Create an Apprenticeship Program

Create an Apprenticeship Program

Learn how to create an apprenticeship program for your company, covering budgeting, terms and conditions, classroom instruction, hands-on training, wage schedules, and DOLETA guidelines.

Apprenticeship programs are a great way for people to learn skilled industries while earning money from the start. Apprenticeship programs can be initiated by the government, an employer, or labor unions. If you want to create an apprenticeship program for your company, here is how.

1. Budget. Start by determining whether your company has a budget to run an apprenticeship program. These programs help develop highly skilled workers in the long run, but in the short run, the company will have to fund classroom instruction, trainers, and instructors for the apprentices and provide apprentices with a minimum wage as mandated by law. In most cases, however, firms will benefit more from an apprenticeship program in the long run and should therefore consider the initial costs as an investment.
2. Apprenticeship terms and conditions. Next, the team heading the apprenticeship program should create a draft of the terms and conditions that will govern the relationship between the company and the apprentices. In the terms and conditions, the tasks expected of the employer and the company instructors and teachers should be laid out in detail. The tasks and obligations of the apprentices should also be elaborated at this point. You should also specify the individual lessons the apprentices should learn and how those lessons will be taught.
3. Classroom instruction. The classroom will form an integral part of the apprenticeship program. It will be where the theoretical foundations for the skills are laid out. The law specifies that an apprenticeship program should have at least 144 hours of classroom instruction per year. If your company does not have instructors available for teaching the students, you can contact local vocational schools, which can provide teaching services for a small fee. These alliances and institutional relationships are great for both the vocational schools and the company in need of trainers and instructors.
4. Training. After each lesson, make sure the apprentices get to test their theories and apply what they have learned in the classroom through actual work. Make sure, however, that the apprentices are still supervised as they engage in the practical side of the apprenticeship. There should also be tests and other evaluative measures to assess the apprentices' performance and how they can improve.
5. Wage schedule. Create a wage schedule in which salary increases are indicated for each skill learned. As apprentices gain more training, it is logical to give them better compensation. In the wage schedule, the exact salary equivalent of each skill should be written down.
6. DOLETA. Finally, check with DOLETA, or the Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration, which has its own rules and guidelines for apprenticeship programs. Make sure you use this format when creating your own apprenticeship program.

Give workers the chance to earn and learn at the same time by creating apprenticeship programs. These steps should help you do this.