Workers who completed a registered apprenticeship program saw a 49 percent increase in earnings, according to a recent report released by Senate Joint Economic Committee Democrats.
The workers also have better access to unionized positions in the future, and the programs help employ women in male-dominated industries.
Registered apprenticeship programs provide paid employment, on-the-job training, and classroom learning for careers that do not require a traditional four-year college degree. Employers with these programs have between a 44.3 percent and 48 percent return on investment depending on the organization that conducted the study.
Other findings in the report:
The majority of the current program participants are white, nearly 61 percent, and male 84 percent. In construction, this jumps to more than 93 percent male and more than 68 percent white.
Barriers for women include harassment and exclusion in male-dominated worksites, unreliable transportation or other financial hurdles, lacking pay during the classroom portions, inadequate child care, and missing full information about career paths.
The median hourly wage for women was $22.00/hour compared to $32.20/hour for men.
Less than 3.2 percent of active apprentices are in the health care and social assistance industry, and approximately 13 percent are in the educational services industry, yet programs in these industries would help address worker shortages.