National Apprenticeship Week Highlights Skilled Labor Training Across the U.S.A.

This is National Apprenticeship Week (Nov. 14-20), as highlighted by a special web page published by the U.S. Department of Labor. It was the second annual apprenticeship week, as proclaimed in 2015 by President Obama, following in the footsteps of President John F. Kennedy, who issued a similar proclamation, for National Apprenticeship Month, in 1962.

Part of our apprenticeship training brochure

National Apprenticeship Week recognizes the important role apprentices play in offering employers an opportunity to develop a highly skilled workforce and career seekers the chance to earn a salary while learning the skills necessary to be successful in a trade. The week celebrates the role that apprenticeship programs play in moving America's vital industries forward.

As we wrote on this blog in August, apprenticeships are making a difference for skilled workers nationwide. In that article we cited several examples from around the country of the value of apprenticeship programs and the difference they're making both for employers and laborers.

This week an article in The Hill, a political newspaper published in Washington, D.C., focused on removing the barriers that exist for women seeking apprenticeships. "Women currently account for only 6.3% of apprentices and less than 3% of apprentices in the construction and building trades," the article said. "At a time when women make up 47% of the workforce -- and when the construction industry is seeing its highest growth rate since 2005 -- such paltry numbers are simply unacceptable."

Apprenticeship training is of the highest caliber and is specific to the construction industry. Trainees learn exactly what is needed to succeed and qualify for advancement. You can review our brochure containing information about our apprenticeship training programs on our website, www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

In Demand: Worker Training Remains a Priority

"It pays to know a trade."

We couldn't agree more with those words, which appeared in an editorial published Sept. 2 in The Canton Repository. After the Columbus Dispatch reported that Ohio companies were experiencing "greater than average"difficulty filling jobs in the construction trades, the Repository expressed support for a new law designed to help that will take effect in 2017.

The workforce development plan, which got a $10 million boost in the state's 2015 operating budget, provides grants of up to $5,000 for students who seek training in a field where there is a shortage of workers. State Rep. Kirk Schuring of Jackson Township was a supporter of the funding, which requires an experiential component like an apprenticeship in a trade.

Our chairman, Dave Kirven, who is business manager for Plumbers & Pipefitters Union Local 94 in Canton, said the local shortage isn't currently severe because of the drop off in the oil and gas industry over the last couple of years.

As the editorial pointed out: "There's plenty of work now for established tradesmen between the natural gas power plant being built in Carroll County and the Pro Football Hall of Fame Village project."

We're fortunate in that regard. Still, the importance of worker training remains a priority, which is why apprenticeship programs are so important.

"Ohio must continue to encourage young people to explore careers in the trades and offer adequate training programs for adults transitioning between careers," the Repository editorial said.

The East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council places a high priority on worker training. For more information about our construction industry apprenticeship programs, click here and click here to view our brochure.

The East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council is on line at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

Union Membership: The Return on Investment is Strong!

Recent articles from a cross section of websites across the country demonstrated the outstanding return on union apprentice programs and membership.

Ann article titled "I'm In a Union -- You're Welcome," published on www.alternet.org on Aug. 20, showed how strong unions result in higher wages for members and nonmembers alike.

(Photo: illinoisupdate.com)

The article refers to the decline in private-sector union membership over the past four decades, from a third of all private-sector employees in 1979 to just 6.7 today. It then cites a study by the Economic Policy Institute that suggests the typical full-time private sector worker (union or not) "would be making thousands of dollars more per year if unions had the power they once did to influence a state's or region's standard wages and benefits packages."

Meanwhile, the Midwest Economic Policy Institute published on its website, midwestepi.org, an article headlined, "Unionized Construction Workers in Minnesota Get Back $5.59 for Every Dollar Paid in Dues."

The article points out that more than 30 percent of Minnesota construction workers are union members. It also cites statistics from a study by the institute, including substantial wage and benefit increases for union members, dues spent on bargaining and representation, and more.

