Biden Administration's New Executive Order Leverages Federal Resources to Boost Apprenticeships and Worker Training

This week, the Biden Administration took a major step toward strengthening workforce development and creating more equitable pathways to good jobs by issuing the Executive Order on Scaling and Expanding the Use of Registered Apprenticeships in Industries and the Federal Government and Promoting Labor-Management Forums.

The executive order (EO) recognizes that an expansion of access to Registered Apprenticeship programs is crucial to help people access good jobs, gain in-demand skills, while also helping connect employers to a pipeline of qualified, diverse talent. President Biden states in the order that “Students and workers at all stages of life need equitable access to education and training for the good jobs in their communities.” At New America, we agree and are heartened to see the federal government leading the way to make this access a reality.

The EO requires a few changes at the federal level to expand the use of Registered Apprenticeship both inside and outside the government, improving the opportunity for underserved workers to obtain good jobs.

Specifically, the EO requires the Office of Personnel Management to identify ways the federal government itself, as the nation’s largest employer, can directly expand its use of Registered Apprenticeships for training both current employees and job candidates. Additionally, the order directs federal agencies to incorporate incentives for Registered Apprenticeships into federal grants and contracts across industries. As the federal government is also the nation’s largest procurer of goods and services, this direction has the potential to significantly increase apprenticeship opportunities beyond traditional sectors like construction.

The order also establishes an interagency working group to be led by the Office of Management and Budget, National Economic Council, and Domestic Policy Council, which will convene leaders across the federal government to ensure the order is implemented with fidelity. And, to help facilitate stronger cooperation between agencies and unions, the EO revitalizes labor-management partnerships to address standing up new apprenticeship initiatives and tackling other workforce challenges.

This action is the kind of leadership needed from the federal government to promote equity in worker training and improve workers’ ability to secure good jobs. Registered Apprenticeship is an “earn while you learn” model that combines on-the-job training with classroom instruction, providing participants a pathway to gain valuable skills while earning a paycheck so they can can support themselves and their families. Clearly this model works: according to the Department of Labor, the vast majority (90 percent) of those who complete a Registered Apprenticeship program go on to secure full-time employment afterward, often with competitive salaries averaging around $80,000 per year. Historically, access to Registered Apprenticeship and the benefits it provides has been limited to a largely white, male population. However, this EO aims to expand this model to new occupations, industries, and in doing so, new populations of workers (namely people of color and women) who have not had access in the past.

Overall, this EO is an encouraging and comprehensive blueprint for leveraging the proven Registered Apprenticeship model to develop more skilled workers, remove employment barriers, and strengthen public-private collaboration around workforce needs.

The success of this order will depend on its robust implementation across government, but the language represents a step in the right direction.