Apprenticeship for Employers
Workforce Training Solutions
Partnership Benefits
Employer Benefits
- No-cost to partner with AJAC and offer apprenticeship to your employees
- AJAC handles majority of the paperwork to comply with state regulations
- Programs available to all employers regardless of company size, sub-sector, or union affiliation.
- Training customized to your needs, on your equipment, using your work processes.
- College-accredited classes for your apprentices.
- Hiring pipelines to fill entry-level positions including high school students and veterans.
- Grant funding available to employers and apprentices.
- Subject Matter Expert consultations.
6 Reasons Why Apprenticeship Works
In today’s competitive job market, employers are increasingly recognizing the value of investing in apprenticeship programs. These programs offer a unique opportunity to develop a highly skilled and loyal workforce tailored to meet specific industry needs.
- Skilled Workforce Development: Apprenticeships help employers develop a highly skilled workforce tailored to their specific needs and industry standards.
- Increased Productivity: Apprenticeships can lead to increased productivity as apprentices are trained to perform tasks efficiently and effectively under the guidance of experienced mentors.
- Employee Retention: Apprenticeships often lead to higher employee retention rates as apprentices are more likely to stay with a company that has invested in their training and development.
- Reduced Hiring Costs: By training apprentices internally, employers can reduce the costs associated with recruiting and hiring experienced workers from outside the company.
- Enhanced Innovation: Apprentices bring fresh perspectives and new ideas, which can foster innovation and improvements within the company.
- Improved Employee Morale: Investing in employee development through apprenticeships can boost overall employee morale and job satisfaction, leading to a more motivated and engaged workforce.
Recruit. Train. Retain.
As Washington State’s largest non-profit advanced manufacturing training organization, AJAC offers apprenticeship training at little to no cost, to all employers in the manufacturing industry.
AJAC uses a variety of training models capturing the fundamental skills required across many industries to match your employment needs from Entry-Level through highly skilled Journey-Level workers.
With advancements in machinery and automation, we address the needs across assembly, production, processing, machine automation, machine operations and maintenance; from raw materials whether they are grown or mined, to finished goods.
What is a Registered Apprenticeship?
Washington State funded the creation AJAC, an advanced manufacturing apprenticeship program, to offer Washington State employers a proven method to capture the knowledge and skills of their most experienced tradespeople and pass it on to the next generation of productive employees.
Employers interested in offering these training opportunities to their incumbent workforce partner with AJAC to serve as ‘training agents,’ where the vast majority of the apprenticeship training occurs (93% on the job, 7% in the classroom).
Key Industries We Serve
AJAC's Suite of Programs
Entry-Level Training
AJAC supports our participating employers with innovative signature training, cutting-edge industry-proven curriculum and highly effective trained instructors. AJAC’s model provides the path for you to source your next Entry-Level workers without the traditional cost burden to the employers. Our goal is to provide exceptional, responsive, cost-effective training programs to bring the next generation of manufacturers to industry.
Entry-Level Programs We Offer:
Advanced Apprenticeships
AJAC’s dynamic workforce retention solutions are focused on transferring your occupational and collective knowledge to your next generation of leaders. We provide the training compliance process—facilitating the development of your internal candidates for future leadership roles—creating retention for your success and growth.
Advanced Apprenticeships We Offer:
Steps to Becoming an Apprenticeship Partner
AJAC works as your partner in moving the following steps to adoption. From consulting on OJT design, mentorship training, to hiring qualified adults and local youth—AJAC staff will guide you through this process.
Steps to Becoming an Apprenticeship Partner
Get buy-in from leadership and supervisors to launch an AJAC apprenticeship at your company.
Sign a Training Agent agreement and become an official apprenticeship training provider.
Identify an apprenticeship coordinator to be the main point-of-contact for all apprenticeship-related activities
With AJAC’s guidance, develop internal policies to recruit, train, and support your apprentices.
Identify the journey-level workers who will train the apprentices on-the-job.
Recruit your employees who want to advance their careers and skill up through apprenticeship.
OJT Work Processes
On-the-job (OJT) training makes up 93% of an apprentices experience in apprenticeship. AJAC tracks these hours to confirm that the apprentices are rotated to ensure they get comprehensive training.
Each month apprentices track and report their hours. Additionally, there are competency-training guides, and training for mentors and apprentices to track progress.
Cost & College Tuition
AJAC provides apprenticeship program management at no cost to our partnering employers. The only cost to an employer is the wages of their apprentices.
Each apprentice is responsible for tuition, textbooks, and materials required for each quarter. Many partnering employers pay some or all of the tuition (50% reduced) for AJAC classes.
Get Started
To start an apprenticeship program at your company or enroll new apprentices into an existing program, please complete our Getting Started Form using the link below and an AJAC representative will contact you shortly.