Improving Access to Apprenticeship

Strengthening State Policies and Practices

By The Working Poor Families Project

June 1, 2011

Summary

To close the gap between businesses’ need for qualified employees and the skills of unemployed job-seekers, substantial investments are needed in accessible, market-driven education and skills development programs. This brief outlines the need for employers, nonprofits and policy makers to align resources to create and strengthen programs — such as apprenticeships — to train low-skill adults for jobs that can help their families achieve financial stability.

Table of Contents

Key Takeaway

A pathway to career and financial stability

At a time when businesses are struggling to find skilled workers, and when displaced workers are struggling to find good-paying jobs that can sustain their families, expanding apprenticeship opportunities can provide a path toward providing the training needed for these higher wage careers. The costs of developing and supporting apprenticeship have typically fallen to employers; in order to build a more robust and sustainable apprenticeship system; however, the public and private sectors each have an important role to play.

Findings & Stats

Statements & Quotations