate of 

Training” interim credential. This credential is defined as “a credential issued by the 

registration agency [i.e. Federal or state] upon request of the appropriate sponsor as 

certification of competency attainment by an apprentice.” Career lattice apprenticeship 

occupations offer individuals an opportunity to move laterally or upward within an 

industry. The first approved career lattice apprenticeship occupation was in the 

healthcare industry. Since then others have been added. One example established in 

2007 was for the security officer occupation. For this career lattice, certifications were 

established in six related fields, including healthcare, higher education, and commercial 

real estate. These occupations were established as Level 1 certifications with each 

specific occupation requiring between 3,000 and 6,000 hours of on-the-job learning. All 

six of these lead to a Level 2 certification which is a Security Officer Manager and 

requires an additional 2,000 hours of on-the-job learning. 

 Two other targeted career lattice certifications are illustrative of how the interim 

certifications work. In August of 2005, OA approved new national guideline standards 

specifically for CVS’ pharmacy operations. These guideline standards established a 

leveled training pathway in apprenticeship for pharmacy support staff. Three levels of 

training with interim certifications are outlined: Level I, Pharmacy Service Associate, 

requires between 200 and 300 hours of learning on-the-job; Level II, Pharmacy Support 

Technician, requires between 800 and 1,200 on-the-job hours; and Level III, Lead 

Pharmacy Technician, requires between 1,000 and 1,200 hours. 

 In August of 2006, OA approved the revision of the occupation of Chief Cook 

(water transportation) for the maritime industry. The Paul Hill Center for Maritime 

Training and Education submitted the request for modification of the apprenticeship 

occupation to establish three interim certificates of training levels, any of which could 

lead to a certificate of completion for the chief cook occupation. These three related 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

occupations provide for interim certification based on 1,000 hours of on-the-job learning. 

The OA tracks these interim certification programs through its national apprenticeship 

data system. However, no data is available on the extent to which it is being used or the 

number of these certificates that have been issued. It is our understanding that such data 

will be made available in the near future. 

 The recently revised Federal rules officially provide registration agencies, both 

Federal and state, with the option to issue official interim credentials. However, these 

interim credentials may only be issued within a recognized apprenticeship occupation. 

B) High-growth Industry Initiative in Apprenticeship 

 In 2003, ETA awarded a grant of nearly $3.8 million to the Computer Technology 

Association (CompTIA) to implement apprenticeship programs within the technology 

industry. This five-year grant was provided to develop the standards and institute 

marketing strategies that would lead to large-scale adoption of apprenticeship by IT 

workers and employers. The goal was set for nearly 384,000 IT workers to become 

registered apprentices through the involvement of 6,700 employers. In March 2007, 

national standards were approved and issued for four separate occupations for CompTIA: 

E-Commerce Specialist, Information Assurance Specialist, Information Technology 

Generalist, and Information Technology. The four occupations provide a career pathway 

within the IT field. As of March 2008, there have been no registered apprentices. 

C) Other Discretionary Grants with Connections to Apprenticeship 

 ETA awards a significant amount of funds under its discretionary grant programs. 

A few of these programs have direct connections to apprenticeship, while for others 

apprenticeship may be incorporated into the grant project. In 2007, $20 million was 

awarded to improve education and employment outcomes for youth offenders, and four 

of the grants specifically focused on apprenticeship. The four projects, which total 

$3,771,502, are located in California, Ohio, Kansas, and Minnesota. These are two-year 

grants the outcomes of which will be watched to determine how successful they have 

been in placing young people in apprenticeship programs. Also in 2007, $900,000 was 

awarded to three organizations to support the promotion and placement of more women 

in apprenticeship programs. ETA has traditionally supported organizations that focus on 

16
Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

women in apprenticeship. Over the past several years, ETA has awarded CommunityBased Job Training Grants to community colleges and their partners in local communities 

to provide training in local high-growth, high demand industries. Over a three year 

period approximately 180 entities have received $375 million in grants. These grants 

focus on specific industry sectors, including the construction industry. Several 

specifically reference pre-apprenticeship training and apprenticeship in the fact sheets 

describing their projects. 

 ETA’s Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) 

project has provided over $300 million in grants to 39 areas. The goal of the WIRED 

program is to bring together key regional stakeholders in order to develop a strategic plan 

that integrates economic and workforce development activities with the broad goal of 

aligning programs and resources to support the region’s economic strategy. At least one, 

and likely more, of the grantees have specifically addressed apprenticeship in project 

proposal plans. In Wisconsin, the South Central/Southwest region plans to link 

apprenticeship with the state’s Career One-Stop system. The initiative is still in the 

planning and implementation phases, thus no measurable outcomes are available. 

D) Integration with the Workforce System 

 Since early FY 2007, ETA has been promoting the integration of apprenticeship 

within the workforce system, including the One-Stop Career Centers. Two directives 

have been issued to workforce development system agencies and partners. The first, 

Training And Employment Notice No. 17-06, issued in November 2006, went to state 

workforce agencies (SWAs), SAAs, and Office of Apprenticeship staff . This notice 

communicated the new vision for apprenticeship and promoted its expansion outside the 

traditional trades, its use as a postsecondary option for training workers, and its 

connections to the One-Stop delivery system. More detailed guidance was issued in the 

Training and Employment Guidance Letter 02-07, dated July 12, 2007. This notice 

provided: 1) extensive background information on apprenticeship; 2) guidance on using 

Workforce Investment Act (WIA) funding for apprenticeship; 3) the relationship between 

apprenticeship and the WIA performance measures; and 4) examples of collaboration 

between apprenticeship and workforce agencies at the state and local levels. ETA has 

17
Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

also hosted webinars on the subject as a way to educate and promote the integration of 

apprenticeship within the work force system. 

 Each year, OA provides its staff with written program guidance establishing goals 

and objectives for the FY. For FY 2008, the first priority task listed was the integration 

of apprenticeship with the public workforce investment system. Regional apprenticeship 

offices must submit annual plans on the strategies they will use to meet the goals. For 

goals surrounding integration with the public workforce system, specific guidance is 

provided around how to meet the goal. Although the effort to integrate apprenticeship 

with the public workforce system is too new to be able to assess its impact, it does have 

potential for expanding apprenticeship, particularly if state and local workforce agencies 

decide to use WIA funds to support the training (i.e. related instruction) that is a part of 

apprenticeship. 

E) Revision of the Apprenticeship Regulations 

 For the first time in 30 years, DOL has issued revisions to the apprenticeship 

regulations. The final rules were published in the Federal Register on October 29, 2008, 

and took effect on December 29, 2008. The changes update the apprenticeship system so 

that it is in tune with the economy and is responsive to workforce challenges. Many of 

the changes formalized trends that have been incorporated into the apprenticeship system 

in the last decade. The regulations acknowledge and establish the interim credentials that 

have been established by OA over the past several years. Establishing interim credentials 

in apprenticeship’s regulatory framework should promote their use in apprenticeship 

programs throughout various industries and occupations. Competency-based instruction, 

which is permitted but not common in apprenticeship programs, has been formalized in 

the regulations. Apprenticeship programs may be established based on the traditional 

time-based approach, a competency-based approach that does not require specific hours 

of either on-the-job training or related instruction, or a hybrid approach, which combines 

the two. 

 Significant changes were made regarding the relationship between Federal and 

state apprenticeship agencies. SACs are not eligible for official recognition, although 

states seeking recognition are still required to have such Councils. Instead, recognition is 

18
Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

limited to state agencies and there are requirements that the state provide sufficient 

resources so that the state agency is equipped to carry out its functions. Further, state 

agencies are required to integrate registered apprenticeship into the state’s economic 

development strategies and workforce investment system. Under the regulations, states 

will have to reapply every five years to be recognized as an SAA. Appendix B contains 

the Apprenticeship Final Rule Fact Sheet issued by ETA outlining the proposed rule 

changes. 

 

IV. Youth in Apprenticeship 

 A) Participation of Youth in Apprenticeship 

OA records limited data on the characteristics of registered apprentices beyond 

gender, age and minority status. There is no data available on an individual’s disability 

status and, accordingly, there is no way of knowing to what extent individuals with 

disabilities participate in apprenticeship programs. Our interviews with those associated 

with apprenticeship uncovered little information that would provide a basis for estimating 

the extent to which individuals with disabilities are represented in apprenticeship 

programs. John Gaal, Director of the Joint Carpenters Apprenticeship program in St. 

Louis, indicated that in the recent past there were several students with hearing 

impairments and likely a larger number with learning disabilities - an estimated 10 

percent. A Wisconsin study of post high school outcomes of youth with disabilities 

found that four percent of the youth with disabilities participating in the first year’s study 

group went on to apprenticeship programs. In the second year’s group of youth included 

in the study, six percent of the youth with disabilities went on to apprenticeship 

programs. This suggests that a few young people with disabilities move into 

apprenticeship post high school. 

Furthermore, we were able to identify a program designed specifically for 

individuals with disabilities. This program is in Washington State and trains individuals 

with disabilities for Federally-funded diesel mechanic jobs. National Industries for the 

Severely Handicapped (NISH) is a partner and supports the program administration costs. 

It is a small program with 16 apprentices, most of whom are adults. Only one of the 

participants is under the age of 25. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Apprenticeship is predominantly a program for training adult workers. The 

average age of apprentices is 27. However, there are significant numbers of older youth 

who participate in apprenticeship programs. Age data for youth is broken down into two 

ranges: 16-18 and 19-23 years old. Relatively few youth age 18 and under participate in 

apprenticeship programs. One reason for this is that most apprenticeship programs 

require applicants to possess a high school diploma. Additionally, many apprenticeship 

programs are in occupations that are considered hazardous under Federal and state child 

labor laws and, even though there are exceptions for apprenticeship, employers in these 

occupations tend not to hire anyone under the age of 18. 

Figure 4 shows participation of youth ages 16 to 23 in apprenticeship programs 

across 12 industry clusters. The data is broken down by age ranges and includes new 

registrants, active apprenticeships, and completions for FY 2006. It should be noted that 

these figures represent activity during FY 2006. Thus, the columns “Active Youth”, 

“New Registrants,” and “Completed” should not be compared to one another. 

Apprenticeship programs are generally longer than one year. Thus, “Active Youth” and 

“New Registrants” would not be expected to complete their programs within the same 

year. 

Figure 4 

Youth Apprentices by Industry 

Industry Cluster 

Active 

Youth 

16 -18 

Active 

Youth 

19 - 23 

New 

registrants 

16 -18 

New 

registrants 

19 - 23

Completed 

16-18 

Completed 

19-23 

Advanced 

Manufacturing 

933 3,235 197 939 48 198 

Automotive 161 230 41 72 15 40 

Biotechnology 5 32 2 12 0 3 

Construction 9,120 53,350 3,692 21,638 877 6,271 

Energy 75 1,227 35 594 6 153 

Financial 

Services 

19 37 8 29 1 2 

Geospatial 

Technology 

48 145 23 90 2 6 

Healthcare 69 141 38 95 4 4 

Hospitality 197 701 73 228 17 50 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Industry Cluster 

Active 

Youth 

16 -18 

Active 

Youth 

19 - 23 

New 

registrants 

16 -18 

New 

registrants 

19 - 23

Completed 

16-18 

Completed 

19-23 

Information 

Technology 

56 56 1 26 0 4 

Retail Trade 216 53 33 15 9 1 

Transportation 49 1,035 8 747 2 14 

Total 11,099 62,224 4,231 25,600 997 7.191 

Source: RAPIDS 

The percentage of youth that participate in apprenticeship programs varies by 

occupation. Figure 5 contains data on the participation of youth ages 16 to 23 in 

apprenticeships by occupation in FY 2007. 

Figure 5 

Youth Apprentices by Occupation 

Occupational Title Number of Youth 

16 -23 

Percent of all 

apprentices 

Electrician 22,714 50 

Bricklayer (construction) 1,751 47 

Sheet Metal Worker 4,083 47 

Carpenter 15,602 47 

Pipe Fitter (construction) 4,395 46 

Pipe Fitter (sprinkler systems) 2,514 46 

Painter (construction) 2,091 44 

Plumber 8,191 44 

Structural Steel Worker 3,679 42 

Operating Engineer 1,963 41 

Construction Craft Laborer 3,991 41 

Dry Wall Applicator 2,205 40 

Millwright 1,265 40 

Line Maintainer 1,219 39 

Roofer 2,325 39 

Line Erector 1,111 38 

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Occupational Title Number of Youth 

16 -23 

Percent of all 

apprentices 

Boilermaker 1,533 37 

Heating & Air Conditioning 1,154 37 

Elevator Constructor 1,382 24 

Truck Driver, Heavy 1,194 3 

Source: RAPIDS

Not surprisingly, the largest numbers of youth apprentices are in the construction 

trades where their numbers approach 100,000. However, the percentage of youth 

participation is a mere 45 percent in construction – compared to 72 percent in the retail 

industry, even though there are only 316 apprentices in the retail trade. In fact, in terms 

of numbers, youth participation in all of the other major industry groups represents less 

than one-third of the number of youth in the building and construction trades. This 

suggests when considering apprenticeship for youth with disabilities, it would be wise to 

take a hard look at the opportunities in the building and construction trades, and to 

include strategies that address the construction industry as part of an overall plan to 

increase participation from youth and youth with disabilities in apprenticeship programs. 

Programs that act as feeder programs into apprenticeship, either formally or by providing 

training in the apprenticeable occupations via the apprenticeship model, are especially 

worthwhile for youth consideration. 

B) Youth Feeder Programs for Apprenticeship 

This section will discuss two types of feeder programs for apprenticeship: 1) those 

that have formal linkages with apprenticeship programs, and 2) those national programs 

that provide training in the major apprenticeable occupations, though they may not have 

formal ties to apprenticeship. The first category includes pre-apprenticeship, youth 

apprenticeship, and school-to-apprenticeship programs. These are three similarly 

structured programs and in many cases the differences among them are in name rather 

than structure. Generally, however, both youth apprenticeship and school-toapprenticeship programs tend to be secondary-school based while pre-apprenticeship 

programs tend to operate outside the public secondary school system. School-toapprenticeship and youth apprenticeship programs are, as their names suggest, oriented to 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

youth, generally under the age of 21. Pre-apprenticeship programs may have both youth 

and adult participants. 

The results of an internet-based search on existing pre-apprenticeship, youth 

apprenticeship, and school-to-apprenticeship programs that operate in the states may be 

found in Appendix C of this report. Although it provides a picture of the extent to which 

these programs operate, it is not an exhaustive list, particularly for pre-apprenticeship 

programs. The Home Builder’s Institute, featured in Figure 6, offers pre-apprenticeship 

programs along with training and job placement opportunities for both youth and adults. 

Figure 6 

Home Builders Institute 

The Home Builders Institute (HBI) was established in 1983 as the workforce development arm of the 

National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), and is committed to advancing the education and training 

programs of the residential construction industry. It is an example of an industry-led training and 

employment program that produces skilled workers, provides job placement services, and promotes the 

residential construction industry as a career. Its ties to industry are integral to HBI’s success in placing 

individuals into jobs, and its programs serve as feeder programs to apprenticeship for youth, adults, and 

individuals with disabilities. In addition to sponsoring its own programs, HBI has partnered with Job Corps 

for nearly 30 years and has developed a curriculum used by many of the nation’s YouthBuild organizations. 

The Job Corps trades affiliated with HBI include brick masonry, carpentry, electrical wiring, facilities 

maintenance, landscaping, painting and plumbing, and are offered on 67 Job Corps campuses across the 

country. Project CRAFT and Project HOPE are two examples of HBI-sponsored programs that emphasize 

pre-apprenticeships and apprenticeships. 

Project CRAFT 

Project CRAFT (Community, Restitution, Apprenticeship-Focused Training), geared toward lowincome, at-risk, or adjudicated youth, combines academic remediation with vocational training, and provides 

job placement assistance following completion of the program. Project CRAFT seeks to reduce the youth 

recidivism rate through training and placing young people in jobs in the residential construction industry. 

Many of the youth participants (60-70%) have an accompanying disability such as substance abuse or mental 

health issues. Youth that participate in Project CRAFT are prepared for careers in the carpentry, 

landscaping, bricklayer, electrician, or facilities maintenance fields. While enrolled in the apprenticeship 

training program participants must complete their PACT—Pre-Apprenticeship Certificate Training. This 

certification is performance and competency based and, once completed, provides the youth with a certificate 

conveying his or her qualifications that is recognized throughout the industry. Project CRAFT operates in 

several locations between Mississippi, Tennessee, and Florida. Florida, with eight Project CRAFT sites, has 

the largest state participation, which is both institutional and community based. In the past, funding has 

come from both state and national level sources; however, currently the programs are predominantly funded 

by states. 

Outcomes: Currently, about 80% of enrolled students complete the program and receive their 

certification, but few Project CRAFT participants transition into a full registered apprenticeship. Many of 

the youth who enter have not earned their high school diploma, and, unlike Job Corps or YouthBuild, 

obtaining a GED over the course of the program is not a requirement (HBI greatly supports GED and all 

participants are required to be enrolled in an academic component). Since apprenticeship programs 

generally require a high school diploma or GED, this is likely a factor in why so few program completers 

enter apprenticeship. 

