Apprenticeship Overhaul Plan Gets Mixed Industry, Union Response

A proposed overhaul of the US Department of Labor’s 80-year-old registered apprenticeship system is facing opposition from industry and labor unions alike as participants question whether the sought-after changes will ultimately streamline and expand the system as promised.

The proposed changes, announced in December, would create a new job training model for young adults, change how training providers measure completion of their programs, and develop a national standard of apprenticeship that groups could use as a model for new programs.

The 779-page proposal is the largest effort to update the federal government’s registered apprenticeship program since 2008. It comes ...