It’s National Apprenticeship Week!
Oh the Protestants hate the Catholics
And the Catholics hate the Protestants
And the Hindus hate the Muslims
And everybody hates the Jews (But during)
National Brotherhood Week, National Brotherhood Week
It's National Everyone-Smile-At-One-Another-Hood Week
Be nice to people who are inferior to you
It's only for a week so have no fear
Be grateful that it doesn't last all year
--Tom Lehrer, National Brotherhood Week
The Department of Labor Secretary is already in the rear view mirror and DOL is moving on. It is that special week of the year that you all have been waiting for – the inaugural National Apprentice Week (“NAW”). So, let’s take a journey into the developments involving apprenticeship programs both past and present, starting with the most recent.
1. National Apprenticeship Week (“NAW”) is here.
Sunday, April 26th was the start of inaugural National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) 2026. So far, over 2,300 apprenticeship events and proclamations have been added to the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) website. According to DOL, “sharing events on social media is the quickest way to spread the word and create a buzz that draws attendees and builds excitement. You are invited to visit the NAW social media page on the DOL website.
2. DOL is hosting “marquee” events for NAW 2026.
DOL will be celebrating NAW 2026 with some upcoming “landmark” events, two of which are open to the public and listed below.
A. Monday, April 27: National Signing Day Ceremony:
Kick off NAW 2026 with DOL’s National Signing Day celebrating new Registered Apprenticeship standards from employers including the U.S. Department of War, AstraZeneca, JobForward, IBM, M&T Bank alongside Acting Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling.
Time: 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT
B. Wednesday, April 29: Building an AI-Ready Workforce Through Registered Apprenticeship: Discover how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming Registered Apprenticeship programs—and how you can lead the way. This event will include a panel discussion with Acting Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling and representatives from Google, NPower, and Lockheed Martin, among others.
Time: 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EDT
3. DOL has daily apprentice-related themes.
The theme for NAW 2026 is “America at Work: Making America Skilled Again through Registered Apprenticeship.”
Throughout the week, DOL will also have daily NAW themes:
Monday, April 27: Registered Apprenticeships Building America at 250
Tuesday, April 28: Registered Apprenticeship Drives Growth and Innovation Across Critical Industries
Wednesday, April 29: Expanding AI in Registered Apprenticeship
Thursday, April 30: Realigning Education and Workforce Systems Around Registered Apprenticeship
Friday, May 1: Youth Pathways to Registered Apprenticeship
4. DOL 2026 grants for apprentice activities.
· Pay-for-Performance Incentive Payments Program ($145 Million): Announced in February 2026, this program offers up to five cooperative agreements to scale Registered Apprenticeships rapidly .Target Industries: Shipbuilding, defense, AI, semiconductors, nuclear energy, healthcare, transportation, and telecommunications .
· State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula Grants ($85 Million): The DOL announced $85 million for states and territories to fuel Registered Apprenticeship expansion, focusing on critical sectors like AI, advanced manufacturing, and IT . Requirements: States must set statewide expansion goals, reserve funds for priority industries, and demonstrate a 50% leverage of other resources.
· American Manufacturing Apprenticeship Incentive Fund ($35.8 Million): Launched in early 2026 to specifically expand registered apprenticeships in the advanced manufacturing sector, providing $3,500 per new apprentice.
5. A historical note about construction industry apprenticeship program.
For those who want to know more about apprenticeship programs, the following is some materials adapted from my Federal Publications Seminars Davis-Bacon Act seminar manual.
The Davis-Bacon Act regulations at 29 C.F.R. § 5.2 defines “apprentice” as follows:
(1) “Apprentice” means:
(i) A person employed and individually registered in a bona fide apprenticeship program registered with the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Office of Apprenticeship, or with a State Apprenticeship Agency recognized by the Office of Apprenticeship; or
(ii) A person in the first 90 days of probationary employment as an apprentice in such an apprenticeship program, who is not individually registered in the program, but who has been certified by the Office of Apprenticeship or a State Apprenticeship Agency (where appropriate) to be eligible for probationary employment as an apprentice;
At one time, the wage determinations issued by the DOL included wage rates prevailing for apprentices in the various crafts employed in the work. Solicitor’s Opinion No. 59, June 24, 1964 provided that individual wage rates for apprentices would no longer be included in wage determinations because apprentices to the various construction crafts are laborers or mechanics within the meaning of the Act.