Project HOPE 

 Project HOPE (Homebuilding Opportunities for Positive Employment) was designed exclusively for 

people with disabilities. Like Project CRAFT, Project HOPE offers trades training and job placement 

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services to students that are over 18 years of age and have a documented disability. It is a 12-week preapprenticeship training program where classroom instruction comprises 20 percent of the period, and onthe-job training is 80 percent. Project HOPE works with local Home Building Associations (HBAs) to 

connect the needs of rehabilitation clients with the workforce needs of the local housing industry. Students 

train for a range of jobs, from administrative office support to framers and carpenters. Project HOPE was 

originally funded through the Projects with Industry (PWI) initiative under the Department of Education. 

PWI engages the participation of private partners in business and industry that provide advice on 

appropriate skills and training in order to create and expand job and career opportunities in the labor 

market. The program supports all aspects of employment, including job development and placement, career 

advancement, and training services. This program was created to assist individuals with disabilities. Since 

1997 Project HOPE has succeeded in placing over 500 people in full-time jobs. It now operates only in the 

Columbia area of South Carolina. 

Youth apprenticeship programs largely seem to be clustered in two states: 

Georgia and Wisconsin. Wisconsin in particular has a long history with apprenticeship. 

Pre-apprenticeship programs are spread among a number of states, but there seems to be 

a concentration of these programs in the states of Washington, California, Ohio and 

Oregon. The largest concentration of school-to-apprenticeship programs is found in 

Ohio, which is also one of the states with the largest number of active apprentices. 

No information was found on the extent to which these programs serve youth with 

disabilities. A study conducted of students with disabilities in youth apprenticeship 

programs in Wisconsin does, however provide some information. This three-year 

research study looked at the experiences of students with disabilities who participated in 

the Wisconsin Youth Apprenticeship programs between 1996 and 2000. The study found 

that 10 percent of those who graduated from the Wisconsin programs had disabilities, 

mostly learning disabilities, and that youth with disabilities had a higher rate of noncompletion than other youth. One reason for this may be a lack of accommodations and 

support. As part of the study, a number of youth with disabilities were interviewed. Few 

formal accommodations were provided to youth at the worksite. Students were more 

likely to receive accommodations at their schools, particularly if there were attending 

their regular high school as opposed to an area vocational or technical school. 

Two national programs that provide education and training in the top 

apprenticeship occupations are Job Corps and YouthBuild. Both have the potential to 

serve as feeder programs into registered apprenticeship. While YouthBuild focuses on 

the building and construction trades, Job Corps provides more variety in course offerings, 

ranging from culinary arts to automotive technology. Job Corps and YouthBuild are 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

highlighted as feeder programs for youth because they are national in nature, provide 

education and training to significant numbers of youth, and focus on occupations that 

have the most registered apprentices. 

Job Corps, DOL’s no-cost education and vocational training program, recruits 

young applicants who are in need of job and employability skills. There are currently 

122 Job Corps centers in 48 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico (links to all 

organizational web sites mentioned in this paper are provided in the “References” 

section). Since its founding in 1964, Job Corps has served over 2 million young people 

nationwide, and provides training and education to about 62,000 students each year. Job 

Corps is largely a residential program although most centers also accept day students. To 

participate in Job Corps, youth must meet the following requirements: 

• Be 16 to 24 years old; 

• Have U.S. citizenship or legal resident status; 

• Meet income requirements; 

• Agree to adhere to the zero-tolerance policy against substance use and 

violence; and 

• Be ready, willing, and able to fully participate in an educational environment. 

Job Corps is authorized under Title I-C of the WIA, and is a publicly funded 

entity within DOL. The 122 Job Corps centers have capacities ranging from 50 to 1,900 

students. Of this total, 98 centers are operated by private contractors and 28 centers are 

operated by Federal agencies (such as the Forest Service, Bureau of Reclamation and the 

National Park Service). Dedicated Federal staff members at both the national and 

regional levels provide policy and program direction, technical assistance and oversight 

of center operators. On average, centers spend about $25,000 per participant (source: 

Job Corps assessment). 

All Job Corps centers, regardless of the trades offered, maintain standard 

eligibility criteria and teach a core set of competencies in academic, career technical, 

information technology, employability, and independent living skills. These 

fundamentals are essential for students to benefit from technical training, earn a high 

school diploma or General Education Development Diploma (GED), and secure 

employment following graduation. Additionally, DOL requires and maintains a system 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

of data collection and reporting that is consistent across centers. Job Corps is a very 

much a data-driven program that stresses performance outcomes. 

A significant feature in Job Corps is the focus on students obtaining a high school 

diploma or GED while receiving training for a specific career path. Within its policy 

handbook Job Corps maintains: 

Centers shall make every possible effort to assist students in obtaining their 

high school diplomas, where attainment is feasible for a student during his or 

her enrollment... [and] Centers shall implement a program to support student 

attainment of high school diplomas. (3.11-1) 

 A high school diploma program must be accredited by that state’s Department of 

Education or a recognized accrediting boy and the center cannot extend any of the 

necessary fees for obtaining a high school diploma to its students. Some centers, such as 

those that are degree-conferring high schools, Local Education Agencies, or those that 

receive funds from the U.S. Department of Education must ensure that the diploma 

program is in compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Individuals 

with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Furthermore: 

Centers shall implement a program to support student attainment of GED 

certificates. (3.11-1) 

 Students seeking a GED certificate are required to enroll in GED preparation 

courses and take official GED practice tests. In addition to the career technical related 

instruction, students enrolled in a GED program receive instruction in writing skills, 

reading, social studies, science, and advanced mathematics. The centers have linkages 

with local GED test sites to provide regularly scheduled testing dates and pay all fees 

associated with the students’ GED testing. Job Corps emphasizes that these stipulations 

are minimum requirements, and that centers are encouraged to invest further resources 

into diploma and GED attainment (for example, by developing concurrent high school 

diploma or GED opportunities through the local or public education agencies). 

Information on GED and diploma attainment is recorded in the center’s Information 

System, and copies of documents, or official GED scores, are included in students’ 

permanent files. In 2006, 57 percent of Job Corps students obtained a high school 

diploma or GED while enrolled in the program (Source: Job Corps assessment). 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Job Corps uses the Career Development Services System (CDSS), a four phase 

plan that describes the steps a Job Corps student must complete in order to succeed in his 

or her career goals. The Career Preparation Period (CPP) of the CDSS lasts for a 

student’s first 60 days in a Job Corps center. At this time, the center staff communicates 

the expectations Job Corps has for the student. Additionally, students receive assistance 

in creating their Personal Career Development Plans (PCDP), which outline the goals a 

student hopes to accomplish during his or her enrollment in the center. Placing the CPP 

immediately following enrollment serves two purposes: 1) it helps students determine 

their career interests for training; and 2) should the student not complete the entire 

program, he or she will leave the center with some basic work-readiness skills that are 

useful in finding a job. 

The next phase, the Career Development Period (CDP), occupies the majority of a 

student’s time on site. Students are 1) taught a trade, 2) acquire technical and academic 

skills, 3) improve their communication abilities, and 4) learn the techniques for success in 

life after Job Corps, such as job searching and independent living skills. After 

graduation, the students will enter the Career Transition Period (CTP), where they 

continue to interact with Job Corps staff or other service providers. During the CTP, 

students receive assistance in obtaining their first job, living arrangements, family 

support, transportation, and the additional resources necessary to help them continue 

working. 

 Job Corps enrolls youth with disabilities and has a Web site dedicated to disability 

issues: Job Corps disABILITY. The site provides resources to educate center staff about 

how to best support the needs of students with disabilities. Subject matter includes: 

• Disability legislation and Job Corps programming; 

• Preparing graduates with disabilities to enter the workforce; 

• Educating employers about youth with disabilities; 

• Identifying common inclusion strategies; 

• Interacting appropriately and comfortable with people with different types of 

disabilities; 

• Understanding Job Corps’ reasonable accommodation process; and 

• Addressing accessibility issues at the center. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Additionally, every Job Corps region has a designated disability coordinator that an 

individual center’s disability coordinator may contact for one-on-one assistance. Many, 

but not all, centers have separate disability coordinator positions. 

Job Corps provides training in all of the leading apprenticeship occupations, 

especially those in the construction industry. Construction programs are offered by 

center operators directly or through subcontracts with trainers from the construction 

industry, called National Training Contractors (NTC). In 2005, the Administrators of Job 

Corps and OA entered into an intra-agency collaboration to explore ways of increasing 

the number of Job Corps graduates into registered apprenticeship programs. Since that 

time, approximately 3,300 Job Corps graduates have been placed in registered 

apprenticeship programs, mostly through the NTCs. Five of the eight NTCs have 

registered their respective training standards with OA for graduates to receive their 

“Certificate of Training” as an interim credential, which will help Job Corps graduates 

transition into registered apprenticeship. These include training programs offered by the 

HBI, the International Masonry Institute, the International Union of Operating Engineers, 

the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, and the United Brotherhood of 

Carpenters. Job Corps has also included language in its current Memorandum of 

Understanding (MOU) with each of the NTCs that specifies, among other training 

outcomes, the NTCs’ responsibility of placing students into a registered apprenticeship 

training program. 

On January 25, 2008, DOL, through the Job Corps program, awarded a sole 

source grant to the AFL-CIO Appalachian Council, Inc., for the purpose of significantly 

increasing the number of Job Corps graduate placements in registered apprenticeship 

programs throughout the following 11 Appalachian states: Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, 

Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, 

Virginia and West Virginia. The grantee’s primary goals are to place a minimum of 350 

graduates, annually, in Registered Apprenticeship Programs, with 50 percent of them 

placed in Registered Apprenticeship Programs sponsored by member organizations of the 

AFL-CIO. 

YouthBuild USA is a network of local YouthBuild programs that serves 

vulnerable youth from the community and provides benefits to the community through 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

rehabbing or constructing new homes for deserving families. Participating youth are 

introduced to the education and skills necessary to gain employment while they revitalize 

or construct housing for low-income and homeless individuals. Since the program began 

in Harlem in 1978, it has been replicated in cities across the country. In 1990, 

YouthBuild USA was formed as an umbrella organization that provides technical 

assistance and support to all YouthBuild programs; however, YouthBuild organizations 

receive funds through annual competitions with a Federal agency. The U.S. Department 

of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) first awarded grants to YouthBuild programs 

in 1994, but this responsibility transitioned to ETA in 2006. The switch in agencies helps 

to consolidate youth training programs in one department, as DOL already operates Jobs 

Corps and WIA youth funded programs. It also indicates a shift in YouthBuild’s primary 

goal of constructing affordable housing to teaching and preparing young people for 

employment. 

YouthBuild provides full-time programs 6 to 24 months in duration that allow 

youth between 16 and 24 years of age to work toward their GED or high school diploma 

and learn marketable job skills while performing a community service. All youth are 

low-income and many have experienced welfare, homelessness, foster care, or 

adjudication. On average, students are at a seventh grade reading level and 90 percent 

have not graduated from high school. Most of the nation’s YouthBuild programs are 

sponsored by non-profit community- or faith- based organizations, though some are 

sponsored by public agencies. YouthBuild programs operate as charter schools, 

alternative schools, or GED programs that students attend full-time on alternate weeks 

while working on-site the remainder of the time. Often, the classes are small to 

emphasize one-on-one attention between students and instructors (source: YouthBuild 

USA web site). 

Approximately half of all YouthBuild centers use a curriculum developed by 

either the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) or HBI. 

NCCER is an educational foundation that focuses on the development of construction 

curricula and teaching materials, while HBI operates its own construction training 

programs in addition to providing a curriculum. Each offers the advantage of conferring 

industry credentials through their curricula. In addition to acquiring construction skills 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

and their GED or diplomas, YouthBuild participants receive personal counseling and peer 

support to help them address their past issues, and set and attain goals for the future. The 

acquisition of leadership skills is also a mark of success in the YouthBuild participant. 

YouthBuild maintains an alumni association for graduates to develop and continue 

positive relationships after leaving the program. 

Despite the training YouthBuild programs provide in the building and 

construction trades, few direct linkages appear to exist between these programs and 

registered apprenticeship. YouthBuild Providence, featured in Figure 7, has made a 

conscious effort toward transitioning its students to apprenticeship. The skills gained 

through a YouthBuild program may give successful graduates an advantage in the 

application process should they decide to pursue a registered apprenticeship. 

Because all YouthBuild programs must re-compete for grants each year, planning 

long-term initiatives can be a challenge for program administrators. ETA has therefore 

moved YouthBuild grants to two-year grants to alleviate some of the apprehension 

surrounding year-to-year funding. Additional funding to support individual centers 

comes from private and public sources, predominantly at the local level. According to 

YouthBuild USA, there are approximately 230 YouthBuild programs operating in 44 

states, including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In 

2007, 96 YouthBuild programs received funding awards from ETA, totaling $46,998,938 

(source: YouthBuild ETA web site). In 2008, 11 new YouthBuild programs were added. 

ETA’s objectives since acquiring YouthBuild include: 

• Strengthening the connections between YouthBuild and community colleges, 

particularly in GED obtainment; 

• Creating a consistent relationship between YouthBuild and One-Stop Centers 

across the country; 

• Developing an online collaborative workspace that links individuals from 

YouthBuild together; and 

• Ensuring that program and grant management operates smoothly in the initial 

years that YouthBuild is within ETA. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Figure 7 

YouthBuild Providence and ProvPlan 

The YouthBuild program of Providence, Rhode Island, has strong ties to area construction 

employers and has been successful in placing its graduates in apprenticeship programs within the 

construction industry. Providence Plan (ProvPlan), a non-profit community organization to improve the 

economic and social well-being of Providence, its residents, and its neighborhoods, serves as the host 

organization for YouthBuild in the city of Providence. ProvPlan was founded in 1992 and aims to: 

 1) Put people to work. 

 2) Retain the middle class of the city of Providence. 

 3) Make Providence’s neighborhoods safe and livable. 

 4) Prepare today’s children for tomorrow’s jobs. 

 5) Provide decent, affordable housing. 

 6) Increase jobs and tax base in downtown Providence. 

ProvPlan actively maintains partnerships among Federal and local agencies, interest groups, 

community organizations, and residents to ensure that these goals are realized. YouthBuild Providence, 

which began in ProvPlan in 1996, is a 10-month program that provides rigorous academic and jobpreparedness curricula, GEDs, and life skills for succeeding in the workforce. Participants are 

unemployed or underserved young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 who are poor, academically 

deficient, or are adjudicated youth. Additionally, ProvPlan utilizes its own version of IEPs within its 

programs, as many of its youth participants had them in high school. A baseline educational level is 

established for each student before their acceptance into the program, and an educational assessment 

indicates if an individual will require accommodations. 

YouthBuild Providence implemented its focus on connecting to registered apprenticeship 

opportunities following its careful consideration of apprenticeship’s advantages. The construction industry 

in Rhode Island is highly unionized, and YouthBuild Providence has taken advantage of this reality by 

forging partnerships with the Carpenters Union Local 94 and the Electricians Union Local 99. 

Representatives from these unions and the Service Employees International Union Local Union 1199 sit on 

ProvPlan’s Advisory Committee. 

YouthBuild Providence disseminates knowledge to its students about registered apprenticeship so 

that individuals have the tools to decide if apprenticeship is an appropriate career choice. The 

partnerships forged between the center and apprenticeship sponsors and unions augments the formation of 

knowledge through career panels, guest instructors, apprenticeship coordinators, and board leadership. 

Student success in the transition is based on communication, addressing potential barriers, and striving for 

retention in apprenticeships. 

Because apprenticeship programs in Rhode Island are predominantly within commercial 

construction trades, and YouthBuild’s focus is residential construction, some modifications of the 

YouthBuild Providence program were necessary to meet the needs of the local industry. Program changes 

included: 1) improving the construction curriculum; 2) providing more exposure to commercial 

construction; and, 3) working on new construction instead of renovation projects. For YouthBuild 

Providence students, performance expectations were amended to more closely match those of the 

apprenticeship industry, additional graduate resources and support systems were put in place, and the 

program is working toward direct entry agreements. Following the initiation of the apprenticeship 

partnership, one-third of YouthBuild graduates entered an apprenticeship program with average starting 

wages of $14.00 per hour. 

ETA considers youth with disabilities an important issue for YouthBuild to 

address now that the program is within its agency. ETA provides technical assistance to 

local YouthBuild grantees and is currently developing plans for providing assistance to 

build the capacity of YouthBuild programs to better serve youth with disabilities. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Data on YouthBuild’s outcomes was limited, and none was available regarding 

youth with disabilities. Between 2002 and 2006, 14,386 students entered a YouthBuild 

program, of which 59 percent eventually graduated. Seventy-six percent of those who 

participated were placed in jobs or enrolled in further education, and 33 percent of those 

without high school diplomas or GEDs when they entered were able to earn them while 

in YouthBuild (source: YouthBuild USA web site). ETA has established a reporting 

system for YouthBuild grantees that does include data on youth with disabilities. This is 

a fairly recent effort on the part of ETA, and data is not yet available although it will be

in the near future 

V. Occupational and Industry Trends—Looking to the Future 

Though registered apprenticeship has made progress in expanding beyond the 

traditional building and construction trades, most of the top 25 occupations for 

apprenticeship continue to be in these trades. This trend is likely to continue, and 

construction trade occupations are projected to remain in fairly high demand. 

