High Road Apprentice Training

Current government subsidy programs tend to support “low road” economic development: the creation of low-wage, dead-end jobs by businesses that are fundamentally unfriendly to the surrounding community, the environment, and their own employees. But there is another way. A “high road” strategy uses the levers of government—especially economic incentives and disincentives—to compel businesses to act in a socially responsible manner. High Road policies result in better and more secure jobs, a stronger tax base, and more efficient, environmentally-friendly community development.1

To attract businesses over the long term, a region must develop the skills of its workforce. One straightforward way to make job training more accessible is to require it in projects that are paid for or are heavily subsidized by the government.

In the building trades, individuals become skilled craftsmen through a probationary training program called apprenticeship. The idea behind apprenticeship is centuries old. An apprentice learns a skilled trade by working alongside a journeyman who provides on-the-job training. The apprentice is paid at a lower rate until he or she attains the degree of proficiency needed to advance to the level of journeyman. Most apprenticeship programs are operated by labor unions.

Project Labor Agreements are comprehensive contracts among building contractors, their clients, and trade unions that govern working conditions and hiring practices on specific projects. Such agreements commonly make some provision for apprentices. The state can ensure that Project Labor Agreements for public works projects require that a substantial percentage of construction workers receive training through state-certified programs—a policy called Apprenticeship Utilization Requirements. The state can also require that a minimum percentage of apprenticeships go to low-income workers, minorities and women.

Local governments in Washington’s Puget Sound area have such laws for public works projects that cost over one million dollars. As a result, between 1994 and 2003, 782 residents were placed into building trade apprenticeships or jobs in other industries with comparable wages and career prospects. Ninety-six percent came from low-income backgrounds, 21 percent had no income before enrolling in training, 44 percent reported incomes below poverty, and 35 percent had been receiving some form of public assistance.2 In recent years, similar apprenticeship requirements have been used with success in Boston, Milwaukee, Philadelphia and the District of Columbia.

Through an Executive Order in 2000, Governor Gary Locke directed state agencies to require that apprentices enrolled in state-approved training programs work a certain percentage of the total labor hours in public works projects. State legislation enacted in 2003 and 2005 expanded on the governor’s order. It now mandates that all public works projects estimated to cost one million dollars or more shall require that at least 15 percent of the labor hours within each trade be performed by apprentices.