Under the regulations today, at 29 C.F.R. § 5.5(a)(4), a contractor may pay certain apprentices and trainees at a rate that is less than the predetermined rate for the work they are performing provided certain requirements are met. For one, the apprentices and trainees must be individually registered in a bona fide apprenticeship or trainee program. In the alternative, the apprentice can be employed in his or her first 90 days of probationary employment, as an apprentice in the program who is not individually registered, but who has been certified by DOL’s Bureau as eligible for probationary employment as an apprentice. And, the apprenticeship program must be a bona fide program that is registered with DOL’s Employment and Training Administration, Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training, or with a State Apprenticeship Agency recognized by the DOL Bureau. The trainee program must be approved and certified by DOL’s Employment and Training Administration.
In addition, the contractor must pay every apprentice or trainee at a rate not less than the rate specified in the approved program for the apprentice’s or trainee’s level of progress, expressed as a percentage of the journeyman’s hourly rate specified in the applicable wage determination.
The allowable ratio of apprentices or trainees to journeymen on the job site in any craft classification shall not be greater than the ratio the contractor is permitted as to the entire work force under the registered apprenticeship program. Thus, it is the ratio of apprentices in the program which is dispositive. The allowable ratio is to be applied on a daily basis. In other words, the employer is supposed to watch the ratio of apprentices to journeymen every working day and make adjustments where necessary for illness or other factors.
Strict application of the DOL rules is mitigated by DOL’s internal Field Operations Handbook (“FOH”) which states:
However, BW’s [Back Wages] will not be assessed for minor, temporary and inadvertent ratio imbalances which are promptly corrected.
FOH § 15e01(b)(1). DOL offers an illustration of the working of its regulations where a hypothetical ratio of one apprentice to every three journeymen is permitted by an approved plan. See FOH § 15e01(b)(2). Accordingly, the ratio of apprentices is a function of whole numbers and no fraction of an apprentice is permitted.
Notwithstanding the fact that the Davis-Bacon work is being performed in a location other than the place where the program registration was initially made, the allowable ratio of apprentices to journeymen is the ratio specified in the contractor’s registered program. See 29 C.F.R. § 5.5(a)(4)(I); FOH § 15e01(b)(3). Thus, if a contractor has a program registered in Virginia, that program ratio governs even if the project is in Washington, D.C. (Unless, of course, the contractor also has a registered program in Washington, D.C.). Incidentally, while both the ratio and the percentage of wage payments are derived from the program, the wage rates themselves are still derived from the locality where the work is done. In Jack Picoult, WAB Case No. 68-9, 19 W.H. Cas. (BNA) 352 (Dec. 19, 1968), the Board ruled that the visiting contractor had to pay apprentices based on the wage rates specified in the construction area and not the lower apprentice rates set forth in its program.
Finally, apprentices and trainees must be paid fringe benefits in accordance with the apprenticeship or trainee program. If the programs do not specify fringe benefits, then the apprentice or trainee must be paid the full amount of applicable fringe benefits listed on the wage determination, unless DOL determines that a different practice prevails in the locality. 29 C.F.R. § 5.5(a)(4)(I); FOH § 15e01(g).
Any worker who is listed on the payroll at an apprentice or trainee wage rate and who is not individually registered in the apprenticeship or trainee program, or an apprentice who has not been certified by DOL’s Bureau to be eligible for probationary employment as an apprentice, must be paid no less than the full applicable wage rate specified in the wage determination for the classification of work actually performed. See, e.g. Independent Roofing Contractors Council et. al. v. Chao, N.D. California, September 18, 2006 And, any apprentice or trainee performing work on the job site in excess of the allowable ratio of apprentices to journeymen under the program must be paid the full wage rate. If DOL withdraws approval of the apprenticeship or trainee program, the contractor can no longer utilize apprentices or trainees at less than the full applicable wage rate. 29 C.F.R. § 5.5(a)(4)(I). Note, also, that in North Star Industries, WAB No. 92-02 (Sept. 30, 1992), the Board held that where DOL regulations permitted a contractor to rely on a state’s certification of an apprenticeship program, that certification has to be (1) as formal in nature as DOL’s own certification would be, and (2) made within, and not after, the applicable probationary period.