WASHINGTON, DC – November 15, 2018 – Today, North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) issued the following statement from President Sean McGarvey in recognition of National Apprenticeship Week (NAW). NAW has been observed throughout the country since 2015 to honor the U.S. Department of Labor’s Registered Apprenticeship established by the 1937-passed “Fitzgerald Act.”

“NABTU celebrates National Apprenticeship Week and salutes the many advancements of apprenticeships from our proven and widely recognized model of workforce development.

“For over 80 years, North America’s Building Trades Unions have been fierce advocates for and leading practitioners in the Registered Apprenticeship system. Our robust labor-management commitment to and private multi-billion dollar investment in craft training ensure workers of all backgrounds including veterans, women and minority communities, can meet the demands of our competitive industry.

“Every year, tens of thousands of the most highly-skilled construction workers complete our state-of-the-art Registered Apprenticeship programs not only meeting the demands of industry, but also fully equipped with portable skills for rewarding middle class careers. That is why NABTU’s world-class apprenticeship and training infrastructure is the pride of the American labor movement. We applaud DOL’s efforts like National Apprenticeship Week to elevate and showcase our proven model to other industries and the American public.”

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