Finally, an article on The Illinois Update (illinoisupdate.com) said that the state's construction apprenticeship programs return $11 in total benefits for every dollar invested.

"For many young Illinois workers, enrolling in a registered apprenticeship program is a better option than attending a college or university," the article states. 

It goes on to show that registered apprenticeship programs in Illinois' construction industry generate substantial economic benefits to the state.

Time and time again, statistics reveal that the benefits of union membership, and union apprenticeship programs, benefit all workers, across the country.

The East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council is online at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.
Keep up with the latest headlines on the council's online publication, The ECO Building Trader.

The Value of Apprenticeships: In the News

The undeniable value of apprenticeship programs have recently been in the news across the country.

An Aug. 25 article in the Mississippi Business Journal reported that 90 new apprentices are taking part in a five-year training program, sponsored by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), to become certified to work in commercial and industrial construction. The program was created more than 70 years ago by the IBEW and the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA).

(Missouri Business Journal photo)

"So far the NECA/IBEW alliance has trained more than 350,000 apprentices to become journeymen and is the largest such training program of its kind," the report said, while also detailing the 900 hours of classroom work and almost 10,000 hours of on-the-job training necessary to be certified.

In that same issue, the Journal profiled a "Women in Construction" program that is providing women with a way to make a living wage to support their families. Classes run eight to 12 weeks, and training "can include apprenticeships or workforce training at community colleges."

In Iowa, Monica Verdon, a candidate for Congress, stressed the importance of investing in workforce training and job training during a campaign stop Aug. 25 at the Iron Workers Local 89 apprentice training center in Cedar Rapids.

Steve Coleson, a journeyman iron worker and part-time instructor at the center, told Verdon that apprentice iron workers start at $17.15 an hour, with benefits doubling that. "Journeyman iron workers can earn $45,000 a year and superintendents can make six-figure salaries," he said.

Verdon was impressed. "A four-year degree is not the only route to a successful career," she said. "We need to be doing everything we can to ensure Iowans are prepared for high-skill, good-paying jobs."

Apprenticeship programs are making a difference for skilled workers nationwide. Learn more about local apprenticeship programs at the East Central Ohio Building Trades website.

The East Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council is online at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

Apprenticeship: The Path to a Rewarding, High-Paying Career

A recent op-ed piece in the Seattle Times highlighted the positive impact on earnings that an apprenticeship program can have. Titled "A job in the trades can bring personal, financial success," it was written by Mike Sotelo, president and CEO of the Consolidar Network, a Seattle-based organization that connects employers with the growing Latino workforce.

"A four-year apprenticeship program can equal or exceed the earning potential of a postsecondary degree," he wrote. "But the message we're getting is that if we don't earn a college degree, then we become second tier in the social food chain."

Nothing could be further from the truth, and more voices are needed to highlight the long-term value of apprenticeship programs.

The East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council put the spotlight squarely on that value in an information and recruitment publication we produced in 2013. You can view the publication on our website. Some highlights:

We produced this information/recruitment piece in 2013

• Funded and operated by America's construction unions, the apprenticeship training we offer is of the highest caliber and is specific our industries, providing exactly what is needed to succeed and qualify for advancement.

• Learning on the job enables trainees to avoid the college debt trap and graduate to journeyman status with immediate job prospects.

• As a lifelong process, training ensures a lifetime of employment opportunities anywhere in the country.

• Apprenticeship training ranges from two to five years, depending on the craft.

Mike Sotelo was exactly right; the path to apprenticeship is the path to a fulfilling, rewarding, and high-paying career. We're always available to answer questions and provide complete details. Contact the East Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council at (330) 454-3664, or online at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.

For a report from North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU) on construction apprenticeships, click on the link below:

Construction Apprenticeship: The "Other Four-Year Degree"

Visit the East Central Ohio Building Trades online at www.eastcentralohiobuildingtrades.com.