WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
will turn out its first cohort of 13 apprentices next March , says SEIU 1000 ’ s Sarah McGinn .
There ’ s a full pipeline of people who want to get into these programs . McGinn says that for one IT apprenticeship there were 300 applicants for six slots . The five apprenticeships in Dignity ’ s first cohort in 2019 drew 300 applicants , says Hanson .
SHOULD COMPANIES TAKE THE PLUNGE ?
Expansion of programs like San Joaquin County ’ s will depend on getting private employers interested . Companies that hire students under the grant would get a $ 2,000 hiring incentive . They can put together a curriculum that turns out people with skills that exactly match their needs , says Knapp . In the IT apprenticeships , employers pay $ 14 an hour for the participant ’ s first 500 hours , which increases progressively to $ 18 an hour by the end of the three years . “ Kids are so excited that they ’ re going to be able to take free college classes and get a paycheck starting day one ,” says Knapp . But she ’ s waiting for more employers to get involved so she can offer more slots .
Ramondetta says state government could do more to promote apprenticeships directly to industries rather than only to colleges and trade schools . “ Companies like us , we ’ re dying to hire people who are educated , quality technical people ,” he says . “ If companies see others doing it , then they ’ ll do it .”
He says the paperwork could discourage some businesses . The state requires that companies maintain records of each apprentice ’ s training , related instruction and progress . Ramondetta has urged state agencies in meetings to figure out how to simplify those requirements . “ There ’ s a lot involved with regard to tracking hours , tracking training , logging everything ,” says Ramondetta . “ We ’ re not like the government where we ’ ve got a whole bunch of people who do special jobs , administrative jobs . Whatever needs to get done , we do it ourselves .”
One of the state ’ s key point people says his team offers free help to businesses that want to set up programs . The Division of Apprenticeship Standards has a local office in Sacramento that offers consulting to help businesses get one going . “ We can help identify what the need is : Is it just an issue of you ’ re having trouble bringing in talent , or is it that you ’ d like
38 comstocksmag . com | August 2021