Two major factors dictate the future of occupational demand: 1) growth in the 

industry or occupation; and 2) the number of replacement workers needed as current 

workers leave the workforce due to retirement or disability. Job growth statistics give 

only a partial picture of the likely future demand for workers in many occupations. In the 

skilled craft trades particularly, replacement is a significant factor as long-time, “baby 

boomer,” journey level workers leave the labor force. BLS publishes data on 

employment projections by occupation that includes projected job openings due to 

growth and net replacements. Review of this data suggests that demand for workers in 

the top apprenticeship occupations will remain strong. The latest data compares the 

number of jobs in 2006 with the projections for 2016. Figure 8 reveals the projected job 

growth for selected occupations in the building and construction trades that are among 

the top apprenticeship occupations. The occupations are listed in the order that they are 

found on Figure 1. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Figure 8 

Projected Job Growth in Top Apprenticeship Occupations 

(Numbers in thousands) 

Employment 

Numbers Change 

Occupation 

2006 2016 Number Percent 

Total Job 

Openings due to 

growth and net 

replacements 

2006-16 

Electrician 705 757 52 7.44 234 

Carpenter 1,462 1,612 150 10.26 348 

Construction Craft 

Laborers 

1,232 1,366 134 10.92 227 

Sheet Metal Worker 189 201 13 6.75 59 

Roofer 156 179 22 14.34 58 

Operating Engineers 424 460 35 8.37 118 

Painters (construction) 463 517 54 11.77 137 

Boilermakers 18 20 2 14.01 9 

Bricklayer (construction) 158 174 15 9.65 48 

Cement Mason 222 247 25 11.40 89 

Source: Appendix to November 2007 Monthly Labor Review, BLS 

Of the ten occupations listed in Figure 8, six are well above the projected national 

average increase in job openings for all occupations (i.e., 10.36 percent), and several 

others are only a small percentage below that level. All of these jobs offer opportunities 

for employment in occupations that have traditionally had the largest numbers of 

apprentices. Furthermore, these are high-wage jobs. Most pay above the average mean 

wages for all occupations, as shown in Figure 9. 

Figure 9 

Mean Annual Wages for Selected Occupations, May 2006 

Occupation Mean Wages, May 2006 

All $39,100 

Electrician 46,620 

Carpenter 44,780 

Construction Craft Labors 29,930 

Sheet Metal Workers 40,780 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Occupation Mean Wages, May 2006 

Roofers 35,340 

Operating Engineers 40,560 

Painters (construction) 34,220 

Boilermakers 48,600 

Bricklayers 44,370 

Cement Masons 35,630 

Source: BLS: National employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment Statistics 

survey by occupation, May 2006 

Even with the ongoing efforts to expand the use of apprenticeship across 

industries, we believe a high percentage of apprenticeships in construction trades will 

persist in dominating the list of the top 25 apprenticeship occupations. Because these are 

high-wage careers, a focus is needed on how to increase participation of youth with 

disabilities in these occupations as well as emerging ones. 

As noted earlier, apprenticeship occupations are skilled occupations by definition. 

They are occupations that require postsecondary education and training, though not 

usually a four-year degree. In apprenticeship, the focus is on a wide variety of 

occupations (as evidenced by the 950 apprenticeship occupations) that in the past were 

considered for the “non-college bound” youth. This is no longer the case given the 

complexities of the work place and the advances in technology. Many of the 

apprenticeship occupations today lend themselves to associate’s degree programs and 

most, if not all, community colleges that provide related apprenticeship training also 

provide a program of studies that leads to an associate’s degree. Thus, participating in an 

apprenticeship program offers a young person multiple benefits: entry-level employment, 

an industry-recognized certification, and opportunity to earn a college degree. 

There are many occupations that have already been recognized as apprenticeable 

that are also in demand throughout industry. This helps mitigate at least one of the 

hurdles to creating more apprenticeship opportunities for youth with disabilities. Since 

so many already exist, there is no need to create new apprenticeable occupations. It 

would be more beneficial to compare some of the in demand occupations with 

apprenticeship occupations to identify opportunities for apprenticeship growth. BLS 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

regularly publishes data and commentary on the occupational outlook across the U.S. 

The BLS publication, Occupational Outlook Handbook, is published every two years; the 

most recent edition is for 2008-2009. An article in the Handbook, “Tomorrow’s Jobs,” 

provides a good snapshot of both the industries and the jobs that are expected to grow. 

With respect to industries, the top growth industries projected for 2006 to 2016 are: 

education and health services; professional and business services; leisure and hospitality; 

and trade, transportation and utilities. Each of these industry clusters contains many 

apprenticeship occupations that have also been identified as high-growth. 

“Tomorrow’s Jobs” looks at occupational growth thorough several lenses. The 

article identifies growth occupations in terms of numbers, percent, and education and 

training. Many apprenticeable occupations (outside of the building trades) are among 

those that have been identified as high-growth. A few are on the list of top 25 

occupations for apprenticeship. Others are ones for which the OA has established 

national standards with large employers and associations and/or provide career lattice 

opportunities through apprenticeship. 

The apprenticeship occupations projected to grow by the largest percentages 

includes personal and home care aides, home health aides, veterinary technologists and 

technicians, medical assistants, physical therapy assistants, and pharmacy technicians. 

None of these are among the top apprenticeship occupations. However, several offer 

career lattice opportunity. Consider the occupation of home health aide, which is a 2,000 

hour competency-based apprenticeship program. Within that occupation, there are five 

specialties that require only 675 to 700 hours of competency-based training and provide 

interim certifications. 

Pharmacy assistant is another occupation that offers multiple pathways through 

apprenticeship. The occupation is a time-based program requiring 2,000 hours of work 

experience and training. However, there are other related pharmacy support occupations 

that provide certifications based on fewer hours or that are competency-based. It should 

be noted however, that these occupations do not offer the highest wages. The 2006 mean 

annual wages for pharmacy technicians was $26,510 per year and for home healthcare 

aids $20,100 per year. This compares with the mean annual income for all occupations 

of $39,160. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Another occupation that is on the top 25 apprenticeship occupations and is 

expected to increase by large numbers is child care workers. Child care development is 

an apprenticeable occupation and requires 4,000 hours of work experience and training 

for certification, making it the equivalent of a two-year apprenticeship program. Child 

care workers in 2006 had a mean salary of $18,820. 

There are a number of other occupations that are projected to be in demand and 

that are apprenticeship occupations. These include cooks, automotive service technicians 

and mechanics, legal secretaries, and licensed practical nurses. Within the medical 

service field, one of the high-growth industries, there are multiple pathways to 

certification through apprenticeship. A certified nursing assistant apprenticeship is a 

6,000 hour (or three-year) program, but there are four interim certification levels, each of 

which requires only 1,000 hours of training and experience. Nursing assistants (not 

certified) can receive their apprenticeship credential after 2,000 hours of training and 

experience, and may receive two other interim levels of certification, based on 600 hours 

or less of training and experience. In May 2006, medical assistants, including nursing 

assistants, earned $26,980 in mean annual wages. A more complete list of high-growth 

jobs is located in Appendix D. 

VI. Obstacles to Increasing the Participation of Youth with 

Disabilities in Apprenticeship Programs and Possible Strategies to 

Overcome Them 

Apprenticeship has always faced challenges expanding into programs beyond the 

building and construction trades. Accordingly, many of the obstacles to increasing 

participation of youth with disabilities in apprenticeship transcend all population groups. 

There are ways and opportunities to address these obstacles, although the reality remains 

that overcoming all of them is a difficult task. A targeted agenda with specific strategies 

may be the best approach for making inroads. 

Obstacle 1: Apprenticeship is mostly an adult program, limiting opportunities for 

any youth to enter registered apprenticeship programs. 

Strategies

While apprenticeship programs are oriented towards adults, there is sufficient 

evidence that there are opportunities for older youth in apprenticeship. The gateway to 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

these opportunities for many youth with disabilities often comes through programs that 

have direct connections to apprenticeship, such as school-to-apprenticeship, youth 

apprenticeship, and pre-apprenticeship programs. Another approach that was adopted by 

the St. Louis Carpenters’ program was to enter into agreements with six area 

vocational/technical schools in Missouri and Illinois that provide credit towards 

apprenticeship for students that successfully complete high school and enter an 

apprenticeship program. 

In addition, programs such as YouthBuild and Job Corps offer training in a 

number of apprenticeship occupations and provide certification that can be useful when 

applying for jobs. But these programs, with a few notable exceptions, have limited 

connections directly into apprenticeship. Job Corps has taken action to emphasize 

placement of Job Corps graduates into registered apprenticeship. ETA’s Youth Office is 

working with OA to build better bridges between YouthBuild programs and registered 

apprenticeship. Nonetheless, it may require ETA (for YouthBuild) and the Job Corps 

office to be more proactive in terms of direct linkages between these programs and 

registered apprenticeship. Both Job Corps and YouthBuild Federal program 

administrators might consider ultimately requiring individual program sites to set goals 

around placements in registered apprenticeship and around forming partnerships with 

apprenticeship program sponsors. Included among these goals could be a focus on 

including youth with disabilities. This could be done on a test basis with selected sites to 

see whether this action is likely to produce the intended results. 

ODEP should also work with the Federal staff in DOL to secure better data on 

outcomes for youth with disabilities that participate in YouthBuild and Job Corps 

programs. Such data is essential for ODEP in developing policies and strategies. Job 

Corps already places considerable emphasis on youth with disabilities. It would be 

worthwhile to work with the national Job Corps staff to better understand the results of 

this focus. Pertinent issues include: 1) the percentage of youth with disabilities that 

participate in Job Corps programs; 2) their success rate in terms of completion and 

placement; and, 3) the percentage of youth that are ultimately placed in apprenticeship 

programs that have a disability. There may be opportunities to increase the participation 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

rate of youth with disabilities in Job Corps and improve the success rate for these 

students. 

Similarly, there now appears to be interest on the part of ETA in focusing more on 

disabilities within YouthBuild. This may also present opportunities for ODEP. The 

benefits from these efforts, however, will likely come from increased career exposure to 

the building and construction trades rather than as a direct gateway to apprenticeship. 

Another possibility is to specifically target existing pre-apprenticeship, youth 

apprenticeship, and school-to-apprenticeship programs to increase awareness around 

serving youth with disabilities and to dispel many of the myths that surround this 

population. These efforts could be even more targeted to those states that have the most 

programs and to organizations that operate pre-apprenticeship programs, such as HBI. 

Obstacle 2: While most apprenticeship opportunities exist in the construction trades, 

little effort is directed to encouraging youth with disabilities to consider 

careers in construction or to overcome the perception on the part of 

construction employers that youth with disabilities are not able to 

perform the job. 

Strategies

Encouraging young people and their parents to consider employment in the trades 

is often difficult. Today’s culture is moving towards placing all youth into postsecondary education, particularly four-year degree programs. The St. Louis Carpenters 

Joint Apprenticeship Program has attempted to broadly address this by forming 

partnerships with area high schools. As part of its activities, the Carpenters program 

participates in career days and job fairs in an effort to interest young people in the 

carpentry trade. John Gaal, the program director, indicated that they participate in about 

160 career days at high schools each year. 

Career Voyages, the DOL-sponsored web site on careers for young people, 

publishes a considerable amount of information on apprenticeship, especially in emerging 

industries. This site is useful for teaching both students and parents about apprenticeship 

and careers in apprenticeable occupations, but does not promote resources for youth with 

disabilities. It would be useful to develop materials that target this audience and then 

explore ways to reach young people with disabilities and their parents. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

The bigger issue in improving employment opportunities in apprenticeship for 

youth with disabilities lies with the employers, who possess as much responsibility as the 

apprentice. Enhancing employer participation with youth with disabilities will be an 

especially daunting challenge in the building and construction trades. Targeted outreach 

to program sponsors may produce some results. OA maintains a list of all of its program 

sponsors and it may be feasible to use some of the existing employer materials as part of 

an outreach to employers. Including “success stories” of youth in these materials would 

be encouraging. Any such outreach campaign would need to be conducted jointly by OA 

and SAA staff. 

Obstacle 3: The apprenticeship system is not widely understood. Organizations that 

typically work with individuals with disabilities are likely unaware of the 

potential that exists for creating apprenticeship programs with 

employers, such as the one in Washington State, and supporting 

individuals in apprenticeship programs. 

Strategies 

Part of this task order will be the development of a toolkit for apprenticeship, 

which may include fact sheets for disability-serving organizations on apprenticeship. OA 

has already developed a number of informational brochures on apprenticeship that would 

serve this purpose. One state, New Mexico, developed a best practices manual on 

developing apprenticeships and serving people with disabilities. Although it is no longer 

available on the Internet, guides such as this, which was funded by the state’s Division of 

Vocational Rehabilitation Services, could be useful for engaging disability-serving 

organizations. 

The bigger issue is in dissemination, and in this regard ODEP can easily add 

value. ODEP already has relationships across Federal agencies. As part of its 

intergovernmental work, ODEP could include a focus on apprenticeship. OA staff might 

be willing to make one or more presentations before these intergovernmental gatherings 

to promote and help other Federal agencies better understand apprenticeship. 

Ultimately, though, it is important that these efforts reach down to the local level. 

Local disability service providers need to know about apprenticeship as an option for 

their clients. Partnerships between local service providers and apprenticeship program 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

sponsors offer the best opportunity for placing individuals with disabilities into 

apprenticeship. 

Obstacle 4: Apprenticeship programs can be costly to operate and, outside of the 

building and construction trades, the financial incentives for employers 

to develop and operate apprenticeship programs are limited or 

nonexistent. 

Strategies

OA has published a brochure, shown in Appendix F, which provides information 

on funding resources for registered apprenticeship programs and financial aid for 

apprentices. It includes both Federal and state resources, some of which are general 

grants sources and others that are apprenticeship specific. It should be noted, however, 

that none of the resources are specific to people with disabilities. ODEP therefore may 

want to work with OA to develop a supplement to the brochure that focuses on resources 

that are available for individuals with disabilities. Like the current brochure, it could 

include resources that are available to apprenticeship program sponsors as well as 

individual apprentices. In addition, the toolkit should include information on how local 

service providers, including those that work with individuals with disabilities, can help 

defray the cost of apprenticeship for their clients. 

As noted earlier in the paper, ETA awards discretionary grants that have 

components that focus on apprenticeship. It may be worthwhile to systematically 

identify these grants. ODEP could then offer to provide technical assistance and support 

to insure that individuals with disabilities are included among the individuals served. 

Obstacle 5: While the Federal and state agencies are the registrant for 

apprenticeship programs, individual employers make the decisions 

around hiring. 

Strategies

As emphasized throughout this paper, apprenticeship is first and foremost a job. 

Program sponsors who participate in registered apprenticeship must agree to comply with 

Federal regulations around equal employment opportunity. These regulations apply to 

program sponsors with five or more apprentices at any given time, and prohibit 

discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, nation origin, and sex. The 

regulations also require the program sponsors to be proactive around affirmative action. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

There are no special rules that apply to apprenticeship for people with disabilities. 

Accordingly, the only specific rules that apply are the same disability employment laws 

that apply to any employer. 

As OA maintains a list of all current program sponsors, ODEP should consider 

targeting outreach to these employers and providing them with the materials that ODEP 

uses with employers in general. OA is revamping its web site, and ODEP could work 

with OA to include materials dispelling myths and providing information on 

accommodations for individuals with disabilities. Another option would be developing 

and conducting briefings with audiences that include apprenticeship program sponsors 

and the Federal and state agency staff that administer apprenticeship programs. While 

the regulatory staff does not make hiring decisions, they do have interactions with the 

program sponsors, and could be encouraged to promote hiring of more youth with 

disabilities and help dissuade many of the common misconceptions around employment 

of people with disabilities. Also, ODEP should consider working with OA to arrange a 

briefing for the Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship. This Committee in its advisory 

capacity does influence policy and practice throughout the apprenticeship system. 

ETA’s emphasis on integrating apprenticeship into the workforce system and the 

One-Stop Career Centers may present opportunities for placement of more youth with 

disabilities into apprenticeship programs. This is a fairly new initiative and it is not clear 

how successful the One-Stop Centers will be in promoting apprenticeship and facilitating 

placements of individuals into apprenticeship programs. Over time, models of practice 

may develop that can serve as examples for One-Stop Centers across the country. ODEP 

may wish to work with ETA to encourage, support, and publicize selected One-Stop 

Career Centers that are proactive around connecting with apprenticeship programs and 

are effective in including individuals with disabilities in their efforts. 

Obstacle 6: Apprenticeships outside the construction trades do offer new 

opportunities for all youth, including youth with disabilities; however, 

the numbers of such programs and apprentices are fairly small when 

compared to the building and construction trades. 

