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Advisory Committee on ApprenticeshipRecommendations

For Revisions to CFR 29 Part 29

National Apprenticeship SystemTechnical Training Conference

September 25, 2007Chantilly, Virginia

ADVANCING APPRENTICESHIP IN THE 21ST CENTURY

eta Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship (ACA)

May 2005: ACA met and formed Work Group on Regulatory and Competency-Based Training Certification

September 2005 – May 2006: Work Group held meetings and deliberated on recommendations

June 2006: ACA unanimously voted to recommend Work Group recommendations

August 2006: ACA submitted recommendations to the Secretary of Labor

eta Regulatory Work Group Members & Staff Robert W. Baird

George H. Bliss, III

Stephen A. Brown

William P. Doyle

Diana Enzi

Neill Hopkins

Frederick N. Humphreys

William K. Irwin, Jr.

Mark S. Maki

Lewis Brown, DC SAC

Stephen Jones, Employment and Training Legal Service (DOL Office of Solicitor)

Dana Daugherty, OA

James Penny, OA

etaRegulatory Work Group Ground Rules

Meetings will be held when the largest number of work group members could participate. There were three two-day meetings.

All products generated by the work group were embargoed.

Utilize the ACA Defining Principles of 21st Century Apprenticeship in all deliberations.

Have respect and value for everyone’s ideas and input into the process. Encourage participation from all work group members.

Obtain consensus on all recommended changes from work group members.

eta Defining Principles of 21st Century ApprenticeshipThe full ACA developed these principles at its September 2005 meeting.

Registered Apprenticeship:

1. Continue to support existing world class apprenticeship programs operated by labor and management; employer associations; and employers

2. Provides industry based workforce development solutions that respond to the needs of employers

3. Where appropriate, integrates seamlessly with community college systems

4. Maintains high quality standards defined by common measures

eta Defining Principles of 21st Century Apprenticeship (cont’d)

5. Offers the flexibility to: conform to the competency requirements and workforce

demands of industries and employers

meets the career development plans of apprentices, including multiple points of entry into an apprenticeship program that accommodates those just entering the workforce as well as those with work experience and educational accomplishments in a career field

permits interim credentials that facilitate the desire of apprentices to guide their individual career ambitions

eases registration requirements in order to improve a sponsor’s ability to administer apprenticeship programs consistently across states

eta Defining Principles of 21st Century Apprenticeship (cont’d)

6. Promotes diversity as it relates to today’s realities  

7. Offers portability and reciprocity of credentials

8. Provides career paths and earning opportunities in line with other educational choices

etaGeneral Revisions

Gender Neutral Regulation – there are several cites where the present regulation is gender specific. Examples include:

Journeymen was changed to journeyworker, etc.

His/her was changed to the apprentice, etc.

Changes that have multiple cites in the regulation or procedural changes like OA’s present address from where our office was located in 1977.

Office Name Change – every place that the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training or BAT appears is being changed to reflect new name: Office of Apprenticeship (OA)

eta Revisions and Additions to Definitions (§29.2)

(e) “…occupation…” (Everywhere the term trade or craft appears was changed to the term occupation.) (Supports Principles 2 & 5)

(m) “Provisional registration shall mean – all newly registered programs will receive a one (1) year provisional approval. Provisional approvals may be rescinded or extended based on the results of the review by the registration agency.” (Supports Principles 1 & 4)

(o) (1) …national guideline apprenticeship standards…” (Supports Principle 1)

etaRevisions to §29.2 (cont’d)

(r) “…(related technical instruction)… Such instruction may be given in a classroom through occupational or industrial courses, or by correspondence courses of equivalent value, or electronic media, or other forms of self-study approved by the registration/approval agency. (Supports Principles 1 & 2)

(s) “Supplemental Instruction is instruction in non-core related requirements, i.e., job site management, leadership, communications, first aid/cpr, field trips, new technologies/processes.” (Supports Principle 2)

etaRevisions to §29.2 (cont’d)

(New Definitions:)

(v) “Electronic Media shall include but is not limited to electronic storage media, transmission media, the Internet, extranet, lease lines, dial-up lines, private networks, and the physical movement of removable/transportable electronic media and/or interactive distance learning.” (Supports Principles 1, 2, 4 & 5)

(w) “Competency shall mean the quality or state of being qualified or adequate.” (Supports Principles 1, 2, 4 & 5)

etaRevisions to §29.2 (cont’d)

(x) “Interim Credential shall mean a credential issued by the registration agency upon request of the appropriate sponsor as certification of competency attainment.” (Supports Principles 1, 2, 4 & 5)

(y) “Interim Certification shall mean industry-driven apprenticeship or post apprenticeship recognition of a sponsor-verified attainment of training requirement, skill set, or competencies.” (Supports Principles 1, 2, 4 & 5)

etaRevisions to §29.2 (cont’d)

