Apprenticeship program: Good, but maybe too little
Trump order is met with hope, skepticism
President
SAN FRANCISCO Trump’s executive order to greatly expand apprenticeships and jobs training to fill some of the 6 million open jobs in the U.S. was met with hope and skepticism by business leaders.
The plan, a centerpiece of the president’s push to create jobs, would nearly double funding for apprenticeship grants to about $200 million by pulling money from existing job training programs. It would give greater responsibility to companies, industry groups and unions to design apprenticeship programs. The Labor Department would set broad standards for such programs.
For companies large and small, the order could eventually jump-start or expand fledgling programs that let them train employees while they attend community college.
“It helps add scale and creates an environment where local interests (in education, government and business) work together,” says Judy Marks, CEO of Siemens USA, a Germany-based electronics giant with apprenticeship programs that employ 25 in California, North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. Siemens is in the process of adding four states for programs in welding, tooling and machining.
“We call it new economy skills training, or NEST,” says Tarlin Ray, president of Dev Bootcamp, a vocational-training service. “This is becoming more popular because there is a shortage of top talent.”
A lack of skilled workers has created a hiring gap across several industries, especially in tech. David Blake, CEO of online learning platform Degreed, expressed doubt $200 million is “substantial enough” to make a discernible dent in filling millions of highly skilled jobs.
“There will be a minimal impact,” Blake says. “We need not only more funding, but an increase in STEM graduates through academic programs and (short-term) coding courses to meet the escalating rise in skilled jobs.”
Congress has kept federal job training grants the same at $2.7 billion.
Jon Swartz @jswartz USA TODAY