SEATTLE, WA – On Friday, June 22nd, Washington State became home to 72 new aerospace and advanced manufacturing journeymen and women apprentices. The Aerospace Joint Apprenticeship Committee (AJAC) recognized the Class of 2018 as the largest to date, journeying out highly-skilled workers for the industry’s top occupations including machinists, metal fabricators, tool and die makers and the first youth apprentices as production technicians.
To receive a journey-level credential from the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, all apprentices must meet their required on-the-job and college-classroom hours in addition to completing a CPR/First-Aid Certification course.
“The perseverance of the 72 graduates equates to a combined 41,000 hours of college-level classroom instruction and over half a million on-the-job training hours,” said Demetria “Lynn” Strickland, Executive Director of AJAC, during her closing remarks. As apprentices develop mastery on the shop floor, they become more knowledgeable in their trade, until they graduate, and journey-out as master craftsmen in their own right.
[huge_it_slider id=”3″]
Jesse Milbrath, a graduate machinist at Machinists, Inc., in Seattle and a member of the Class of 2018, spoke during the ceremony about his journey through apprenticeship, including the remarkable defeat of becoming the youngest machinist graduate at 21 years old. “If you want something you have to work for it. Without apprenticeship, I wouldn’t have been able to support myself, and the goals I’ve set forward for my life. Being here today is a culmination of people believing in me, and me believing in myself. Now, it is our job to keep believing in ourselves, but more importantly, start to believe in others,” Jesse concluded.
Understanding the value an apprentice is determined by each company’s journey-level wage rate. Apprentices start out at a percentage of that wage rate, typically 60% or more. Once an apprentice becomes a journey-level worker, he or she can physically show their value through this recognized credential.
Now, it is our job to keep believing in ourselves, but more importantly, start to believe in others
“You now have something to show your knowledge,” Milbrath said. “Instead of someone trying to take my word for it, I know my worth.”
Over the next five years, the Washington State projects a staggering 740,000 job openings will be available for skilled workers, including many in the aerospace and advanced manufacturing industries. Finding skilled workers is a daunting challenge for many employers today, however, through registered apprenticeships, vital industries can remain competitive for generations to come.
Congratulations to the AJAC Class of 2018!
View photos from the ceremony via AJAC’s Flickr Page.
