New York State Assembly Committees’ on Labor and Small Business and the Commission on Skills Development and Career Education hosted a panel discussion on apprenticeships with participants sharing their experience and expertise. As Chair of the Commission on Skills Development and Career Education, Assembly Member Bronson wanted to begin this conversation by taking a closer look at programs in our Rochester community.

Apprenticeships have long been regarded as a successful link between training and employment, but they remain a relatively small share of the State and the nation’s workforce investment. With the ongoing need to address the middle-skills gap, there has been a renewed look at apprenticeship programs as one approach to address this issue.

Representatives of New York State Department of Labor, local companies, trade unions, higher education as well as other workforce development professionals that are actively engaged in apprenticeship programs will contribute their perspectives.

This roundtable presents an opportunity for the Assembly members to understand actions that could be taken to expand apprenticeship opportunities, in traditional and non-traditional fields. The purpose of the roundtable is to discuss the current state of apprenticeship programs and to consider options for and possible barriers to their expansion.

The event took place Tuesday, October 20th and the results of the roundtable discussion will be used to ensure effective apprentice programs for employees and employers.