News

Workforce Stakeholders Share Strategies at DOL Transportation Apprenticeship Accelerator Conference

Posted May 2016

John Ladd, Administrator of US DOL’s Office of Apprenticeship, opened the conference by tracking initial progress toward the goal of doubling the number of apprentices in America.  The norm in other advanced countries, he said, is integrating school-based and work-based learning so that everyone can have effective education and training beyond secondary school to prepare them for quality careers. Up to now in the US, the majority who enter the workforce without a college degree have had only limited access to apprenticeships that combine classroom and on-the-job learning.

Brian J. Turner, the Center’s founding director, emphasized the urgent need for more apprenticeship training across all transportation sectors.  Standards-based apprenticeships in transportation, he said, can meet the industry’s growing needs for skilled workers while providing career pathways for young people who may not be headed straight to 4-year colleges.