Apprenticeships are one of the fastest and most productive forms of learning. Think of historical figures who began their careers as apprentices. Jesus was an apprentice carpenter, Paul Revere was an apprentice silversmith, and George Washington was an apprentice surveyor. Like many attempts to “improve” other natural aspects of civil society, such as faith and family, government intervention to “improve” apprenticeships has had the opposite effect.
The USDOL Office of Apprenticeship (OA) oversaw the apprenticeship system in Alabama from 1937 to 2019. At the time, USDOL OA's “compliance first” mentality and limited customer service prevented job seekers and employers from fully reaping the benefits of apprenticeships.
Governor Ivey established the Alabama Office of Apprenticeships (AOA) in 2019. At that time, no state had applied to become the Alabama Office of Apprenticeship. state apprentice agency (SAA) for over 25 years. Currently, 32 states use his SAA model. Tennessee and Colorado are following Alabama's lead, and more states from Arkansas to Iowa are working toward SAA recognition.
AOA currently serves the training needs of more than 331 employers in Alabama. The average starting wage for newly expanded apprenticeships is $20.63 per hour, according to AOA's latest quarterly report. Additionally, AOA has more than doubled the proportion of women participating in apprenticeships, from less than 7% at her time in office to 18.65% at the end of 2023.
In an extreme “Friday afternoon news dump” right before the holidays, the Biden administration issued a 779-page Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on December 14, 2023 through the U.S. Department of Labor. The NPRM is a terrible example of administrative overreach. When people talk about the “DC swamp” where faceless bureaucrats are running the country through illegal acts, this is what they are talking about.
The federal apprenticeship system was established in 1937 through the two-page National Apprenticeship Act, also known as the Fitzgerald Act. For years, Congress has authorized the executive branch to create a maze of hundreds of pages of regulations to “interpret” national apprenticeship laws under Titles 29 and 30 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Ta. The December 2023 NPRM is the next saga in which the administrative state attempts to usurp the power of Congress by creating new legally enforceable rules governing apprenticeships.
As Ryan Craig noted in his Gap Letter, the U.S. Department of Labor and many advocacy groups, such as New America, are trying to “safety” apprenticeships in order to limit them to areas that are already mainstream in the field. doing a dance. The overwhelming majority of apprentices are in traditional skilled trades that are commonly associated with time-based training models. This model has worked in these industries for decades, and thousands of people in Alabama have learned valuable skills this way. Although proven effective, time-based apprenticeships do not make sense in every industry.
A competency-based training model is the foundation of Alabama's apprenticeship expansion. In competency-based programs, an apprentice's training is evaluated based on their ability to demonstrate proficiency in the skills required for the job. The USDOL OA proposes mandating the inclusion of a time component in competency models. This can slow down apprentices' career growth and increase costs for employers. The NPRM justifies this change by stating that an apprentice needs at least one year to become safely proficient in an occupation. This one-size-fits-all approach is counterintuitive and a perfect example of agency overreach. Why would a federal agency in charge of apprenticeships seek to implement regulations that prevent the expansion of apprenticeships?
The answer seems to be to limit apprenticeships to areas where apprenticeships currently predominate. The fact that President Biden has acted to reverse the industry-driven approach to apprenticeships is a testament to the current administration's hostility to expanding apprenticeships into new fields. Another reason the Biden administration is introducing these rules is even simpler: power. Just as states are taking ownership of their own apprenticeship programs through SAAs such as the Alabama Office of Apprenticeship, USDOL is attempting to regain a higher level of control.
We have been making good progress since a group of bureaucrats with an agenda in Washington, D.C., decided to issue a 779-page regulation, but now is not the time to reverse that progress. The worst part about the NPRM is that no one can vote on it. Once the required comment period has passed, it will become final and have the force of law unless repealed by Congress.
We encourage you to comment on the NPRM to commemorate the public resistance to this misguided policy. Please direct your concerns to: http://tinyurl.com/3hn5szra
The Alabama Workforce Council is comprised of business executives from Alabama's most important industries and organizations. The council's goal is to foster collaboration between government and industry to help Alabama develop a sustainable, first-class workforce that is globally competitive. Since its inception, the Council has been committed to analyzing important workforce development issues and making sound recommendations to help create more and better opportunities for all Alabamians.
