Biden Administration to Expand Registered Apprenticeships Programs
The Biden Administration is ordering federal agencies to expand registered apprenticeship programs to help bring younger workers into the federal workforce.
In a new executive order, Scaling and Expanding the Use of Registered Apprenticeships in Industries and the Federal Government and Promoting Labor-Management Forums, President Biden orders the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the Department of Labor (DOL), and other federal agencies to “explore opportunities to reduce barriers and create pathways into and up through Federal employment using Registered Apprenticeships.”
Specifically, agencies are urged to create more registered apprenticeship programs, provide preferences to individuals who went through the program, and increase the voice of the federal worker.
Registered apprenticeships create value on both ends, as apprentices learn valuable skills at no cost to them and employers develop a robust talent pipeline. These programs also help the federal government transition to a more skills-based hiring system.
According to Apprenticeship.gov, an average of 90 percent of apprentices who complete a registered apprenticeship are able to retain employment with an average annual salary of $80,000.
The Executive Order also implements a key recommendation of the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment.
Wisconsin Announcement
Vice President Kamala Harris and Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su traveled to Wisconsin to announce the executive order.
At the announcement, Vice President Harris said agencies should “explore what federal jobs we have that can be filled by the highly skilled folks who have been trained in apprenticeship programs — and not just give these jobs only to people with a four-year college degree.”
The effectiveness of apprenticeship programs was echoed by Acting Labor Secretary Su. “We know they work; we know they create opportunity. We know that they are a pathway for people who might not have even known there was a job like that,” said Acting Secretary Su.
Order Details
In addition to reducing barriers and expanding the programs, the order encourages agencies to expand the use of registered apprenticeships through grants and contracts, including finding incentives for grant recipients or contractors to employ workers in RA programs.
The order also directs OPM and DOL to issue a report within 180 days detailing potential occupations that are suitable for apprenticeship. The administration previously announced about $434 million in funding to expand and improve registered apprenticeships. That includes competitive grants.
