Abstract

ETA launched the American Apprenticeship Initiative (AAI) in October 2015 and provided five-year grants to 46 grantees to expand registered apprenticeship into new sectors and to populations historically underrepresented in apprenticeships. Some AAI grantees received no-cost extensions of their periods of performance through September 2021. In April 2016, ETA commissioned an evaluation of the AAI to build evidence about the effectiveness of registered apprenticeship for apprentices and employers. The evaluation included four sub-studies (an implementation study, an outcomes study, an employer return-on-investment (ROI) study, and an assessment of a demonstration to encourage employers to adopt apprenticeship). Three reports comprised the implementation sub-study. In addition to the sub-study reports, the AAI Evaluation included five topical issue briefs.

This report presents findings from the AAI demonstration sub-study that examined the impact of employer engagement efforts on employers’ take-up of registered apprenticeship. The two grantees in the demonstration were MassHire Hampden County Workforce Board, a sub-grantee to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, and Philadelphia Works, along with two of its grant partners; however, only MassHire was able to fully implement the approach. Over the course of the 17-month demonstration (January 2019 to July 2020), MassHire implemented consultative sales activities with a treatment group of employers, while conducting business as usual in terms of outreach efforts with a control group of employers. The evaluation found that twelve (12) percent of employers in the MassHire treatment group registered at least one apprenticeship program, while no employers in the control group registered any apprenticeship programs. This difference represented a statistically significant impact of the consultative sales approach on MassHire employer registration of apprenticeship programs.

Final Report

• ETAOP2022-37_AAI_Demo_Final_Report_508_9-30-22.pdf

Other Products

• Achieving Apprenticeship Program and Apprentice Registration Targets: Grantee Outcomes from the American Apprenticeship Initiative
• Beyond Productivity: How Employers Gain More from Apprenticeship: Findings from the American Apprenticeship Initiative Evaluation (Issue Brief)
• Challenges and Opportunities for Expanding Registered Apprenticeship with Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title I: Findings from the American Apprenticeship Initiative Evaluation (Issue Brief)
• Did Apprentices Achieve Faster Earnings Growth Than Comparable Workers? Findings from the American Apprenticeship Initiative Evaluation (Issue Brief)
• Do Employers Earn Positive Returns to Investments in Apprenticeship? Evidence from Registered Programs under the American Apprenticeship Initiative
• Expanding Apprenticeship to New Sectors and Populations: The Experiences and Outcomes of Apprentices in the American Apprenticeship Initiative
• Expanding Registered Apprenticeship Opportunities to Underrepresented Populations: Findings from the American Apprenticeship Initiative Evaluation (Issue Brief)
• Expanding Registered Apprenticeship in the United States: Description of American Apprenticeship Initiative Grantees and Their Programs
• Implementing Registered Apprenticeship Programs: Experiences of 10 American Apprenticeship Initiative Grantees
• What Are the Costs of Generating Apprenticeships? Findings from the American Apprenticeship Initiative Evaluation (Issue Brief)