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ment in the employer willing to invest in him or her force development game-changer, beneficial for
It marks the difference between offering them everyone ”
a job and helping provide them with a career Propane marketers that offer appren-
path ” ticeship programs have a definite competitive
advantage over those that don’t; businesses with
How to Participate as a Marketer apprenticeships have better-trained, more com-
To participate in the propane appren- mitted, and more loyal workforces – according to
ticeship programs, each propane business must the DOL, more than 90% of individuals who com-
enroll and submit its own application and other plete an apprenticeship remain with their employ-
completed paperwork to the NPGA to become er
enrolled An enrollment checklist is available on
NPGA’s website How Can Employer Connect to Potential
Participating marketers must also recruit Apprentices (Applicants)
their own apprenticeship candidates, who fulfill Explore the U S Department of Labor’s
both the program requirements and the compa- Resources. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office
ny’s own hiring criteria of Apprenticeship has many available resourc-
Participating marketers use the job-task es both for companies considering adopting a
requirements as a guide for how they will run their program and those who are ready to go Visit
on-the-job training; job tasks educate an ap- apprenticeship gov to learn more
prentice on the fundamentals of a core compe- Be prepared to talk compensation. Can-
tency Each of NPGA’s apprenticeship programs didates interested in an apprenticeship with your
is designed so that core competencies can be company may want to know how their com-
learned through training and related instruction pensation will grow as they learn through the
within 12 months Employers will be required to program Prepare a scale to illustrate how this will
assess and track progress Evaluation forms are happen
available for download off of NPGA’s website Connect with your local Workforce Devel-
When apprentices complete their certi- opment Board. Workforce development boards
fication, NPGA suggests holding a “graduation” (WDB) are a network of federal, state, and local
ceremony and issuing a news release to remind offices that support economic expansion and
folks how these programs are meeting a vital develop skillsets of the nation’s workforce WDBs
workforce need within the community serve as liaisons between the U S Department of
Apprenticeships can serve as a big oppor- Labor and more than 2,500 local American Job
tunity for potential employees Not only is the idea Centers to connect workers and employers Visit
of being paid to earn the equivalent of a college careeronestop.org to find your local WDB.
education extremely appealing, but it also shows Attend job fairs sponsored by your local
how the company is willing to put its time, money, chamber of commerce. Chambers of Com-
and energy into its employees’ career and future merce, non-profits, government agencies, and
“It does take effort to go through this business organizations host numerous job fairs
process, for employers and apprentices alike,” at- nationwide throughout the year Reach out to
tests Caldarera “The more the industry becomes these groups to see how you can best promote
aware and knowledgeable about this program, your apprenticeship to career-focused groups of
the better it will work for the industry Of course, individuals
everyone’s got some work to do, but once it gets
rolling, we’re hoping it will prove to be a work- Continued on page 18...

17 Alabama Propane Gas Association | July / August 2021