Apprenticeships redux: old tradition is way to new competitive workforce.

With stories in the national news and industrial publications lamenting the staffing problems in manufacturing, maybe it's time to revisit the apprentice. Not the Donald Trump version where employees are eliminated but a version where manufacturing gains skilled employees.

Apprenticeships of the past were programs to train young people in a specific industry. Apprentices worked at a lower pay rate for a specific time period during which they learned all aspects of the trade before being recognized as a skilled employee at a more appropriate pay rate.

There were benefits for both the employer and the apprentice. Employers grew their own employees, teaching and training them in the needed skills and apprentices devoted the time to learning skills in an industry where they could then make a decent living.

Sure, times are different and industry as a whole doesn't have the training infrastructure to support a true apprenticeship program, but companies in need can build their own type of apprenticeship program. My version is a two-year program where young and not so young people, new to machining, agree to study machining with a company to become a machine operator or setup person.

There are a number of issues that must be addressed before implementing this type of program. In this column we'll look at some of the internal company issues and next month we'll review a possible curriculum for your own apprenticeship program.

You may need to start by asking, "What does our company need and how can an apprentice fulfill those needs?"

An ideal situation would be a two-year program where someone with no machining background can gain the knowledge and experience to become a competent operator or setup person. Someone that shows the aptitude can continue to learn programming.

Local community or technical colleges are great resources to use as part of your apprenticeship program. The apprentice would work at the company and take more formal training at the community college.

Management must firmly believe in this plan and convince all levels of supervision and staff to get behind this idea. Many times, shop people are adverse to new employees or sharing the knowledge, viewing the eager young apprentices as a threat. Management must overcome this natural aversion and promote this idea as a positive, long-term program for the company.

The company must also sell the program to the prospective apprentice. Nothing is guaranteed but if individuals are willing to devote some time and effort to their future, machining can still offer a good career.

A trainee pay rate may seem like a negative and two years may seem like a long time to a younger person, but many younger people acquire massive student-loan debt in paying tuition with no job prospects after four years at a college. For the right candidate, an apprenticeship program can be a solid foundation for a career in precision manufacturing.

Competent machinists can earn a decent wage, much better than many low-skilled, service sector jobs.

With the company behind the goals and the right candidate, your apprentice can start to learn the business of your company from the ground up. These people can become long-term success stories for your company.

Next month, we'll take a look at building a curriculum for your apprenticeship program.

Steve Rose is a professional trainer and president of RTSI, Solon, OH. Rosaleen Rose offers Internet website development. They can be reached by phone at 440.542.3066; e-mail srose@rosetraining.com; or on the web at www. rosetraining.com.