Department of Labor

Watch On-Demand Webinar about Apprenticeship

Learn how one woman launched a Department of Labor-approved apprenticeship program

SHARED FROM WOODWORKING NETWORK Kelly Victor-Burke, owner of Burke Architectural Woodwork, shared how she launched the nation's first woodwork manufacturing specialist apprenticeship in her Southeastern Michigan shop in a Woodworking Network webinar. Titled, "Grow your own: Training your future skilled woodworkers," the webinar was held in December 2020 and was aimed at showing how others can set up a Department of Labor-registered woodworking apprenticeship program. Victor-Burke drafted the initial framework of the program to address the employment gap in the wood products industry through cross-training and upskilling new and existing employees in a combination of CAD, mechatronics, wood processing, coatings, estimating and[...]

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Industry and Education Members Help Draft New DOL “Woodwork Manufacturing Specialist” Registered Apprenticeship

The U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Office of Apprenticeship (OA) has announced approval of a new Competency-based Occupational Framework (CBOF) for the occupation of Woodwork Manufacturing Specialist. For the past 3 years, a group of visionary industry and education members from Michigan and across the country collaborated on drafting the framework for an innovative 21st century registered apprenticeship, “Woodwork Manufacturing Specialist” with assistance from the Urban Institute in Washington DC and Workplace Intelligence Network (WIN) and led by Kelly Victor-Burke of Burke Architectural Millwork, who conceived and drafted the initial framework. The newly approved registered apprenticeship was created to address the employment gap in woodworking and[...]

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