The Executive Director of the Aerospace Joint Apprenticeship Committee (AJAC), Laura Hopkins, on October 24th and 25th, testified at a U.S. Senate field hearing at the Museum of Flight and attended a roundtable discussion at the Pearson Air Museum in Vancouver, Washington. Both events were hosted by Maria Cantwell and explored the future of Washington State's aerospace and manufacturing industries, emphasizing how apprenticeship and training programs can help Washington State stay competitive in these industries.

Washington State is the world leader in aerospace production, currently employing more than 83,000 people and exporting more than 30% of the U.S.' aerospace products. However, with the increase in impending retirements, new emerging technologies and a greater aerospace production demand, challenges for building a skilled 21st century workforce have developed.

Hopkins spoke about how apprenticeship programs, such as AJAC's, are a successful method to train the next generation aviation workforce, because it transfers the knowledge from a skilled workforce to the next generation through on-the-job training with mentor guidance. Due to the fact that the current workforce is composed of craftspeople that offer valuable knowledge and skills acquired through years of experience, "it is imperative that employers have an avenue to capture the knowledge of the retiring trades-people and pass that knowledge on to the next generation," said Hopkins.

Continuing with this discussion, on Tuesday October 25th, Hopkins was part of a five person roundtable discussion hosted by Cantwell. Present at the event were:

• Mary Margaret Evans, Vice President of Corporate   Operations, Insitu
• Laureano Mier, Museum Manager and Education Programs Coordinator Pearson Air Museum
• U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell
• Laura Hopkins, Executive Director Aerospace Joint Apprenticeship Committee
• Anne Kennedy, Director of STEM Education, ESD 112

These regional aerospace employer representatives and science educators met to discuss ways to spark interest in the aerospace fields to younger generations. As Cantwell explained, "This is a pivotal point for the competitiveness of America's aerospace industry...We need to make the right decisions today to create aerospace jobs now - and for our children."

Hopkins and other representatives encourage an increase in student engagement and performance in math, science, and English in grades K-8 in order to secure the long-term quality of the state's aerospace workforce. They also stress the importance of working with Washington's U.S. senatorial congressional delegations on funding and support for education, workforce development and training, and research.

With recent developments in Washington State's aerospace industry, the need to increase and strengthen aerospace education and training is more important than ever. Government, labor, industry, and educational institutions must unite to define skill needs, build curriculum, provide apprenticeship and training, and define a clear path to employment. Local legislators need your feedback to help ensure that a necessary emphasis is placed on apprenticeship and training programs to train a skilled next generation workforce.  

The most recent development came on November 30th when Boeing announced its plans to build the 737 MAX in Renton, Washington. This came as great news to many people who have been working hard to ensure that Washington State remains a world leader in aerospace. The new production line will mean an expected 20,000 direct and indirect jobs for Washington State residents. Ensuring Washington State remains competitive going forward, Governor Chris Gregoire has been leading plans to address any shortcomings, a special focus on enhancing the education system to continue the state's excellence as a highly skilled workforce.

One significant shortcoming is that the current workforce is nearing retirement and a gap is forming between the skilled and knowledgeable workers and the inexperienced young generation. However, it is our highly skilled and experienced workforce that has created over 7,000 737's to date. This workforce is what Washington State is recognized for and is a major factor that has lead Boeing to choose the Renton site to build the 737 MAX. Other states and countries are developing their education and training programs and within five years could be a major competitor of Washington.

Consultants from Accenture, one of the world's premier management consulting firms provided, in its Recommendation Report, that Washington State needs to increase its education to train a young workforce. Business, government and labor leaders are working together to convince elected and appointed decision makers in the state that they need to take action to address the ongoing needs of the aerospace industry to ensure Washington State remains the most competitive state in the nation for aerospace.

In response to these findings, Project Pegasus, a consortium of invested industry partners, including AJAC's Executive Director, Laura Hopkins  has worked together to sustain existing aerospace production ensuring that the 737 max stay in Washington.  This consortium, led by Governor Gregoire has created a list of ways to aid in educational and training growth. Among some of these ideas are: learning, developing and increasing certification and apprenticeship programs to accelerate the state's production of skilled manufacturing workers; increasing the number of high-quality engineering graduates, expanding aerospace-relevant research from the University of Washington and Washington State University, and expanding the focus on STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).    

Apprenticeship is a key tool to use to allocate a trained 21st century workforce, because it combines on-the-job training from skilled mentors with classroom instruction taught by experienced professionals. It is a proven successful way to transfer knowledge from a skilled generation on to the next.  The Aerospace Joint Apprenticeship Committee (AJAC) has developed apprenticeship programs to train the next generation for careers as a skilled machinist, aircraft mechanic, composite technician, and more. AJAC's programs help fill the skills gap and build a generation of knowledgeable and talented aerospace and advanced manufacturing workers.

On December 6, 2011, AJAC's Executive Director, Laura Hopkins, spoke to the Senate Labor, Commerce & Consumer Protection Committee to present the trainer's perspective on the aerospace skills gap. Hopkins spoke of the major challenges Washington State faces with the impending retirement and explained how these challenges are being addressed and what next steps need to be taken.

Washingtonians have an opportune time to convince elected and appointed decision makers in the state that they need to take action to address the ongoing needs of the aerospace industry. The Washington Aerospace Partnership has hired lobbyists to work these initiatives in the current legislative session. The future legislation needs to support apprenticeship and the programs surrounding it, such as the Pre-Employment Manufacturing Academy and employer tax incentives.

You have the chance to give input and feedback to Washington State's aerospace initiatives that are going to be pushed in the current legislative session. The local legislature is looking for direct feedback from the aerospace suppliers in Washington State. AJAC would like to make you aware of the opportunities to share your input in order to further develop apprenticeship and training programs. It is important to not only educate ourselves, but also educate others so we can help build and train a skilled 21st century workforce.  For more information, visit the Washington Aerospace Partnership's Web site.