Strategies

ETA’s OA has had some success in promoting apprenticeship programs outside 

the building and construction trades. OA provided initial funding to help stimulate the 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

growth of new apprenticeship programs. There are many additional occupations, 

particularly those in high demand, where efforts could be directed towards encouraging 

employers and groups of employers to establish apprenticeship programs. ODEP 

currently has relationships with CVS Caremark and the American Culinary Federation. 

The American Culinary Federation has a long history in apprenticeship (see Appendix E). 

Both of these could be targeted to include more youth with disabilities in their programs. 

Any effort towards expanding apprenticeship programs would need to be a joint 

effort with the OA and SAAs. ODEP can work with these partners to develop a plan 

identifying occupations to target and organizations that should be involved. Occupations 

such as cook, pharmacy technician, and healthcare assistants may offer promise. These 

occupations all have career lattice potential and interim certifications. However, as OA 

has found in the past it may take some financial support to help defray the costs of 

establishing apprenticeship programs and operating them for a period of time until this 

approach is proven to contribute to employers’ success in hiring, training, and retaining 

workers. 

Obstacle 7: There is no identifiable system of professional development for the onthe-job instructors. Thus, there are no apparent avenues for providing 

training in working with youth and particularly youth with disabilities. 

Strategies 

 The extent to which journey level workers, who are on-the-job instructors, receive 

any instruction in working with young people and people with disabilities is unknown. 

Any such training would likely be offered as a part of supervisory training that an 

employer provides to its workers. A safe assumption, however, is that this type of 

training is not widely available, if at all. Many journey level workers do receive training, 

but it is usually related to updating their own skills. Given the nature of apprenticeship, 

the provision of journey level training is the employer’s (or employer and union) 

responsibility, with the government having a very limited role, if any. 

 Feeder programs into apprenticeship, particularly the school-to-apprenticeship, 

pre-apprenticeship and youth apprenticeship programs provide some opportunity for 

training on-the-job instructors. The work-based learned component of these programs is 

usually closely connected to the school component. This connection provides the avenue 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

for school personnel to work closely with the employers in making sure that students 

succeed on the job. 

 One option might be for ODEP and OA to jointly disseminate materials to 

program sponsors to increase awareness and provide information around 

accommodations and support for people with disabilities. There are already many 

materials available, and there is a centralized list of program sponsors. The tip sheets and 

guides distributed to program sponsors should include materials that are clearly intended 

for the on-the-job instructor. 

VII. Final Thoughts and Suggestions 

Apprenticeships offer tangible employment opportunities for young people 

because, unlike many jobs, training is an integral aspect of the employment. 

Apprenticeships, by definition, are in skilled occupations, leading to a credential 

recognized by employers. At present, registered apprenticeship is a relatively small 

program with approximately 500,000 apprentices nationwide, compared to a civilian 

labor force approaching 150 million workers. Nonetheless, apprenticeship is a viable and 

quality approach to training that should be considered as part of ODEP’s overall strategy 

for improving transition and employment outcomes for youth with disabilities. 

Neither ODEP nor OA have sufficient staff to fully address the multiple barriers 

that exist to expanding apprenticeship opportunities for young people, including those 

with disabilities. Still, carefully constructed and targeted strategies could produce 

substantive results. Our recommendation is that ODEP focus on a few of the emerging in 

demand occupations (such as those in the culinary arts, pharmacies, and medical fields) 

that offer career lattice opportunities, and whose focus include not only youth with 

disabilities, but adults as well. ODEP’s relationships with CVS Caremark and the 

American Culinary Federation are two good connections with numerous expansion 

opportunities. In addition, by working with OA, it might be possible to partner with a 

large multi-state healthcare employer or association that is interested in establishing 

apprenticeship programs in these high demand occupations for which there is a shortage 

of workers. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

This does not mean that the traditional apprenticeship occupations should be 

ignored. Opportunity appears to exist in the pre-apprenticeship, school-to-apprenticeship, 

and youth apprenticeship programs in particular for youth with disabilities. A strategic 

outreach campaign conducted in specific states with a large number of programs and 

targeted to organizations that operate in different states should be considered. Expanding 

opportunities in apprenticeship will require all those involved to come together and work 

collaboratively. This should be a comfortable role for ODEP as it is within their mission 

and how they have operated to date. 

Service providers that target individuals with disabilities, such as Vocational 

Rehabilitation, and those that focus on youth, including youth with disabilities, such as 

YouthBuild and Job Corps are potentially good feeder programs into apprenticeship. 

However, registered apprenticeship is not widely understood by many service providers, 

particularly those that work with individuals with disabilities. A toolkit of materials 

about registered apprenticeship could be very useful for this audience. ODEP should 

consider working with appropriate Federal agencies to disseminate the toolkit. In 

addition, ODEP should also consider a pilot project to evaluate the usefulness of the 

toolkit, to explore the potential for placing young people with disabilities in 

apprenticeship, and to identify promising examples of practice. This project should 

include appropriate Federal agencies, state and local agencies, and local service 

providers. Information learned from this project can help inform future policy and 

directions around apprenticeship and individuals with disabilities. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

VIII. References and Sources of Information 

Apprenticeship

Documents 

Crosby, Olivia. “Apprenticeships.” Occupational Outlook Quarterly. Summer, 2002. 

pp. 2-21. 

“History of Apprenticeship.” Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, 

department website. URL: 

http://www.lni.wa.gov/TradesLicensing/Apprenticeship/About/History/default.as

p

Jacoby, Daniel. "Apprenticeship in the United States". EH.Net Encyclopedia, edited by 

Robert Whaples. August 25, 2001. URL: 

http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/jacoby.apprenticeship.us

Office of Apprenticeship (OA) List of Officially Recognized Apprenticeship Occupations, 

Revised May 2006. 

Scholl, Linda and Mooney, Marianne. “Youth with Disabilities in Work-Based Learning 

Programs: Factors that Influence Success, The Journal for Vocational Special 

Needs Education, Volume 26, Number 1, Fall 2003/Volume 26, Number 2, 

Winter, 2004. 

Regulations

“Apprenticeship Beyond Boundaries: Celebrating 70 Years of Outstanding Service in 

Preparing America’s Workers.” U.S. Department of Labor Employment and 

Training Administration Apprenticeship Funding Opportunities and State Specific 

Tax Credits/Tuition Benefits. Can be accessed through: 

http://www.doleta.gov/OA/pdf/funding_fact_sheet.pdf.

The Davis-Bacon and Related Acts, reference material found at 

www.gpo.gov/davisbacon/referencemat.html

The Fitzgerald Act: The National Apprenticeship Act. 50 Stat. 664; 29 U.S.C. 50 

“Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM): Apprenticeship Programs, Labor Standards 

for Registration, Amendment of Regulations: Fact Sheet.” U.S. Department of 

Labor Employment and Training Administration presented in conjunction with a 

webinar on January 29, 2008. Can be accessed through www.workforce3one.org 

Final Rule: Apprenticeship Programs, Labor Standards for Registration, Amendment of 

Regulations (73 FR 64402, Oct. 29, 2008) 

Websites Referenced

Career Voyages: http://www.careervoyages.gov/index.cfm

DOL Office of Apprenticeship: http://www.doleta.gov/OA/eta_default.cfm 

National Association of Government Labor Officials (NAGLO): http://www.naglo.org/

National Association of State and Territorial Apprenticeship Directors (NASTAD): 

http://www.nastad.us/overview.html 

St. Louis Carpenters Joint Apprenticeship Program: 

http://www.cjtf.org/CJAP/carpenters.htm

WIRED Initiative, DOL ETA: http://www.doleta.gov/wired/ 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Interviews

Anne Wetmore, Washington State Office of Apprenticeship. Phone conferences on 

February 14, 2008 and March 10, 2008. 

David Wyatt, Office of Apprenticeship Illinois State Director. Responded to an email 

inquiry for information. 

Franchella Kendall, Dana Daugherty, and Anthony Swoope, Department of Labor, 

Employment and Training Administration, Office of Apprenticeship. In person 

meeting in the Office of Apprenticeship on November 7, 2007. 

John Gaal, St. Louis Carpenters Joint Apprenticeship Program. Phone conference, 

February 28, 2008. 

Karen Morgan, President, National Association of State and Territorial Apprenticeship 

Directors. Phone Conference, February 25, 2008. 

Michael Mortell, Waukesha County Technical College, Pewaukee, Wisconsin. 

Representative for Wisconsin WIRED Southeastern Region. Phone Conference 

October 1, 2008. 

Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP)

Websites Referenced

American Culinary Federation: http://www.acfchefs.org/

C-CAP Program: http://www.ccapinc.org/index.php 

Interviews

Richard Grausman, President and Founder of C-CAP. Phone conference April 9, 2008. 

Job Corps

Documents

“Job Corps Policy and Requirements Handbook.” U.S. Department of Labor, Office of 

Job Corps. Publication date: July 1, 2001. 

Websites Referenced

Detailed information on the Job Corps Assessment: 

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/expectmore/detail/10002372.2007.html 

Home Builders Institute: http://www.hbi.org

Job Corps, Department of Labor: http://jobcorps.dol.gov

Interviews

Marcus Gray, Department of Labor Office of Job Corps. March 27, 2008.

HBI

Websites Referenced

http://www.hbi.org 

Interviews

Dennis Torbett, Vice President, Workforce Training & Employment, Home Builders 

Institute. Phone conference, February 26, 2008. 

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Issue Paper on Increasing Access to Apprenticeship Opportunities 

Occupational Outlook 

Documents 

Occupational employment projects to 2011, Monthly Labor Review, Department of 

Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. November, 2007 

Statistical and research supplement to the Occupation Outlook Handbook for 2006, 2007, 

Table 1-5. High-Wage, high-growth occupations, by educational attainment 

cluster and earnings. 

“Tomorrow’s Jobs.” Occupational Handbook 2008 – 2009, Department of Labor, Bureau 

of Labor Statistics. 

Websites 

DOL Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics: 

http://www.bls.gov/oes/

YouthBuild

Documents 

Cortes, Andrew L. “Connecting YouthBuild to Registered Apprenticeships in 

Construction: YouthBuild Providence: A Local Example.” A PowerPoint 

presentation by YouthBuild Providence, Rhode Island. 

Websites Referenced 

Home Builders Institute: http://www.hbi.org

ProvPlan and YouthBuild Providence: http://www.provplan.org

National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER): 

http://www.nccer.org/ 

YouthBuild, Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration: 

http://www.doleta.gov/youth_services/YouthBuild.cfm

YouthBuild USA: http://www.youthbuild.org

Interviews

Andrew Cortes, YouthBuild Providence and ProvPlan. Phone Conference, March 5, 

2008. 

Anne Stom, Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Office of 

Workforce Investment. Phone Conference, February 12, 2008. 

Other

Prepared for the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Wisconsin Statewide Post 

High School Outcomes Survey of Individuals with Disabilities, November 2003. 

47
48

Appendix A: Complete List of Apprenticeable Occupations in the U.S. 

This section identifies all of the more than 900 occupations that may be learned 

under the apprenticeship model in the United States. The occupations are grouped 

according to industry sector, and the asterisk (*) indicates an “in demand” occupation 

according to the O*Net database. The number adjacent to each occupation represents the 

approximate number of years necessary to complete training as an apprentice. 

 Specific codes, which appear throughout the list, specify the type of training that 

the occupation requires. If no code is given, the occupation follows the traditional timebased apprenticeship model. 

Explanation of codes: 

CB=Competency based training 

HY=Hybrid training approach 

TB/HY=This occupation can be learned using either a time-based or hybrid model. 

Arts 

Actor 2 

Audio operator 2 

Bank-note designer 5 

Camera operator 3 

Cartoonist, motion pictures 3 

Cloth designer 4 

Commercial designer 4 

Decorator 4 

Director, television 2 

Display designer 4 

*Displayer, merchandise 1 

Electronic prepress system operator (desktop 

publisher) 5 

Field engineer, radio and television 4 

Film or videotape editor 4 

Floral designer 1 

Fur designer 4 

Furniture designer 4 

Graphic designer 1.5 

Illustrator 4 

Industrial designer 4 

Interior designer 2 

Light technician 4 

Mailer 4 

Painter 1 

Painter, hand (any industry) 3 

Photographer, lithographic 5 

Photographer, photoengraving 6 

Photographer, still 3 

Program assistant 3 

Radio station operator 4 

Recording engineer 2 

Script supervisor 1 

Sound mixer 4 

Stage technician 3 

Stained glass artist 4 

Taxidermist 3 

Transportation clerk 1.5 

Wardrobe supervisor 2 

Business and administrative support 

Alarm operator 1 

Dispatcher, service 2 

*Equal opportunity representatives, military 1 

(CB) 

*Financial management 1 (CB) 

Funeral director 2 

Hotel associate 2 

*Legal secretary 1 

Manager, food service 3 

Manager, household 2 

Manager, retail store 3 

Material coordinator 2 

Medical secretary 1 

*Office manager/administrative services 2 

*Paralegal 3 

Personnel systems management 1 (CB) 

Photocomposing-perforating-machine operator 2 

Post-office clerk 2 

Production controller 2 (CB) 

Purchasing agent 4 

Salesperson, parts 2 

Supercargo 2 

Telecommunicator (police, fire, and ambulance 

dispatcher) 4 

Telegraphic-typewriter operator 3 

*Teller, financial 1 

Word processors and typists 1 (CB) 
49

Construction and mining 

Acoustical carpenter 4 

Architectural coatings finisher 3 

Asphalt-paving-machine operator 3 

Assembler, metal building 2 

Boatbuilder, wood 4 

Boilerhouse mechanic 3 

Boilermaker fitter 4 

Boilermaker I 3 

Boilermaker II 3 

Bricklayer, brick and tile 4 

Bricklayer, construction 3 

Bricklayer, firebrick and refractory tile 4 

Carpenter 4 

Carpenter, acoustical specialist 3 (HY) 

Carpenter, interior systems 4 TB/HY) 

Carpenter, maintenance 4 

Carpenter, mold 6 

Carpenter, piledriver 4 

Carpenter, residential specialist 2-3 (HY) 

Carpenter, rough 4 

Carpenter, ship 4 

Carpet layer 3 

Casket assembler 3 

Cement mason 2 

Chimney repairer 1 

Construction craft laborer 2 (TB/HY) 

Construction driver 4 

Coppersmith (ship and boat) 4 

Cork insulator, refrigeration 4 

Drilling-machine operator 3 

Dry-wall applicator 2 

*Electrician 4 

Electrician, ship and boat 4 

Elevating-grader operator 2 

Elevator constructor 4 

Elevator repairer 4 

Fence erector 3 

Floor layer 3 (TB/HY) 

Floor-covering layer 3 

Form builder, construction 2 (TB/HY) 

Gas-main fitter 4 

Gauger 2 

Glazier 3 

Glazier, stained glass 4 

Hazardous-waste-material technician 2 

Inspector, building 3 

Insulation worker 4 

Joiner, ship and boat 4 

Lather 3 

*Maintenance tech, municipal 2 

Marble finisher 2 (TB/HY) 

Marble setter 3 

Marble setter 2-4 (HY) 

Mine inspector (government) coal 4 

Mine inspector (government) metal and 

nonmetal 4 

Miner I (mine and quarry) 1 

Monument setter 4 

Mosaic worker 3 

Mosaic worker 2-4 (HY) 

Motor-grader operator 3 

Multi-story window installer or builder 3 

Munitions systems 1 (CB) 

Neon-sign servicer 4 

Operating engineer 3 

Operating engineer, specialty 3 (HY) 

Ornamental-iron worker 3 

Ornamental ironworker/architect 4 (HY) 

Painter, construction 3 

Painter, shipyard 3 

Paperhanger 2 

Pavement striper 2 

Pipe coverer and insulator 4 

Pipefitter (construction) 4 

Pipefitter (ship and boat) 4 

*Pipefitter and steam fitter 4 

Plasterer 2 

Plasterer 2-4 (HY) 

Plumber 4 

*Point cleaner, caulker 2-4 (HY) 

Prop maker 4 

Prospecting driller 2 

Protective-signal installer 4 

Protective-signal repairer 3 

Reinforcing ironworker, concrete 4 (HY) 

Reinforcing-metal worker 3 

Residential carpenter 2 

Residential wireperson 2.4 

Roofer 2 

Sheet-metal worker 4 (TB/HY) 

Shipwright 4 

Sign erector I 3 

Soft-tile setter 3 

Steam service inspector 4 

Stonemason 3 (TB/HY) 

Street-light servicer 4 

Structural ironworker 3-4 (HY) 

Structural-steel worker 3 

Structural steel/ironworker 3-4 (HY) 
50

Tank setter (petroleum) 2 

Taper 2 

Terrazzo finisher 2 (TB/HY) 

Terrazzo worker 3 (TB/HY) 

Tile finisher 2 (TB/HY) 

Tile setter 3 (TB/HY) 

