Sen. Kaine backs legislation on apprenticeships
Sen. Tim Kaine has co-sponsored legislation that would encourage companies to hire trained apprentices, citing Newport News Shipbuilding as an example of how to train workers for high-demand technical jobs.
Kaine, the son of a Kansas ironworker, has touted the skilled trades as one way to boost the U.S. economy and the fortunes of those who don't desire or can't afford a four-year college degree. He is co-chairman of a Senate caucus on career and technical education.
He joined three senators in sponsoring the Apprenticeship and Jobs Training Act of 2015, according to a news release.
The legislation would create a $5,000 tax credit for companies that hire and pay employees enrolled in a federal- or state-registered apprenticeship program. It would also allow senior employees to draw pensions early if they're mentoring or training new employees.
Another provision is aimed at veterans. The bill would allow credit toward apprenticeship requirements for previous military training.
Other co-sponsors are senators Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y; Susan Collins, R-Me. and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.
Supporters of career and technical education point to shortages in key occupations. In Washington state, the all-important aerospace industry will need 20,000 workers over the next decade. Nearly 30 percent of aviation workers will be eligible for retirement by 2016.
In Hampton Roads, where shipbuilding helps drive the economy, Norfolk Naval Shipyard announced plans earlier this year to hire 1,500 people by Sept. 30. Jobs included marine machinery mechanics, electricians, pipefitters, shipwrights, painters, welders and crane operators.
A spokeswoman for Newport News Shipbuilding said the company had no comment on the legislation because it was still under review. Still, the tax credit provision would presumably benefit the company, which uses its apprentice school to develop and hire home-grown talent.
Shipyard executives have often compared the school to the U.S. Naval Academy, saying they use it to develop leaders, not just workers. The school accepts about 225 apprentices a year, and its admission rate rivals exclusive Ivy League schools. It offers apprenticeships in 19 trades and eight optional advanced programs.
The shipyard is a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, the nation's sole manufacturer of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and one of two yards that builds nuclear-powered submarines.
But apprentice-related jobs go beyond the manufacturing sector. According to the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry, 182 jobs in the state can involve an apprenticeship, everything from barbers and cosmetologists to dental assistants and electronics technicians.
Coincidentally, Huntington Ingalls announced Thursday that representatives from its two apprentice schools — the one in Newport News and the Haley Barbour Maritime Training Academy at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Mississippi — participated in the White House Summit on Apprenticeships held this week in Washington D.C.
It focused on creating a set of standards for apprenticeship training and creating momentum for more youth apprenticeships. Everett Jordan, director of education at the Newport News school, participated in a congressional panel on the topic that followed the summit.
