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Vote Note H.R. 8294 National Apprenticeship Act

November 20, 2020
Vote Notes on Legislation
H.R. 8294 - National Apprenticeship Act: No. The National Apprenticeship program is an 80-year old superannuated program that has become so ossified and bureaucratized that it is no longer a serious factor in employment. Last year, 252,000 individuals entered the program and only 81,000 completed it. This bill would add still more bureaucracy and paperwork to a system that is already collapsing. Better to abolish it and leave it to individual businesses to provide apprenticeship training to their employees. After all, that's what an apprenticeship actually is.
The Department of Labor's summary says it best: "Unfortunately, H.R. 8294 would undermine the ability of the Department of Labor to perform that mission under the mistaken belief that the government, rather than employers or jobseekers, is best suited to determine the skills and competencies necessary for success on the job. This bill would also require a one-size-fits-all approach to apprenticeship that would stifle the Department's ability to promote innovation in the apprenticeship system and ensure that as many Americans as possible have access to highquality work-based learning opportunities. At the same time, it would limit the ability of the Department to promote labor standards necessary to safeguard the welfare of apprentices."
Issues:Labor