Tuckpointer, cleaner, caulker 3 

Well-drill operator 4 

Installation, maintenance, and repair, 

including telecommunications and power 

plant operation 

Communications equipment 

Automatic-equipment technician 4 

Central-office installer 4 

Central-office repairer 4 

Electrician, radio 4 

Equipment installer (telecommunications) 4 

Maintenance mechanic, telephone 3 

Private-branch-exchange installer 4 

Private-branch-exchange repairer 4 

Radio mechanic 3 

Sound technician 3 

Station installer and repairer 4 

Submarine cable equipment technician 2 

Telecommunications technician 4 

Electronic equipment 

Aircraft mechanic, electrical 4 

Audio-video repairer 2 

Automotive-generator-and-starter repairer 2 

Avionics technician 4 

Battery repairer 2 

Control equipment electric-technician 5 

Corrosion-control fitter 4 

Electrical instrument repairer 3 

Electrical-appliance repairer 3 

Electrical-appliance servicer 3 

Electrician, aircraft 4 

Electrician, automotive 2 

Electrician, locomotive 4 

Electrician, maintenance 4 

Electrician, powerhouse 4 

Electrician, substation 3 

Electric-meter installer I 4 

Electric-meter repairer 4 

Electric-motor repairer 4 

Electric-tool repairer 4 

Electric-track-switch maintainer 4 

Electronic systems technician 4 

Electronic-organ technician 2 

Electronics mechanic 4 

Electronic-sales-and-service technician 4 

Field service engineer 2 

Meteorological equipment repairer 4 

Power-transformer repairer 4 

Propulsion-motor-and-generator repairer 4 

Radio repairer 4 

Relay technician 2 

Repairer, hand tools 3 

Tape-recorder repairer 4 

Television-and-radio repairer 4 

Transformer repairer 4 

Visual imagery intrusion detector 1 (CB) 

Industrial machinery 

Automated equipment engineer-technician 4 

Automotive-maintenance-equipment servicer 4 

Aviation support equipment repairer 4 

Bakery-machine mechanic 3 

Canal-equipment mechanic 2 

Composing-room machinist 6 

Computer control programmers, turning 2.5 

(CB) 

Computer control programmers, milling 2.5 

(CB) 

Computer control programmers, milling & 

turning 3 (CB) 

Conveyor-maintenance mechanic 2 

Cooling tower technician 2 

Electronic-production-line-maintenance 1 

Forge-shop-machine repairer 3 

Forming-machine operator 4 

Fuel-system-maintenance worker 2 

Hydraulic repairer 4 

Hydraulic-press servicer 2 

Hydroelectric-machinery mechanic 3 

Industrial engine technician 4 

Industrial machine systems technician 2 

Laundry-machine mechanic 3 

Machine erector 4 

Machine fixer (carpet and rug) 4 

Machine fixer (textile) 3 

Machine repairer, maintenance 4 

Machinist, linotype 4 

Maintenance mechanic, any industry 4 

Maintenance mechanic, compressed gas 4 

Maintenance mechanic, grain and feed 2 

Maintenance repairer, building 2 

Maintenance repairer, industrial 4 

Marine-services technician 3 
51

Millwright 4 (TB/HY) 

Overhauler (textile) 2 

Pinsetter adjuster, automated 3 

Pinsetter mechanic, automatic 2 

Pneumatic-tool repairer 4 

Pneumatic-tube repairer 2 

Powerhouse mechanic 4 

Power plant mechanic 1.5 

Pump erector (construction) 2 

Pump servicer 3 

Repairer I, chemical industry 4 

Repairer, welding equipment 2 

Repairer, welding systems and equipment 3 

Rubberizing mechanic 4 

Scale mechanic 4 

Sewing-machine repairer 3 

Stoker erector and servicer 4 

Treatment-plant mechanic 3 

Line installers 

Cable installer-repairer 3 

Cable splicer 4 

Cable television installer 1 

Line erector 3 

Line installer-repairer 4 

Line maintainer 4 

Line repairer 3 

Submarine cable technician 2 

Trouble shooter II 3 

Precision equipment 

Aircraft-armament mechanic 4 

Aircraft-photographic-equipment 4 

Aircraft mechanic, armament 4 

Aircraft mechanic and service technician 1 (CB) 

Biomedical equipment technician 4 

Camera repairer 2 

Dental-equipment installer and servicer 3 

Electromedical-equipment repairer 2 

Fretted-instrument repairer 3 

Instrument mechanic, any industry 4 

Instrument mechanic, weapon systems 4 

Instrument repairer 4 

Machinist, motion-picture equipment 2 

Photographic equipment technician 3 

Photographic-equipment-maintenance 

technician 3 

Piano technician 4 

Piano tuner 3 

Pipe-organ tuner and repairer 4 

Watch repairer 4 

Wind-instrument repairer 4 

Vehicles 

Aircraft mechanic, plumbing and hydraulics 4 

Airframe-and-power-plant mechanic 4 

Airframe mechanic, 1.5 

Automobile air-conditioning mechanic 1 

Automobile body repairer 4 

Automobile glass installer 2 

Automobile mechanic 4 

Automobile radiator mechanic 2 

Automobile-repair-service estimator 4 

Automobile spring repairer, hand 4 

Automotive cooling-system diagnoser 2 

Automotive repairer, heavy 2 

*Automotive specialty technicians 2 

Aviation safety equipment technician 4 

Brake repairer 2 

Car repairer, railroad 4 

Carburetor mechanic 4 

Construction-equipment mechanic 4 

*Diesel mechanic 4 

Electrician, water transportation 4 

Engine repairer, service 4 

Front-end mechanic 4 

Fuel-injection servicer 4 

Gas-engine repairer 4 

Logging-equipment mechanic 4 

Machinist, marine engine 4 

Mechanic, endless track vehicle 4 

*Mechanic, industrial truck 4 

Mine-car repairer 2 

Motorboat mechanic 3 

Motorcycle repairer 3 

Outboard-motor mechanic 2 

Repairer, recreational vehicle 4 

Rocket-engine-component mechanic 4 

Rocket-motor mechanic 4 

Service mechanic (automobile manufacturing) 2 

Small-engine mechanic 2 

Tractor mechanic 4 

Other 

Air and hydronic balancing technician 3 

Air-conditioning installer-servicer 3 

Cash-register servicer 3 

Coin-machine servicer and repairer 3 

Dairy-equipment repairer 3 

Dictating-transcribing-machine servicer 3 
52

Door-closer mechanic 3 

Facilities locator 2 

Farm-equipment mechanic I 3 

Farm-equipment mechanic II 4 

Firer, marine 1 

Furnace installer 3 

Furnace installer and repairer 4 

Gas-appliance servicer 3 

Gas-meter mechanic I 3 

Gas-regulator repairer 3 

Heating-and-air-conditioning installer and 

servicer 3 

Locksmith 4 

Lubrication sevicer materials dispatching 

technician 2 

Maintenance mechanic, construction and 

petroleum 4 

Mechanical-unit repairer 4 

Meter repairer 3 

Office-machine servicer 3 

Oil-burner servicer and installer 2 

Oil-field equipment mechanic 2 

Pneudralic systems mechanic 2.5 

Power-saw mechanic 3 

*Refrigeration mechanic 3 

Refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic 4 

(HY) 

Refrigeration unit repairer 3 

Rigger 3 

Rigger (ship and boat building) 2 

Safe-and-vault service mechanic 4 

Service planner (light, heat) 4 (TB/HY) 

Signal maintainer 4 

Supervisory control & data acquisition 

technician 4 

Survival equipment (parachute repairer) 1 (CB) 

Production 

Assembly 

Airplane coverer 4 

Assembler, aircraft power plant 2 

Assembler, aircraft structures 4 

Assembler, electromechanical (robotics) 4 

Assembler-installer, general 2 

Assembly technician 2 

Canvas worker 3 

Electric-motor assembler and tester 4 

Electric-motor, general assembler 2 

Electric-motor-and-generator assembler 2 

Electric-sign assembler 4 

Fabricator-assembler, metal product 4 

Fitter (machine shop) 2 

Fitter I (any industry) 3 

Former, hand (any industry) 2 

Glass bender 4 

Glass blower 3 

Glass blower, laboratory apparatus 4 

Glass-blowing-lathe operator 4 

Instrument maker 4 

Instrument maker and repairer 5 

Machine assembler 2 

Machine builder 2 

Machine builder 4.5 (CB) 

Metal fabricator 4 

Optical-instrument assembler 2 

Plastics fabricator 2 

Pottery-machine operator 3 

Precision assembler 3 

Precision assembler, bench 2 

Precision lens grinder 4 

Production finisher 2 

Production technologist CB 

Rubber-stamp maker 4 

Ship propeller finisher 3 

Wirer, office machines 2 

Health 

Artificial-glass-eye maker 5 

Artificial-plastic-eye maker 5 

Blocker and cutter, contact lenses 1 

Contour wire specialist, denture 4 

Dental ceramist 2 

Dental-laboratory technician 3 

Finisher, denture 1 

Shop optician, benchroom 4 

Shop optician, surface room 4 

Inspection 

Airplane inspector 3 

Automobile tester 4 

Cable tester (telecommunications) 4 

Calibrator (military) 2 

Complaint inspector 4 

Diesel-engine tester 4 

Electric-distribution checker 2 

Electric-meter tester 4 

Electromechanical inspector 4 

Electronics tester 3 

Experimental assembler 2 

Grader 4 

Hydrometer calibrator 2 
53

Metal fabricating inspector 4 

Operational test mechanic 3 

Outside production inspector 4 

Precision inspector 2 

Pressure vessel inspector, 1 

Quality assurance inspector 3 

Quality control inspector 2 

Relay tester 4 

Rubber tester 4 

Safety inspector and technician 3 

Set-up and lay-out inspector 4 

Testing-and-regulating technician 4 

Thermometer tester 1 

Trouble locator, test desk 2 

X-ray-equipment tester 2 

Jewelry 

Bench hand, jewelry 2 

Bracelet and brooch maker 4 

Brilliandeer-lopper (jewelry) 3 

Caster, jewelry 2 

Chaser (silversmithing) 4 

Diamond selector (jewelry) 4 

Engine turner, jewelry 2 

Gem cutter 3 

Jeweler 2 

Model maker II, jewelry 4 

Mold maker I, jewelry 4 

Mold maker II, jewelry 2 

Pewter caster 3 

Pewter fabricator 4 

Pewter finisher 2 

Pewterer 2 

Silversmith II 3 

Solderer, jewelry 3 

Stone setter 4 

Stonecutter, hand 3 

Metal and plastic work 

Blacksmith 4 

Card grinder 4 

Caster 2 

Coremaker 4 

Cupola tender 3 

Cylinder grinder 5 

Die finisher 4 

Die maker, bench, stamping 4 

Die maker, jewelry and silver 4 

Die maker, paper goods 4 

Die maker, stamping 3 

Die maker, trim 4 

Die maker, wire drawing 3 

Die polisher 1 

Die setter 2 

Die sinker 4 

Engine-lathe set-up operator 2 

Engine-lathe set-up operator, tool 2 

Experimental mechanic 4 

Extruder operator 1 

Fastener technologist 3 

Fixture maker 2 

Forging-press operator I 1 

Four-slide-machine setter 2 

Furnace operator 4 

Gear hobber set-up operator 4 

Gear-cutting-machine set-up operator 3 

Gear-cutting-machine set-up operator, tool 3 

Grinder I (clock and watch) 4 

Grinder operator, tool 4 

Grinder set-up operator, jig 4 

Grinder set-up operator, universal 4 

Gunsmith 4 

Heat treater I 4 

Heavy forger 4 

Injection-molding-machine operator 1 

Lay-out technician 4 

Lay-out worker I 4 

Lead burner 4 

Machine operator I 1 

Machine setter, any industry 4 

Machine setter, clock 4 

Machine setter, machine shop 3 

Machine set-up operator 2 

Machine try-out setter 4 

Machinist 2.5 

Machinist 4 

Machinist, automotive 4 

Machinist, experimental 4 

Machinist, outside (ship) 4 

Maintenance machinist 4 

Milling-machine set-up operator 2 

Multi-operation form machine setter 4 

Multi-operation-machine operator 3 

Numerical control machine operator 4 

Ornamental metal worker 4 

Pantograph-machine set-up operator 2 

Patternmaker, all around 5 

Patternmaker, metal 5 

Patternmaker, metal, bench 5 

Patternmaker, metal products 4 
54

Patternmaker, plastics 3 

Plastic fixture builder 4 

Plastic process technician 4 

Plastic tool maker 4 

Plater 3 

Roll-threader operator 1 

Sample maker, appliances 4 

Saw filer 4 

Saw maker, cutlery and tools 3 

Screw-machine operator, multiple spindle 4 

Screw-machine operator, single spinner 3 

Screw-machine set-up operator 4 

Screw-machine set-up operator, 

single spindle 3 

Shipfitter 4 

Spinner, hand 3 

Spring coiling machine setter 4 

Spring maker 4 

Spring-manufacturing set-up technician 4 

Stone polisher, machine 3 

Tap-and-die-maker technician 4 

Template maker 4 

Template maker, extrusion die 4 

Test technician (machining) 5 

Tool builder 4 

Tool grinder I 3 

Tool maker 4 

Tool maker, bench 4 

Tool programmer, numerical control 3 

Tool-and-die maker 4 

Tool-grinder operator 4 

Tool-machine set-up operator 3 

Turret-lathe set-up operator 4 

Welder, arc 4 

Welder, combination 3 

Welder-fitter 4 

Welding-machine operator, arc 3 

Molds and models, except jewelry 

Cell maker 1 

Engineering model maker 4 

Mock-up builder 4 

Model and mold maker (brick) 2 

Model and mold maker, plaster 4 

Model builder, furniture 2 

Model maker pottery and porcelain 2 

Model maker, aircraft 4 

Model maker, auto manufacturing 4 

Model maker, clock and watch 4 

Model maker, firearms 4 

Model maker, wood 4 

Mold maker, die-casting and plastic 4 

Mold maker, pottery and porcelain 3 

Mold setter 1 

Molder 4 

Molder, pattern (foundry) 4 

Patternmaker, plaster 3 

Patternmaker, stonework 4 

Patternmaker, wood 5 

Plaster-pattern caster 5 

Prototype model maker 4 

Plant and system operation 

Boiler operator 4 

Chemical operator, chief 3 

Clarifying-plant operator, textile 1 

Electronics utility worker 4 

Gas utility worker 2 

Hydroelectric-station operator 3 

Load dispatcher 4 

Plant operator 3 

Plant operator, furnace 4 

Power-plant operator 4 

Refinery operator 3 

Stationary engineer 4 

Substation operator 4 

Switchboard operator, utilities 3 

Turbine operator 4 

Waste-treatment operator 2 

Wastewater-treatment-plant operator 2 

Water-treatment-plant operator 3 

Printing 

Assistant press operator 2 

Auger press operator, manual control 2 

Ben-day artist 6 

Bindery worker 4 

Bindery-machine setter 4 

Bookbinder 5 

Casing-in-line setter 4 

Colorist, photography 2 

Compositor 4 

Cylinder-press operator 4 

Dot etcher 5 

Electrotyper 5 

Embosser 2 

Embossing-press operator 4 

Engraver glass 2 

Engraver I 5 

Engraver, block 4 
55

Engraver, hand, hard metals 4 

Engraver, hand, soft metals 4 

Engraver, machine 4 

Engraver, pantograph I 4 

Engraver, picture 10 

Engraving press operator 3 

Etcher, hand 5 

Etcher, photoengraving 4 

Film developer 3 

Film laboratory technician 3 

Film laboratory technician I 3 

Folding-machine operator 2 

Job printer 4 

Letterer (professional and kindred) 2 

Linotype operator 5 

Lithograph press operator 0.5-2 (CB) 

Lithographic platemaker 4 

Lithograph-press operator, tin 4 

Machine set-up operator, paper goods 4 

Monotype-keyboard operator 3 

Offset-press operator I 4 

Paste-up artist 3 

Photoengraver 5 

Photoengraving finisher 5 

Photoengraving printer 5 

Photoengraving proofer 5 

Photograph retoucher 3 

Photographic-plate maker 4 

Plate finisher 6 

Platen-press operator 4 

Press operator, heavy duty 4 

Press setup operator, stamping 2 (CB) 

