White House Announces Workforce Development Week

The Administration is gearing up to announce the expansion of apprenticeship programs across the country as it devotes this week to workforce development.  In lieu of a major policy speech at the Department of Labor, the President signed an Executive Order designed to shift certification of federally funded apprenticeship programs from the Department to grant recipients.
Part of the President’s plan would include approximately $200 million in a grant program to expand apprenticeships, with an increased focus on information technology, manufacturing, and health care among other growth industries.  Currently there are a reported 505,000 individuals holding apprenticeships through 2,100 publicly funded programs. One such program includes the Goodwill Careers in Technology program funded through a Department of Labor TechHire grant, which allows three local Goodwill organizations to provide paid internships and registered apprenticeships to individuals training for career pathways in the information technology industry.
While it is encouraging that the administration has a favorable view of apprenticeships, questions remain about funding such an initiative and service providers like Goodwill are concerned about further cuts to the workforce system including those in the President’s proposed FY18 budget as previously reported.
Workforce development programs and job training is at the heart of the mission of Goodwill.  As we learn more policy specifics over these next few days, the Goodwill Industries International government relations team will continue to monitor these developments to determine any potential impact to the Goodwill network.
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