ILG launched its
Statewide Apprenticeship Initiative, Bridge, during the
2024 National Apprenticeship Week. ILG’s Bridge initiative is
open to California cities, counties, and special districts to
pilot non-traditional Registered Apprenticeship Programs
(RAPs). RAPs have been successful to help public sector
employers meet increasing labor demands by preparing
and helping more Californians recognize the value of
local government jobs as viable careers. According to a
Calbright report, RAPs offer higher retention rates than
non-apprenticed career pathways and participants advance faster
than traditional hires. (Source: The Road to Optimizing
California’s Public Sector Labor Market, 2024)
Working in partnership with the California Department of
Apprenticeship Standards, ILG will support interested cities,
counties and special districts to develop RAPs for identified
high need job classifications in their local
government. RAPs offer a bridge to public sector employment
and careers by providing classroom or online instruction,
on-the-job training, industry-recognized credentials, paid
employment, and supervision. These strategies have been
successful across industries as a key workforce development
tool. The focus for ILG’s Initiative is on high-demand
non-traditional RAPs in occupations such as accounting, human
resources, IT, and health and human services, etc. Through RAPs,
local governments will be able to fill critical positions,
provide prospective employees opportunities to explore new
careers and upward mobility, and raise awareness of and
expand access to the local government workforce.
To express interest in becoming a pilot, senior staff or elected
officials within cities, counties or special districts
should complete this
interest form. After submitting this form, ILG will
schedule an initial consultation to discuss your jurisdiction’s
workforce needs and goals, as well as any existing partnerships
with educational institutions or labor unions.
Together, we’ll develop a scalable statewide apprenticeship
program that addresses local governments workforce needs,
streamlines the administrative process for local agencies to hire
apprentices, and supports the unique needs of a public sector
workplace.
Funding
The 2022-2023 California State Budget invested over
$231 million in apprenticeship-related spending and more than
$480 million from 2022-2025. That funding included $175 million
to create apprenticeship innovation funding for non-traditional
programs. In addition, there are numerous federal and
philanthropic funding sources available to help advance this
work, particularly for programs that focus on expanding economic
mobility among underserved populations, diversifying the public
sector workforce and upskilling or re-skilling residents into
living wage and high road careers.
Partner with Us
Developing a robust statewide network for public sector
registered apprenticeships is a major initiative that will
require a broad coalition of stakeholders. We welcome additional
initiative partners in the public, private, nonprofit and
philanthropic sector to advance this important work. Current
partners include:
- The James Irvine Foundation
- The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation
- High Road Training Partnership
Learn More
To stay informed about ILG’s apprenticeship initiative and learn
more about how your organization can get involved, please
click here.
Important Apprenticeship Resources