Printer, plastic 4 

Printer-slotter operator 4 

Projection printer 4 

Proof-press operator 5 

Proofsheet corrector 4 

Recovery operator (paper) 1 

Reproduction technician 1 

Retoucher, photoengraving 5 

Roller engraver, hand 2 

Rotogravure-press operator 4 

Scanner operator 2 

Sign writer, hand 1 

Sketch maker I 5 

Sketch maker II 4 

Steel-die printer 4 

Stereotyper 6 

Stripper 5 

Stripper, lithographic II 4 

Surface-plate finisher 2 

Wallpaper printer I 4 

Web-press operator 4 

Textiles and apparel 

Alteration tailor 2 

Automobile upholsterer 3 

Bootmaker, hand 1 

Card cutter, jacquard 4 

Carpet cutter (retail trade) 1 

Custom tailor 4 

Design and patternmaker, shoe 2 

Dressmaker 4 

Dry cleaner 3 

Fur cutter 2 

Fur finisher 2 

Furniture upholsterer 4 

Furrier 4 

Harness maker 3 

Jacquard-loom weaver 4 

Jacquard-plate maker 1 

Knitter mechanic 4 

Knitting-machine fixer 4 

Leather stamper 1 

Loom fixer 3 

Patternmaker, textiles 3 

Saddle maker 2 

Sample stitcher 4 

Shoe repairer 3 

Shoemaker, custom 3 

Shop tailor 4 

Silk-screen cutter 3 

Upholsterer 2 

Upholsterer, inside 3 

Wire weaver, cloth 4 

Woodwork 

Accordion maker 4 

Cabinetmaker 4 

Carver, hand 4 

Furniture finisher 3 

Harpsichord maker 2 

Hat-block maker (woodwork) 3 

Head sawyer 3 

Jig builder (wood contain) 2 

Last-model maker 4 

Loft worker (ship and boat) 4 

Machine setter, woodwork 4 

Machinist, wood 4 

Pipe organ builder 3 
56

Pony edger (sawmill) 2 

Violin maker, hand 4 

Wood-turning-lathe operator 1 

Other 

Batch-and-furnace operator 4 

Chemical operator III 3 

Coating machine operator I 1 

Cutter, machine 3 

Decorator (glass manufacturing) 4 

Electrostatic powder coating technician 4 

Envelope-folding-machine adjuster 3 

*Fiberglass laminators and fabricators 2 

Fourdrinier-machine operator 3 

Freezer operator 1 

Gang sawyer, stone 2 

Hydro-blaster/vacuum technician 2 

Kiln firer 3 

Kiln operator 3 

Liner (pottery and porcelain) 3 

Miller, wet process 3 

Painter, sign 4 

Painter, transportation equipment 3 

Purification machine operator II 4 

Sandblaster, stone 3 

Screen printer 2 

Siderographer 5 

Stencil cutter 2 

Stone carver 3 

Stone-lathe operator 3 

Tinter (paint and varnish) 2 

Wire sawyer 2 

Science, drafting, and computer 

*Biological Technicians 1 (CB) 

Calibration laboratory technician 4 

Chemical laboratory technician 4 

Chemical-engineering technician 4 

Chief of the party 4 

Computer operator 3 

Computer programmer 2 

Computer-peripheral-equipment operator 1 

*Computer security specialist 3 (CB) 

*Computer systems analyst 1 (CB) 

Dairy technologist 4 

Design drafter, electromechanism 4 

Detailer 4 

Die designer 4 

Drafter, architectural 4 

Drafter, automotive design 4 

Drafter, automotive design layout 4 

Drafter, cartographic 4 

Drafter, civil 4 

Drafter, commercial 4 

Drafter, detail 4 

Drafter, electrical 4 

Drafter, electronic 4 

Drafter, heating and ventilating 4 

Drafter, landscape 4 

Drafter, marine 4 

Drafter, mechanical 4 

Drafter, plumbing 4 

Drafter, structural 3 

Drafter, tool design 4 

Electrical technician 4 

Electromechanical technician (robotics) 3 

Electronics technician 4 

Engineering assistant, mechanical equipment 4 

Environmental analyst 3.5 

Estimator and drafter 4 

Foundry metallurgist 4 

Geodetic computator 2 

*Geospatial specialist 2 (CB) 

Heat-transfer technician 4 

Horticulturist 3 

*Industrial engineering technician 4 

Information technology generalist 1.5 (CB) 

*Information technology project manager 3 (CB) 

Instrument technician, utilities 4 

Instrumentation technician 4 

Internetworking technician 2.5 

Laboratory assistant 3 

Laboratory assistant, metallurgy 2 

Laboratory technician 1 

Laboratory tester 2 

Logistics engineer 4 

Materials engineer 5 

Mechanical-engineering technician 4 

Meteorologist 3 

Mold designer (plastics industry) 2 

Nondestructive tester 1 

Nondestructive tester 2[+additional for specialty] 

(CB) 

Optomechanical technician 4 

Photogrammetric technician 3 

Programmer, engineering and science 4 

Quality control technician 2 

Radiation monitor 4 

Radiographer 4 

Research mechanic, aircraft 4 

Soil-conservation technician 3 
57

Surveyor assistant, instruments 2 

Test equipment mechanic 5 

Test-engine operator, geologic samples 2 

Tester, geologic samples 3 

Tool design checker 4 

Tool designer 4 

Weather observer 2 

Welding technician 4 

Wind tunnel mechanic 4 

Service and related 

Buildings and grounds 

Agricultural service worker 2 

Exterminator, termite 2 

Facility manager 2 (CB) 

Greenskeeper II 2 

Housekeeper 1 

Landscape gardener 4 

Landscape management technician 1 

Landscape technician 2 

Rug cleaner, hand 1 

Swimming-pool servicer 2 

Tree surgeon 3 

Tree trimmer (line clear) 2 

Cooking 

Baker 3 

Baker, hotel and restaurant 3 

Baker, pizza 1 

Bartender 1 

Butcher, all-round 3 

Butcher, hotel and restaurant 3 

Candy maker 3 

Cheesemaker 2 

Cook, any industry 2 

Cook, chief, water transportation 2 

Cook, hotel and restaurant 3 (TB/HY) 

Cook, pastry 3 (TB/HY) 

Meat cutter 3 

Wine maker 2 

Protective service 

Arson and bomb investigator 2 

Correction officer 1 

Fire apparatus engineer 3 

Fire captain 3 

Fire department training officer 2 

Fire engineer 1 

Fire inspector 4 

Fire medic 3 

Firefighter 3 

Firefighter, crash and fire 1 

Firefighter, diver 3.5 

Firefighter, paramedic 4 

Fire Marshall 2 

Fire prevention officer 2 

Fire suppression technician 2 

Fish and game warden 2 

Forensic science technicians 2 (CB) 

Guard, security 1.5 (HY) 

Investigator, private 1 

Police officer 2 

Wildland firefighter specialist 1 

Health 

Ambulance attendant (EMT) 1 

Dental assistant 1 

Emergency medical technician 3 

Health care sanitation technician 1 

*Health support specialist 2.5 + time for specialty 

(HY) 

Health unit coordinator 1 

*Home health aide 1 (CB) 

*Home health aide specialty (disability, hospice, 

mental illness, demential, mentor, geriatric) 

additional 4 mos. (CB) 

*Home health director 1 (CB) 

Licensed practical nurse 1 

*LTC nurse management 0.5 (CB) 

Magnetic resonance imaging technician 1 

Mammography technologist 1 

*Medical assistant 2 

*Medical coder 1.5 

Medical laboratory technician 2 

*Medical transcriptionist 2 (HY) 

*Nurse assistant 1 

*Nurse assistant certified specialties +0.5 (CB) 

*Nursing assistant certified 3 (CB) 

Optician, dispensing 2 

Optician, goods 4 

Optician, goods and retail 5 

Orthodontic technician 2 

Orthopedic-boot-and-shoe designer 5 

Orthotics technician 1 

Orthotist 4 

Paramedic 2 

*Pharmacist assistant 1 

*Pharmacy technician 0.5-1 (CB) 

Podiatric assistant 2 

Prostethetist 4 

Prosthetics technician 4 
58

Public Health 1 (CB) 

*Radiologic technologists 1 

*Surgical technologist 2 (CB) 

Tumor registrar 2 

Other service 

Animal trainer 2 

Barber 1 

Chaplain service support 1 (CB) 

Childcare development specialist 2 

Cosmetologist 1 

Counselor 2 

Customer service representative 3 

Direct support specialist (social and human 

support) 1.5 (CB) 

Embalmer 2 

Employment interviewers 2 (CB) 

Hair stylist (cosmetologist) 1 

Horse trainer 1 

Horseshoer 2 

Public Affairs 1 (CB) 

*Senior housing manager 1 (CB) 

Teacher aide I 2 

Training and development specialist 1 (CB) 

Veterinary/lab animal technician 1 (CB) 

Youth development practitioner 1.75 (HY) 

Other 

Airfield operations specialist 1 

Air traffic controller (military only) 1 (CB) 

Beekeeper 2 

Buttermaker 1.2 

Command and control center specialist (military) 1 

(CB) 

Conveyor-system operator 1 

Dragline operator 1 

Dredge operator 4 

E-commerce specialist 3 (CB) 

Farmer, general 1 

Farmworker, general I 2 

Fire-control mechanic 1 

Fish hatchery worker 2 

Historian 1 (CB) 

Inspector, motor vehicles 4 

Locomotive engineer 2 

Logger, all-round 3 

*Mates ship, boat and barge 1.5 

Medicaid disability claims adjuster 3 

Ordnance artificer (military) 1.5 

Pilot, air transport 3 (CB) 

Pilot, ship 3 

Pumper-gauger 1 

Sailors and Marine Oilers 1.5 

Truck driver, heavy 3 (TB/HY) 

Truck-crane operator 3 

Source: Department of Labor Office of 

Apprenticeship (OA) List of Officially 

Recognized Apprenticeable Occupations, 

Revised May 2006
Apprenticeship Final Rule 

Fact Sheet 

On October 29, 2008, the U.S. Department of Labor published in the Federal Register a 

final rule to modernize the National Apprenticeship System. This rule takes effect on 

December 29, 2008, and provides State Apprenticeship Agencies (SAAs) with up to an 

additional two years from the effective date to implement necessary changes. 

The revised regulations, which incorporate many of the recommendations of the 

Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship (ACA), emphasize the need for a 

flexible National Apprenticeship System by including options for both program 

sponsors and apprentices that address the needs of the nation’s regional economies and 

provide for the development of a skilled, competitive workforce. 

For more than 70 years, the National Apprenticeship System has provided training to 

rigorous industry standards in a variety of fields. While registered apprenticeship 

remains a unique, on-the-job training option that benefits apprentices and employers 

alike, its future growth and continued success require that it adapt and reflect changes 

in the American workplace. 

For apprentices and program sponsors, the regulations:

• Incorporate technology-based learning – By including the use of electronic 

media in the definition of Related Technical Instruction (RTI), the final rule fully 

supports technology-based and distance learning. 

• Provide additional pathways to certification – The final rule specifies that 

program sponsors may offer three different ways for apprentices to complete a 

registered apprenticeship program: 

3⁄4 Traditional, time-based approach, which requires the apprentice to 

complete a specific number of on-the-job (OJT) and RTI hours; 

3⁄4 Competency-based approach, which requires the apprentice to 

demonstrate competency in the defined subject areas and requires 

OJT and RTI; and 

3⁄4 Hybrid approach, which requires the apprentice to complete a 

minimum number of OJT and RTI hours and demonstrate 

competency in the defined subject areas. 
• Introduce interim credentials – The final rule provides registration agencies 

with the option to issue official interim credentials, which offer incentives for 

apprentices to complete their programs and continue their career preparation. 

Issued as certificates, such credentials will enable apprentices to demonstrate to 

employers their proficiency in particular required skills and competencies. 

Interim credentials will be issued only for recognized components of an 

apprentice’s occupation. 

• Improve program registration and review process – Changes to the regulations 

establish 90-day timeframes for registration agencies to process sponsor requests 

for registering and modifying program standards and 45-day timeframes for 

sponsors to notify registration agencies regarding other employment and 

apprenticeship agreement changes. 

• Update the reciprocal registration provision – Previously, apprentices in 

building and construction programs could work as registered apprentices only in 

those states where their programs were registered, because the states were not 

required to accord reciprocal registration or approval to out-of-state building and 

construction programs. The updated regulations remove this exemption and 

provide for reciprocal approval, for Federal purposes, of apprentices, 

apprenticeship programs, and standards that are registered in other states for all 

industries and occupations. Additionally, to ensure that out-of-state programs 

do not gain an undue advantage over reciprocal state programs when bidding on 

a contract, the final rule requires apprenticeship program sponsors seeking 

reciprocal approval to meet the wage and hour provisions and apprentice ratio 

standards of the reciprocal state. 

• Introduce provisional registration – The regulations call for newly registered 

programs to receive provisional approval for one year to enhance program 

quality. After one year, programs meeting the regulatory standards may either 

be permanently approved or have their provisional registration extended 

through the end of the first training cycle. 

For State Apprenticeship Agencies (SAAs), the regulations:

• Increase linkages with the workforce investment system – The revised 

regulations require SAAs requesting DOL recognition to demonstrate linkages 

and coordination with the state’s economic development strategies and public 

workforce investment system. 
• Redefine the roles and responsibilities of SAAs and State Apprenticeship 

Councils (SACs) – In an effort to establish a clear path of accountability between 

DOL and the state agency that oversees apprenticeship, the regulations grant 

registration agency recognition solely to SAAs. SACs will continue to be 

required for advisory or regulatory purposes. 

• Establish a process for continued recognition – The revised regulations require 

SAAs to reapply for DOL recognition within two years of the effective date and 

to reapply every five years thereafter for continued recognition. This change will 

improve state conformity with Federal requirements and establish consistency 

across administration and management of the National Registered 

Apprenticeship system. 

• Increase flexibility for location of an SAA – The revised regulations give states 

the flexibility to determine the location of the apprenticeship agency within the 

state government organizational structure and no longer require that an SAA be 

housed in a state Department of Labor. 

For the U.S. Department of Labor, the regulations:

• Enhance program accountability – The updated regulations include a new 

section on performance standards that support DOL’s efforts to demonstrate 

results and increase program quality. Programs with completion rates below the 

national average will be provided with technical assistance targeted to improve 

their performance and improve overall program quality. In addition to 

completion rates, the revised regulations emphasize the existing practice of using 

quality assurance assessments and Equal Employment Opportunity Compliance 

Reviews to evaluate program performance for quality and compliance with 

program requirements. 

• Ensure national conformity with federal apprenticeship legislation and 

regulations – The updated regulations require that recognized states provide the 

Office of Apprenticeship (OA) with the opportunity to review all potential 

changes to the state’s apprenticeship law so that OA can safeguard conformity 

with 29 C.F.R. part 29. Such a review process affords an opportunity for an SAA 

and OA to identify and resolve issues that could potentially affect a state’s 

recognition status before proposals take effect and must be undone to preserve 

recognition. 
Background

In developing the rule, the Department’s Employment and Training Administration 

(ETA) and OA consulted extensively with the Secretary of Labor’s Advisory Committee 

on Apprenticeship (ACA). From September 2005 to May 2006, the ACA’s Work Group 

on Regulations and Competency-Based Training Certification drafted 

recommendations. In June 2006, the ACA unanimously adopted the recommendations, 

which became the starting point for ETA’s proposed rule. 

On December 13, 2007, ETA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), 

soliciting comments from the public on the proposed changes to the existing 

regulations. The NPRM generated 2,660 responses. DOL carefully considered the 

suggestions and concerns of commenters and, in many instances, modified the 

proposed rule to reflect their input. 
Appendix C: List of Youth Feeder Programs in the U.S., including 

School-to-Apprenticeship, Pre-Apprenticeship, and Youth Apprenticeship 

School-to-Apprenticeship 

School/Program 

Name

State District Website Details 

MatanuskaSustina (Mat-Su) 

Registered 

School-toApprenticeship 

Program 

Alaska 

Mat-Su 

Borough 

school 

district 

http://www.matsuk12.us/1733109311551830/b

lank/browse.asp?a=383

&BMDRN=2000&BC

OB=0&c=63533

The registered school-to-appre

program provides the flexibility to 

educational requirements while w

structured, on-the-job training e

particular program is a partnersh

Operating Engineers Local 302 in 

that offers the student the opportun

heavy equipment operator 

Muskegon Area 

Intermediate 

School District 

Michigan Muskegon 

http://www.muskegonis

d.org/ctcnew/careers/placement/

Students participate in an appre

program while concurrently com

requirements

Upper Valley 

Joint Vocational 

School 

Ohio 

14 school 

districts in 

Shelby and 

Miami 

County 

http://www.uvjvs.org/

This school combines career tech

academics for students in their jun

high school. 

Four County 

Career Center 

(FCCC) 

Ohio 

22 

Northwest 

Ohio school 

districts 

http://www.fourcounty.

net/about.aspx

FCCC offers 32 programs in four 

& communications and busine

environmental and agricultural sy

and human resources services; 

engineering syste

63
School/Program 

Name

State District Website Details 

West Shore 

Career-Technical 

Education 

District 

Ohio 

Bay Village, 

Lakewood, 

Rocky 

River, and 

Westlake 

School 

Districts. 

http://www.lkwdpl.org/

schools/westshore/abou

t.htm 

The goals of the district include inf

the curriculum to meet industry s

variety of career training oppo

pathways to foster lifelong learnin

with parents and industries that a

needs of the community. The sch

program is designed to bridge the 

school district and apprenticeship 

maintain a cooperative partnersh

Apprenticeship. Intended ou

employment, transition to 2 or 4 y

an Associate's degree during the 

school. 