(z) “Transfer shall mean a shift of apprenticeship registration from one program sponsor to another. Transfer can either be at the initiation of the sponsor or the apprentice.” (Supports Principles 1, 2 & 5)

eta Revisions to Eligibility & Procedure for Office of Apprenticeship registration of a program (§29.3)

(d) “…45…” (Everywhere a timeframe was specified such as 90 days (specific) or promptly (non-specific), a 45 day timeframe is proposed.) (Supports Principles 1 & 4)

etaRevisions to §29.3 (cont’d)

(g) “New programs recommended for approval by both the Registration Agency and Office of Apprenticeship will be given provisional approval for a period of one (1) year. Technical assistance will be provided for new programs. All new programs will be reviewed for quality at the end of the first year and the findings will be filed with the Registration Agency. Programs not in operation or not conforming to regulations during the provisionally approved period, will be recommended to the Registration Agency Administrator for deregistration procedures. After the initial review, all programs will be reviewed at the completion of the first full training cycle.” (Supports Principles 1 & 4)

etaRevisions to §29.3 (cont’d)

(h) “A satisfactory review at the end of the first full training cycle will result in the removal of provisional approval. Subsequent reviews will be normally completed on a five (5) year cycle.” (Supports Principles 1 & 4)

eta Revisions to Criteria for Apprenticeable Occupations (§29.4)(c) “…is defined by the occupational standard which

generally…This requirement does not limit or compromise the flexibility of the sponsor to adjust the term of training based upon demonstrated performance. There are three (3) ways to accelerate the program; direct entry, previous experience, demonstration of acquired competencies (skills and knowledge) as verified by the sponsor.” (Supports Principles 1, 2, 4 & 5)

eta Revisions to Standards of Apprenticeship (§29.5)(b)(4) “This may be accomplished through such

media as; classroom, occupational or industry courses, or electronic media, or other instruction as approved by the administering agency. All apprenticeship instructors shall meet the State Department of Education’s requirements for vocational-technical instructor in the state of registration and/or be recognized as a subject matter expert, e.g., journeyworker, a math instructor to instruct the math portion of the related instruction. Also, instructors shall have course work about teaching techniques, how adults learn and learning styles.” (Supports Principles 1, 2, 4 & 5)

etaRevisions to §29.5 (cont’d)

(b)(12) “…for competencies…There are three (3) ways to accelerate the program; direct entry, previous experience, demonstration of acquired competencies (skills and knowledge) as verified by the sponsor;” (Supports Principles 1, 2, 4 & 5)

(b)(13) “The transfer of an apprentice between program sponsors, whether at the will of the apprentice or the initiative of the program sponsor, shall occur without adverse impact on either the apprentice or program sponsor, where the following requirements are met:…”

etaRevisions to §29.5 (cont’d)

(b)(13)(i) “At a minimum, the transferring apprentice will be provided a transcript of related training and OJT by the committee or program sponsor;”

(ii) “Transfer is made to a related occupation or within the same occupation and;”

(iii) “A new apprenticeship agreement is executed where the transfer occurs between program sponsors.”

(Supports Principles 1, 4 & 5)

etaRevisions to §29.5 (cont’d)

(b)(19) “…cancellation…(of an apprenticeship agreement) during the probationary period shall not have an adverse impact to the sponsor’s completion rate.” (Supports Principles 1 & 2)

eta Proposed New Section: Program Performance Standards (§29.6)

(a) “If there is an apprenticeship program, there must be at least one registered apprentice.” (Supports Principles 1 & 4)

(b) “As provided in the National Apprenticeship Act and the implementing regulations, in order to evaluate performance of a registered apprenticeship program, the following factors to be considered will include but are not limited to:”

(1) “Quality Assurance Assessments;”(2) “EEO Compliance; and”(3) “Completion Rates”

(Supports Principles 1 & 4)

etaProposed New Section, §29.6 (cont’d)

(c) “In order to evaluate completion rates, like industry and occupation programs of the same geographical areas may be evaluated. Programs with dramatically different completion rates will be subject to further review. Upon completion of the review, the registration agency will provide technical assistance or take other appropriate action.” (Supports Principles 1 & 4)

etaRevisions to §29.7 – §29.8

Editorial revisions that were discussed earlier

etaRevisions to §29.9 – §29.12

§29.9: Reinstatement of Program Registration – BAT to OA

§29.10: Subsection 3, part b “his/her case” to “their case”

§29.12: “his/her” to “their” authorized representative; “efforts to effect a satisfactory resolution” to “efforts to affect a satisfactory resolution”

etaAnticipated Timeline

August 2006 – present: internal Federal agency clearance procedures for publication of an Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)

Fall 2007:

OA anticipates publication of the NPRM

DOL conducts training and information sessions on proposed revisions

60-day comment period after NPRM Fall 2007 publication

etaAnticipated Timeline (cont’d)

Fall 2007 – Winter 2008: DOL analyzes comments and reconciles the proposed regulatory revisions with the comments, as appropriate

Upon completion of Federal agency clearance procedures, DOL will publish a Notice of Final Rulemaking