As it Stands
A Look at Apprenticeship
As we celebrate the 125th anniversary of Labor Day this year, Americans need to face a hard reality: Our nation’s infrastructure is crumbling, and new construction is being delayed because we have a major labor shortage that is harming our nation.
The good news is that this crisis is self-imposed, and we can fix the problem if we are willing to acknowledge a solution.
The solution: We need to tell our children that it’s OK not to go to college.
Today’s young men, women and veterans can earn good wages and learn a trade that will set them on a career path to earn $65,000 or more per year. That’s without a college degree and the crippling student-loan debt that often comes with even a state-university diploma.
Every state has apprenticeship programs, and employees at nearly every level in their respective trade industry started their career path as an apprentice.
Apprentice programs are often overlooked due to the perception of it being a nontraditional education path or people thinking that the only way to get a good-paying job is by going to college. In fact, apprentice programs have been around since the middle ages, and we see this path as the most traditional education path to someone’s long-term professional success.
For way too long, we’ve been pushing high school graduates to rack up loans to attend college for medium- or low-paying desk jobs. We’re failing to tell these high school students that they also have the option of a high-paying, rewarding career where they are paid to learn a skill without attending college or incurring student debt.