Cuyahoga Valley 

Career Center 

(CVCC) 

Ohio 

Brecksville 

Broadview, 

Cuyahoga 

Heights, 

Garfield 

Heights, 

Independence, 

Nordonia 

Hills, North 

Royalton, 

Revere, 

Twinsburg 

http://www.cvccworks.

com/homepage.aspx

A wide variety of available prog

culinary, drafting/CAD, elec

horticulture, machining, microsy

electrician, etc. While enrolled, th

high school in his residential distr

travels to CVCC for advanced tra

design allows the student a smooth

the career-technical program and 

position after graduation. Sponso

employers even provide summer 

The graduate receives a high sch

technical certificate, a full time jo

toward an apprenticeship program

special education services that 

vocations. 

64
School/Program 

Name

State District Website Details 

Miami Valley 

Career 

Technology 

Center 

(MVCTC) 

School-toApprenticeship 

Program 

Ohio

Darke, 

Preble, 

Miami, 

Montgomery, 

Warren 

Counties 

http://www.mvctc.com/

The program offers a wide variechoices, including early childhoo

fields, accounting, IT, graphics

Furthermore, the program office

other institutions might initiate 

apprenticeship pro

Greene County 

Career Center 

(GCCC) School 

to Work 

Apprenticeship 

Program 

Ohio Greene County http://www.greeneccc.c om/1737108131554556 3/site/default.asp

A program providing continuing experience for students in vocati

student earns credit toward the 

apprenticeship, and employme

following graduation. They offer 

student program

Collins Career 

Center School-to 

-Apprenticeship 

Program 

Ohio 

Lawrence 

County 

(certain high 

schools) 

http://www.collinscc.k12.oh.us/Guidance/

Apprenticeships/index.

htm

A program intended to bridge the 

vocational programs and exis

apprenticeship programs. The par

schools and sponsoring businesse

of education and work experien

Associated 

Builders and 

Contractors, Ohio Valley 

Chapter 

Ohio Ohio Valley 

http://www.ovabc.org/

Education_Training/School_to_Career/School

_to_Apprenticeship.asp

x

A program that allows students at 

begin a career in the construction 

high school stud

Pickaway Ross 

Career and 

Technical Center 

Ohio 

Pickaway 

and Ross 

Counties 

http://www.pickawayro

ss.com/

A career center that maintains pa

high schools

65
School/Program 

Name

State District Website Details 

Maplewood 

Career Center Ohio Ravenna http://www.mwood.cc/

A school-to-apprenticeship progra

the opportunity to become employ

following gradua

Penta Career 

Center Ohio N/A http://www.pentacareer center.org A school that provides real w

partnerships with business 

Polaris Career 

Center Ohio 

Berea, 

Brooklyn, 

Fairview, 

North 

Olmsted, 

Olmsted 

Falls, and 

Strongsville 

Districts 

http://www.polaris.edu

A career technical program with 

high school students to immediate

and to earn credit towards a 2- 

program. 

Scioto County 

Joint Vocational 

School 

Ohio Scioto County http://www.scjvs.com/i ndex.html A career technical school that prep

their last two years of high schoo

employment, education, or furt

SpringfieldClark Career 

Center 

Ohio 

SpringfieldClark 

County 

http://www.springfieldc

larkctc.org/index.htm

A skills development and career 

center for high school and 

Rhode Island 

Dept. of Labor 

and Training 

Rhode 

Island N/A 

http://www.dlt.ri.gov/a

pprenticeship/students.

htm

There are registered school-to-app

available in the trades throughou

apprentice to enter the workforce i

HS as an appren

66
Pre-Apprenticeship 

School/Program 

Name State District/Re gion Website Details 

Cypress 

Mandela/Women 

in Skilled Trades 

(WIST) 

California Bay Area http://www.cypressman dela.org/ WIST offers a 16-week pre-app

program for women and men ove

partnership with local e

Century 

Community 

Training 

Program (CCTP) 

California Los Angeles www.centuryhousing.o rg/job_placement.htm 

CCTP offers pre-apprenticesh

construction training for those ind

from welfare, low-income jobs

unemploymen

RichmondBUILD California Richmond www.ci.richmond.ca.us /index.asp?NID=1243 

RichmondBUILD offers a trainin

program to Richmond city re

comprehensive pre-apprenticeshi

course. 

Northern 

California 

Construction 

Training (NCCT) 

California Sacramento www.ncct.ws/index.ht ml The NCCT offers a variety of pr

individuals to the construction tr

apprenticeship prog

Work 4 Women 

District of 

Columbia 

(HQ) 

National 

www.work4women.org/training/trainingprevoc

ational.cfm 

A pre-vocational project sponsore

to provide women with the basic 

tool identification) to participate 

trade. 

Joliet Job Corps Illinois Joliet 

http://www.willcounty

workforceboard.com/de

fault.asp?contentID=17

0

Several vocational trades offered 

union partnerships that allow pre-a

for students. 

67
School/Program 

Name State District/Re gion Website Details 

Maine PreApprenticeship 

Program 

(MPAP) 

Maine State 

http://maine.gov/labor/

apprenticeship/pre_app

renticeship/index.htm 

Available in a variety of trades t

Maine's Pre-Apprenticeship Progra

of coursework and on-the-job wor

that begin with the students' junio

Upon graduation students matri

Apprenticeship Pro

Construction 

Skills PreApprenticeship New York New York City http://www.constructio nskills.org/pages/pat.ht ml

An initiative within NYC public h

students for careers in the buildi

trades. Training involves spr

coursework in school; Construct

relationship with appre

Independent 

Electrical 

Contractors of 

Greater 

Cincinnati 

Ohio Cincinnati www.iec- cincy.com/preapp.asp A union sponsored pre-apprentice

week in duration that covers the 

and material identifica

Union 

Construction 

Industry 

Partnership, 

Apprenticeship 

Skills 

Achievement 

Program (UCIPASAP) 

Ohio Cleveland 

http://ucipconstruction.

com/apprenticeship.ht

m

A pre-apprenticeship training prog

experience the realm of a union 

hand. 

Oregon 

Tradeswomen, 

Inc. 

Oregon Portland www.tradeswomen.net

A five-week, 3-day per week, clas

for work in the trades, through ed

and mentorshi

68
School/Program 

Name State District/Re gion Website Details 

Oregon 

Tradeswomen, 

Inc. (OTI) 

Oregon Portland www.tradeswomen.net/ pathways.html 

OTI focuses on introducing young 

careers in construction and prepar

trades. Participants must be 18+ 

apprenticeship pro

Portland 

Community 

College Trades 

Preparation 

Course 

Oregon Portland www.pcc.edu/programs /apprenticeship/ 

A 12-week course for participants 

Portland Community College 

necessary to meet the minimum en

a trade or apprenticeshi

Portland 

YouthBuilders Oregon Portland www.pybpdx.org/const ruction.htm A YouthBuild program that provid

in the construction trades and co

school diploma or 

Curlew Job 

Corps Vocational 

Training Center 

Washington Curlew N/A 

Four pre-apprenticeship prog

bricklaying/tile setting, pain

Phone: (800) 733-

Apprenticeship 

and Construction 

Exploration 

(ACE) 

Washington 

Franklin and 

Cleveland 

High 

Schools 

N/A 

ACE is a partnership between 

District, Joint Apprenticeship Trai

Seattle Community College. Pho

ANEW 

(Apprenticeship 

and NonTraditional 

Employment for 

Men and 

Women) 

Washington King County www.anewaop.org ANEW offers comprehensive tra

individuals in the form of 12

69
School/Program 

Name State District/Re gion Website Details 

Apprenticeship 

Opportunities 

Project 

Washington King County www.anewaop.org/AO P.htm Operated by ANEW, this program 

individuals for apprenticeship pro

work. 

Job Skills for 

Trade and 

Industry 

Washington King County www.rtc.edu Students gain skills for apprentic

employment in construction, ma

utilities, and related in

PreApprenticeship 

Construction 

Training (PACT) 

Washington Seattle N/A 

The Multiple Trades Program prep

into any of the construction trad

Strong emphasis is place on bas

punctuality, perseverance, positiv

ethic. Programs are 660 ho

Phone: (206) 587-

Seattle City 

Light's PreApprenticeship 

Lineworker 

Washington Seattle www.seattle.gov/light/a pprentice A paid, six-month training positi

employees gain the necessary 

lineworker appren

Seattle 

Vocational 

Institute (SVI) 

Washington Seattle http://sviweb.sccd.ctc.e du/p_mta_mta.htm A 660-hour pre-apprenticeship tr

construction trad

Spokane 

Community 

College 

Apprenticeship 

and Journeymen 

Training Center 

Avista 

Washington Spokane 

www.scc.spokane.edu/

?avista&origurl=tech/a

pprent/avista.htm 

Participants in this pre-apprentices

skills and knowledge required of a 

receive classroom and on-th

70
School/Program 

Name State District/Re gion Website Details 

Spokane Home 

Builders 

Association, Inc., 

and the 

Department of 

Corrections PreApprenticeship 

and Training 

Directory 

Washington Spokane www.shba.com

A pre-apprenticeship carpentry tr

serves as a competency-based e

provides inmates a skill for emp

release. Students complete a 1

program. 

PreApprenticeship 

Training 

Programs at 

Bates Technical 

College 

Washington Tacoma www.bates.ctc.edu Offers pre-apprenticeship career cl

and diesel mechanics, ca

School–toApprenticeship 

Programs "Get 

Electrified, 

Frame Your 

Future, and 

Cutting Edge 

Technologies" 

Washington Tacoma N/A 

A pre-apprenticeship training pro

prepares, and directly links hig

apprenticeship training through c

job training. Phone: (25

School to Career 

Summer 

Academy at 

Bates Technical 

College 

Washington Tacoma www.bates.ctc.edu

A summer course with two wee

training and a two-week interns

students interested in the building 

fields. 

71
School/Program 

Name State District/Re gion Website Details 

Youth Building 

Tacoma Washington Tacoma N/A 

Funded by the City of Tacoma an

County Employment & Training 

of the project is to assist reside

obtaining employment and/

Phone: (253) 593-

New Market 

Vocational Skills 

Center, 

Construction 

Trades Program 

Washington 

Thurston, 

Mason, 

Lewis, 

Grays 

Harbor, and 

Pierce 

Counties 

www.nmvsc.com

The program is a part of the Was

school system, and prepares stud

trades in the constructio

Puget Sound 

OIC 

(Opportunities 

Industrialization 

Center) 

Washington Western Washington N/A 

A statewide direct placement pro

recruiting individuals to become a

in highway construct

Phone: (800) 963-3277 or (

Construction 

Industry Training 

(CIT) Edmonds 

Community 

College 

Washington Lynnwood http://cit.edcc.edu

Students learn the fundamentals o

hands-on skills, and earn certifica

who want to be competitive i

construction marketplace or who a

into an apprenticeship train

72
Youth Apprenticeship 

School/Program 

Name State District Website Details 

Fayetteville Public 

Schools Arkansas Fayetteville http://fayettevilleappre nticeship.org High school students receive a tec

on-the-job learning experience a

employers. 

Cherokee County 

Schools Georgia Cherokee County http://www.peggysues. net/index2.html

An educational option that prepare

for work through academic cou

learning. Students may receive w

the program during their junior 

Lamar County 

Youth 

Apprenticeship 

Georgia Lamar County www.lamar.k12.ga.us/ webpages/yap/lcyap.ht m Students may participate in this ap

program during 11th and 12th gra

paid on-the-job tra

Coastal Plains 

Regional 

Educational 

Service Agency 

(RESA) 

Georgia 

Multiple 

School 

Districts 

www.cpresa.org/ 

Coastal Plains operates a youth ap

in various school districts that com

with paid career technic

Georgia 

Department of 

Education Youth 

Apprenticeship 

Program 

Georgia State 

www.doe.k12.ga.us/ci_

cta.aspx?PageReq=CIC

TAYouth 

A structured combination of scho

based training through a partnersh

schools, post-secondary instituti

community representatives. The 

during a student’s last two yea

Okefenofee 

Technical College Georgia Waycross 

www.okefenokeetech.e

du/admissions/hs_stds.

asp 

Offers a school- and work-based l

includes a paid appren

73
School/Program 

Name State District Website Details 

New Hampshire 

Department of 

Labor--

Apprenticeships 

New 

Hampshire State 

www.labor.state.nh.us/

youth_apprenticeship.a

sp 

The NH DOL was awarded a gran

opportunity for youths age 16-24 

occupation using a system that c

training and related instruction. T

was 1 year. 

North Carolina 

Public Schools 

North 

Carolina State 

http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/cte/public

ations/administrative/a

pprenticeshiphandbook.

pdf

The state has developed guideli

apprenticeship opportunities that 

work-based training with an inco

Great Oaks Career 

Campuses Ohio 

Diamond, 

Laurel, 

Live, 

Scarlet 

http://www.greatoaks.c

om/EmployerServices.cfm?subpage=

258

A youth apprenticeship program 

formal apprenticeship system, G

high school academics and work 

Oaks also operates a school-to-app

Youth 

Apprenticeship 

Program in 

Biotechnology 

Wisconsin Dane County www.btci.org/k12/yap/ yap.html A 10-15 hour/week paid apprentic

lab setting in addition to the stu

coursework. 

Jefferson County 

School-to-Career 

Consortium 

Wisconsin Jefferson County www.fortschools.org/jc stc/homepage.asp 

This school district offers you

programs in a variety of trades thro

Students receive a career technical 

appropriate for thei

Wisconsin 

Department of 

Workforce 

Development 

Wisconsin State 

www.dwd.state.wi.us/y

outhapprenticeship/def

ault.htm 

Wisconsin maintains a statewide 

program as part of a school-to-w

designed as a two-year elective pro

students and combines hands-on tr

instruction. 

74
School/Program 

Name State District Website Details 

Wisconsin 

Technical College 

System 

Wisconsin State http://www.wtcsystem. edu/colleges.htm A comprehensive listing of all W

colleges where graduates of the s

apprenticeship high school progra

Waukesha County 

Technical College Wisconsin Waukesha County 

http://www.wctc.edu/pr

ograms_&_courses/skil

led_trades/apprentice.p

hp

Secondary school students at leas

eligible to participate in this pro

technical training and paid emp

graduate with a skills certificate a

being hired as a full apprenticesh

Wisconsin 

Automotive and 

Truck Education 

Association 

Wisconsin Wausau www.watea.org/youtha pprenticeship.htm A youth apprenticeship progra

automotive trades that provides h

wages at the same 

NOTE: This information is compiled from an internet search of available School-to-Apprenticeship, Pre-ApprenApprenticeship Programs in the U.S. The U.S. Department of Labor does not endorse any of the programs provi

75
76

Appendix D: High Wage, High-Growth Occupations 

The following chart indicates high wage and high-growth occupations as 

indicated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The median annual earnings, as of May 

2004, are shown for each occupation. This list includes jobs that are also apprenticeship 

occupations. Careers that require a Bachelor’s degree, a graduate degree, or a 

professional school degree are not included in this list. 

