Apprenticeship Week highlights careers, not jobs
By Kevin Ferreira
Executive Director, Sacramento-Sierra’s BCTC
In November, we celebrated the nationwide National Apprenticeship Week, highlighting how the Building Trades offers careers, not jobs.
Our members know that union construction is the pathway to six-figure careers that not only offer fair wages and working conditions, but the satisfaction of building communities and shaping this great nation. It’s so much more than just a job. It’s a career to be proud of, and a career that offers rewards beyond just the financial.
In California, we have 65,000 apprentices across 14 building trades—mostly young people earning while they are learning. These apprenticeships are critical not only to help the next generation enter into the Building Trades, but to keep our union strong and ensure that we have the trained and highly skilled workforce to meet the demands of the future. Construction is booming right now, in Sacramento and across the state. We have dozens of high-profile projects in the works and more in the pipeline.
These are in many cases years-long projects that promise job security. But we need new members to keep up with the demand.
National Apprenticeship Week brings together employers, industry associations, labor organizations, community-based organizations, workforce partners, education providers and government leaders at events meant to highlight the important role apprenticeships play for all of us. These programs are a pipeline and a lifeline—helping to rebuild our economy after the shutdowns of the coronavirus. They also offer pathways for a wide range of people to join the Building Trades: Women, minorities, those with disabilities and even those seeking new lives, such as people coming out of the military or those who have been incarcerated.
Our apprenticeship programs truly are inclusive and meant to welcome everyone in the fantastic world of the Building Trades. Diversity is a strength, and we embrace it.
As President Biden said in his declaration, “For many workers, especially those without college degrees, apprenticeships create a critical pathway to good-paying jobs. Registered apprentices earn while they learn. These programs, particularly through local unions, ensure that our Nation is producing the best-trained, best-prepared, and best-skilled workers for industries now and of the future—from health care and information technology to clean energy. Supporting Registered Apprenticeships is a key part of my economic vision to build an economy from the bottom up and the middle out: an economy that works for everyone.”
This year, the theme of National Apprenticeship Week is “Registered Apprenticeship: Superhighway to Good Jobs.”
What a great way to put it. This is a proven model the supercharges the ability of workers to find careers that will support them for a lifetime.
Here in Sacramento, we value our apprentices and are always looking for new recruits. If you know of someone in your life who is ready for a challenge, and a rewarding career, send them our way. The Building Trades is growing and thriving, and we want to make sure we bring in new members from all walks of life so that we can continue to thrive in the future.