The Better Business Bureau of Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky recently announced a new partnership with Apprenticeship TN. The primary purpose of the partnership is to raise awareness of the Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP) opportunities available to businesses in Middle Tennessee.
Registered Apprenticeships are work-based learning models where apprentices have supervised on-the-job training, along with job-related education, while earning a wage that increases during the progression of the program. As the future of the workforce continues to evolve, The BBB and Apprenticeship TN wants to ensure all businesses learn more about opportunities available to hire and retain a qualified workforce.
“Our focus is on building better businesses. After numerous conversations with many of our Accredited businesses we realized they were not aware of the apprenticeship program,” said Robyn Householder, President & CEO of BBB Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky. “We are excited about this new partnership which will assist with getting the word out and making sure employers know that these resources are available to them.”
The State of Tennessee launched the comprehensive program over two years ago to help with increasing the number of skilled employees available within Tennessee’s workforce. Additionally, to ensure all Tennesseans have opportunities to advance in their career choice. “Our Apprenticeship program gives us the infrastructure, the road, to connect to different populations in Tennessee and bring them along in a way that they can get paid and learn at the same time, said Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner, Jeff McCord.
Dr. Charlene Sands Russell, the Middle Tennessee Regional Apprenticeship Director, has seen an uptick in companies interested in establishing Registered Apprenticeship Programs. She contributes the increased awareness to having strategic partnerships. “Partnering with the BBB helps us interact with businesses we may not normally engage with regularly. These businesses have started asking questions and have an interest in the program. This to me, is the stepping stone to growing the number of Registered Apprenticeships Programs and ultimately the number of registered apprentices in Tennessee.”
Apprenticeships are available for most industries and are considered the gold standard in workforce development.
The BBB and Apprenticeship TN will be offering informational sessions for those interested in learning more about the Apprenticeship Program.
To learn about Apprenticeship TN, email [email protected] or call 615-532-0148. To learn more about the Better Business Bureau, visit BBB.org.
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