EMPLOYMENT 

(in thousands) 

EMPLOYMENT 

CHANGE, 2004-

OCCUPATION 2014 

MEDIAN 

ANNUAL 

EARNINGS 

(as of May 

2004) 2004 2014 Number 

(thous) Percent 

MOST 

SIGNIFICANT 

SOURCE OF 

POSTSECONDARY 

TRAINING 

Cement masons and 

concrete finishers $31,400 201 233 32 15.8% Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Roofers 30,840 162 189 27 16.8 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Tile and marble setters 35,410 59 73 14 22.9 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Paving, surfacing, and 

tamping equipment 

operators 

29,990 63 73 10 15.6 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Painters, 

transportation 

equipment 

35,120 53 61 7 14.1 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Reinforcing iron and 

rebar workers 35,160 34 38 5 14.1 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Stonemasons 34,980 22 25 3 13.0 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Choreographers 33,670 19 22 3 16.8 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Recreational vehicle 

service technicians 28,980 13 15 3 19.5 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Maintenance and 

repair workers, general 30,710 1,332 1,533 202 15.2 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Carpenters 34,900 1,349 1,535 186 13.8 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Automotive service 

technicians and 

mechanics 

32,450 803 929 126 15.7 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Licensed practical and 

licensed vocational 

nurses 

33,970 726 850 124 17.1 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Plumbers, pipefitters, 

and steamfitters 41,290 499 577 78 15.7 Long-term on the job training 

Fire fighters 38,330 282 351 69 24.3 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Heating, air 

conditioning, and 

refrigeration 

mechanics and 

installers 

36,260 270 321 51 19.0 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Legal secretaries 36,720 272 319 47 17.4 Post secondary 

vocational award 

First-line 

supervisors/managers 

of housekeeping and 

janitorial workers 

29,510 236 281 45 19.0 Work experience in a 

related occupation 
77

EMPLOYMENT 

(in thousands) 

EMPLOYMENT 

CHANGE, 2004-

OCCUPATION 2014 

MEDIAN 

ANNUAL 

EARNINGS 

(as of May 

2004) 2004 2014 Number 

(thous) Percent 

MOST 

SIGNIFICANT 

SOURCE OF 

POSTSECONDARY 

TRAINING 

Bus drivers, transit and 

intercity 29,730 190 231 41 21.7 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Bus and truck 

mechanics and diesel 

engine specialists 

35,780 270 309 39 14.4 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

First-line 

supervisors/managers 

of personal service 

workers 

30,350 206 244 38 18.3 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Payroll and 

timekeeping clerks 30,350 214 251 37 17.3 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

First-line 

supervisors/managers 

of transportation and 

material-moving 

machine and vehicle 

operators 

44,810 288 262 35 15.3 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

First-line 

supervisors/managers 

of landscaping, lawn 

service and 

groundskeeping 

workers 

35,340 184 217 33 17.8 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Highway maintenance 

workers 29,550 143 177 33 23.3 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Surgical technologists 34,010 84 109 25 29.5 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Chefs and head cooks 30,680 125 146 21 16.7 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Aircraft mechanics and 

service technicians 45,290 119 135 16 13.4 Postsecondary vocational award 

Water and liquid waste 

treatment plant and 

system operators 

34,960 94 110 15 16.2 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Police, fire, and 

ambulance dispatchers 28,930 95 111 15 15.9 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Civil engineering 

technicians 38,480 94 107 13 14.1 Associate degree 

Hazardous materials 

removal workers 33,320 38 50 12 31.2 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Structural iron and 

steel workers 42,430 73 83 11 15.0 Long-term on-the-job training 

Security and fire alarm 

systems installers 33,410 47 57 10 21.7 Postsecondary vocational award 

Railroad conductors 

and yardmasters 46,340 38 45 8 20.3 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Glaziers 32,650 49 56 7 14.2 Long-term on the job 

training 

Transportation 

workers, all other 32,170 52 60 7 13.9 Short-term on-thejob training 

Environmental 

engineering 

technicians 

38,550 20 25 5 24.2 Associate degree 

Locksmiths and safe 

repairers 30,360 28 33 5 16.1 Moderate-term onthe-job training 
78

EMPLOYMENT 

(in thousands) 

EMPLOYMENT 

CHANGE, 2004-

OCCUPATION 2014 

MEDIAN 

ANNUAL 

EARNINGS 

(as of May 

2004) 2004 2014 Number 

(thous) Percent 

MOST 

SIGNIFICANT 

SOURCE OF 

POSTSECONDARY 

TRAINING 

Medical equipment 

repairers 37,220 29 34 4 14.8 Associate degree 

Septic tank servicers 

and sewer pipe 

cleaners 

28,870 20 24 4 21.8 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Elevator installers and 

repairers 58,710 22 25 3 14.8 Long-term on-the-job training 

Motorboat mechanics 30,660 23 26 3 15.1 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Riggers 35,330 13 14 2 13.9 Short-term on-thejob training 

Bailiffs 33,870 18 20 2 13.2 Moderate-term on 

the job training 

Mechanical door 

repairers 32,000 11 12 2 15.8 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Gaming managers 58,580 4 5 1 22.6 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Subway and streetcar 

operators 49,290 9 10 1 13.7 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Embalmers 35,540 9 10 1 15.7 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Aircraft cargo handling 

supervisors 34,100 8 9 1 17.4 Work experience in a related occupation 

Traffic technicians 33,670 6 7 1 14.1 Short-term on-thejob training 

Occupational therapist 

assistants 38,430 21 29 7 34.1 Associate degree 

Sales representatives, 

services, all other 47,000 1,807 2,115 308 17.0 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Sales representatives, 

wholesale and 

manufacturing, 

technical and scientific 

products 

58,580 397 454 57 14.4 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Real estate sales 

agents 35,670 348 400 51 14.7 Postsecondary vocational award 

Sales and related 

workers, all other 31,380 226 267 42 18.4 Moderate-term on 

the job training 

Claims adjusters, 

examiners, and 

investigators 

44,220 250 288 38 15.1 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Cost estimators 49,940 198 234 36 18.2 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Human resources 

assistants, except 

payroll and 

timekeeping 

31,750 172 200 29 16.7 Short-term on-thejob training 

Musicians and singers 37,130 189 216 26 14.0 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Construction and 

building inspectors 43,670 94 115 21 22.3 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Healthcare 

technologists and 

technicians, all other 

34,230 85 104 19 22.9 Postsecondary 

vocational award 
79

EMPLOYMENT 

(in thousands) 

EMPLOYMENT 

CHANGE, 2004-

OCCUPATION 2014 

MEDIAN 

ANNUAL 

EARNINGS 

(as of May 

2004) 2004 2014 Number 

(thous) Percent 

MOST 

SIGNIFICANT 

SOURCE OF 

POSTSECONDARY 

TRAINING 

Flight attendants 43,440 127 145 18 14.4 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Life, physical, and 

social science 

technicians, all other 

37,840 83 100 17 20.0 Associate degree 

Entertainers and 

performers, sports and 

related workers, all 

other 

34,800 76 92 16 21.0 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Biological technicians 33,210 64 75 11 17.2 Associate degree 

Lodging managers 37,660 58 68 10 16.6 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Audio and video 

equipment technicians 32,570 46 55 8 18.1 Long-term on-the-job training 

Desktop publishers 32,340 34 41 8 23.2 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Gaming supervisors 40,840 38 44 6 16.3 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Environmental science 

and protection 

technicians, including 

health 

35,340 31 36 5 16.3 Associate degree 

Forensic science 

technicians 44,010 10 13 4 36.4 Associate degree 

Court reporters 42,920 18 21 3 14.8 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Media and 

communication 

equipment workers, all 

other 

41,120 19 23 3 17.0 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Social science 

research assistants 34,360 18 21 3 17.4 Associate degree 

Agricultural and food 

science technicians 29,730 23 26 3 13.4 Associate degree 

Insurance appraisers, 

auto damage 45,330 13 15 2 16.6 Long-term on the job training 

Sound engineering 

technicians 38,110 13 16 2 18.4 Postsecondary vocational award 

Nuclear technicians 59,200 7 8 1 13.7 Associate degree 

Registered nurses 52,330 2,394 3,096 703 29.4 Associate degree 

Computer support 

specialists 40,430 518 638 119 23.0 Associate degree 

Police and sheriff’s 

patrol officers 45,210 639 738 99 15.5 Long-term on the job 

training 

Dental hygienists 58,350 158 226 68 43.3 Associate degree 

Paralegals and legal 

assistants 39,130 224 291 67 29.7 Associate degree 

Self-enrichment 

education teachers 30,880 253 317 64 25.3 Work experience in related occupation 

Radiologic 

technologists and 

technicians 

43,350 182 224 42 23.2 Associate degree 

Medical and clinical 

laboratory technicians 30,840 147 183 37 25.0 Associate degree 
80

EMPLOYMENT 

(in thousands) 

EMPLOYMENT 

CHANGE, 2004-

OCCUPATION 2014 

MEDIAN 

ANNUAL 

EARNINGS 

(as of May 

2004) 2004 2014 Number 

(thous) Percent 

MOST 

SIGNIFICANT 

SOURCE OF 

POSTSECONDARY 

TRAINING 

Computer specialists, 

all other 59,480 149 177 28 19.0 Associate degree 

Respiratory therapists 43,140 94 120 27 28.4 Associate degree 

Physical therapist 

assistants 37,890 59 85 26 44.2 Associate degree 

Advertising sales 

agents 40,300 154 180 25 16.3 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Appraisers and 

assessors of real 

estate 

43,390 102 125 23 22.8 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Massage therapists 31,960 97 120 23 23.6 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

First-line 

supervisors/managers 

of police and 

detectives 

64,430 100 115 16 15.5 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Detectives and 

criminal investigators 53,990 91 106 15 16.4 Work experience in a related occupation 

Diagnostic medical 

sonographers 52,490 42 57 15 34.8 Associate degree 

Cardiovascular 

technologists and 

technicians 

38,690 45 60 15 32.6 Associate degree 

First-line 

supervisors/managers 

of fire fighting and 

prevention workers 

58,920 56 68 12 21.1 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Interior designers 40,670 65 75 10 15.5 Associate degree 

Private detectives and 

investigators 32,110 43 50 8 17.7 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Media and 

communication 

workers, all other 

40,850 39 46 6 15.7 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Interpreters and 

translators 33,860 31 37 6 19.9 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Radiation therapists 57,700 15 19 4 26.3 Associate Degree 

Nuclear medicine 

technologists 56,450 18 22 4 21.5 Associate degree 

Athletes and sports 

competitors 48,310 17 21 4 21.1 Long-term on-the-job training 

Camera operators, 

television, video, and 

motion picture 

37,610 28 32 4 14.2 Moderate-term onthe-job training 

Air traffic controllers 102,030 24 28 3 14.3 Long-term on-the-job 

training 

Drafters, all other 41,860 24 27 3 14.0 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Emergency 

management 

specialists 

45,390 10 13 2 22.8 Work experience in a 

related occupation 

Airfield operations 

specialists 36,680 5 6 1 15.0 Long-term on-the-job 

training 
81

EMPLOYMENT 

(in thousands) 

EMPLOYMENT 

CHANGE, 2004-

OCCUPATION 2014 

MEDIAN 

ANNUAL 

EARNINGS 

(as of May 

2004) 2004 2014 Number 

(thous) Percent 

MOST 

SIGNIFICANT 

SOURCE OF 

POSTSECONDARY 

TRAINING 

Healthcare 

practitioners and 

technical workers, all 

other 

33,360 55 68 13 23.8 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Commercial pilots 53,870 22 26 4 16.8 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Occupational health 

and safety technicians 42,130 12 14 2 17.1 Postsecondary 

vocational award 

Audio-visual 

collections specialists 32,990 9 11 2 18.6 Moderate-term onthe-job training 
180 Center Place Way • St. Augustine, Florida 32095

Tel: (800) 624-9458 • Fax: (904) 825-4758

www.acfchefs.org 

Overview

educational arm of the American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), 

offers a highly-respected Apprenticeship program that provides 

on-the-job training combined with technical classroom instruction.

The program, available to individuals at least 17 years of age and

a high-school graduate or equivalent, allows individuals the ability 

to work full-time under a qualifi ed supervising chef while enrolled

in a culinary program simultaneously. Today, there are nearly 2,000 

apprentices learning in approximately 80 ACF-sponsored culinary 

apprenticeship programs in the United States.

Programs vary from an abbreviated six-month program to two-and

three-year programs. Apprentices complete designated hours for 

both on-the-job training and culinary classes each year of their 

program. Upon completion of the program, apprentice graduates 

are eligible for Certifi ed Culinarian (CC) or Certifi ed Pastry 

Culinarian (CPC) status through the ACF National Offi ce. 

Apprentices are encouraged to join their respective local chapter of

the ACF. Membership includes: opportunities to network with top

industry professionals, potential future employers and renowned 

chefs; access to ACF’s online Career Center; free subscriptions to 

ACF’s publications; and discounts for ACF certifi cation, and

conference and convention registration.

Apprenticeship Program Objectives

• Learn and master cooking and baking skills, including healthy 

food preparation techniques, in the classroom and on the job 

under the direction of a trained chef.

• Develop basic principles of nutrition, dietetics, and food and

beverage composition.

• Understand the requirements for proper food handling, sanitation

and hygiene.

• Gain an understanding of management and supervisory knowledge 

in preparation for a progressive career in the culinary industry.

• Acquire a professional work ethic necessary for success in the 

hospitality industry.

• Prepare culinarians for ACF professional CC or CPC certifi cation 

testing.

Applying for an Apprenticeship Program

Students can apply directly to an ACF chapter, institution, corporate 

site, or independent property that sponsors an apprenticeship

program. For more information and apprenticeship locations visit 

www.acfchefs.org or call the ACF Education Department at the

national headquarters of the American Culinary Federation at

(800) 624-9458. 

Apprenticeship Program Requirements

If accepted into an apprenticeship program, students will be 

required to: 

• Pay applicable enrollment fees to include registration, text books 

and study guides.

• Complete either two or three years of full-time work (either 

4,000 or 6,000 hours) of on-the-job training in a foodservice 

kitchen under a qualifi ed chef. 

• Complete a minimum of 12 courses in culinary related subjects

to include sanitation and food safety, introduction to cooking, 

introduction to baking and advanced cooking, either through an 

accredited institution or college or online through an approved

educational provider.

The U.S. Department of Labor has recognized the exceptional ACFF 

apprenticeship-training program since 1976. With employment

opportunities for cooks and chefs steadily increasing, the Bureau of

Labor Statistics estimates that employment in the foodservice 

industry will increase faster than the average of all other occupations.

The American Culinary Federation, Inc., (ACF) is 

the largest professional, not-for-profi t organization 

for chefs and cooks in the United States, and was 

founded more than 75 years ago. ACF promotes 

the culinary profession by providing professional 

development, career building and networking 

opportunities to its members.

American Culinary Federation Foundation

Apprenticeship
Office of Apprenticeship

Anthony Swoope, Administrator

EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

1937 - 2007

REGI

S

TERED APPRENTICESHIP

th

Funding Opportunities for 

Registered Apprenticeship Programs

For both businesses and apprentices

The following website is the single access point for more 

than 1,000 grant programs offered by all Federal grant 

making agencies.

http://www.grants.gov/

Career One Stop 

Most workforce funding is provided on the state and local 

level and requires businesses visiting their Workforce 

Investment or Career One Stop Center. Students and job

seekers can find jobs and businesses can post jobs at the 

centers. This website provides a wealth of information. It 

links to the service locator where you find your local and 

state One-Stops and public workforce services.

http://www.careeronestop.org/

Map of state one-stop centers to help you find your 

nearest One-Stop center.

http://www.doleta.gov/usworkforce/onestop/

onestopmap.cfm

For apprenticeship sponsors

If you have a small business, the U.S. Small Business 

Administration (SBA) can provide financial, technical and 

management assistance. SBA is the nation’s largest single 

financial backer of small businesses.

http://www.sba.gov/financing/ 

or call 1-800-UASK-SBA (800-827-5722)

The Manufacturing Extension Project (MEP) can help 

small manufacturing businesses. 

The website offers links to all state MEP locations.

http://www.mep.nist.gov/ or call 1-800-MEP-4MFG

Department of Commerce grants

http://www.commerce.gov/grants.html

Department of Labor grants

http://www.dol.gov/dol/grants2.htm

Apprenticeship Beyond Boundaries:

Celebrating 70 years of Outstanding Service

in Preparing American Workers

State-specific apprenticeship

tax credits and tuition benefits

Arkansas

Tax Credit Regulation – Youth Apprenticeship Program (Act 1103 of 1995)

http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:

BDK1FKTdecgJ:www.arkansas.gov/dfa/

rules/it1996_1.pdf+Arkansas+Youth+App

renticeship+Program+Act+1103+of+1995

&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=1

California

Tuition benefit

Montoya funds, or RSI funds, allow 

community colleges and program 

sponsors to enter into Excess Cost 

Agreements. Under these Excess Cost 

Agreements, program sponsors may 

receive funds in excess of costs to the 

community colleges for providing apprenticeship training. This is an attractive 

financial incentive for employers and joint 

apprenticeship training committees.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/

displaycode?section=edc&group=

08001-09000&file=8150-8156

Connecticut

Tax credit

Apprentices that use the Connecticut 

Technical school system (Adult Division) 

for related instruction pay a maximum 

of $100.00 per course, 50% of which 

must be paid by the sponsor at the time 

of registration. This does not apply to 

apprentices that are attending community 

colleges. 

http://www.ctdol.state.ct.us/progsupt/

appren/taxcr.htm

- continued on back
For apprentices

Financial aid 

U.S. Department of Education

http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/

students/english/index.jsp

Local aid

http://www.careeronestop.org/FINANCIAL/

FinancialAidHome.asp

California, Washington, and Texas offer reduced tuition 

for apprentices.

Financial Management 

“Financial Tools for the Trades: A Survival Guide

for Apprentices”

http://www.portjobs.org/survival_guide.htm

To establish or find out more about

registered apprenticeship, contact:

Office of Apprenticeship

U.S. Department of Labor

Employment and Training Administration

200 Constitution Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20210

(202) 693-2796

http://www.doleta.gov/oa

State-specific apprenticeship

tax credits and tuition benefits,

continued

Maine

Tuition benefit

The following is an excerpt from Maine 

Revised Statutes Title 26, §2006, 

5-A, I (2):

“As funds permit, the Maine Department 

of Labor shall underwrite 50% of tuition 

costs for apprentices in good standing 

at public educational institutions and 

provide tuition assistance to sponsor 

groups in accordance with committee 

policies. To ensure that adequate funds 

are available for tuition, the committee 

shall provide the Commissioner of Labor 

with its biennial plan, including projected 

apprenticeship enrollments and a subsequent budget request.”

http://janus.state.me.us/legis/statutes/26/title26sec2006.html

Michigan

Youth Apprenticeship Tax Credit

http://www.crcmich.org/EDSurvey/

jobtraining/yratc.html

Missouri

Youth Opportunity Program tax credits

http://ded.mo.gov/BDT/topnavpages/

Research%20Toolbox/BCS%20Programs/

Youth%20Opportunity%20Program.aspx

Rhode Island 

Employers’ Apprenticeship Tax Credit 

http://www.rihric.com/hrictaxcredits.htm

Virginia

Tax credit

http://www.doli.virginia.gov/whatwedo/

apprenticeship/retraining_taxcr.html