High school students might find a golden opportunity in union partnerships, promising a more secure career path.
In various parts of the United States, high school-based trade union partnerships are making a significant impact on trades and technical education, offering benefits for students and unions while also presenting some challenges.
These partnerships provide a unique opportunity for students to gain access to paid apprenticeships and hands-on learning, acquiring valuable trade skills and workplace experience while still in high school. For instance, Indiana's program shows apprentices initially earning $13 per hour and up to $18 per hour by program end, with potential long-term wage growth up to $50 per hour for experienced workers.
Unions, on the other hand, benefit from these partnerships by offering structured training and mentorship, increasing the quality and preparedness of new tradespeople entering their fields. Employers and unions also benefit from a "farm system" or talent pipeline that reduces recruiting costs and ensures workers have relevant skills, improving workforce stability.
One such partnership can be found at Essex Tech North Shore Agricultural & Technical High School in Massachusetts, where a construction craft laborers track, co-sponsored by Laborers' Local 22, is in operation. Seniors in the program can attend union meetings, and the union pays for reconstruction and all the tools, providing an instructor for the program.
However, these partnerships are not without their challenges. High schools and employers face logistical barriers, including transportation issues for students and a shortage of willing businesses to offer apprenticeships. Managing equitable distribution of partnership resources can also be difficult, with some districts struggling to align funding with schools serving high-need students or involve schools meaningfully in partnership decisions.
Sustaining employer engagement and ensuring the apprenticeship curriculum remains closely linked to evolving industry standards require ongoing coordination between unions, schools, and employers. In some cases, there is skepticism from unions and employers that high school students are ready for real training and work.
Despite these challenges, these partnerships are transforming technical education by providing a work-based learning component that complements classroom instruction, making education more relevant and effective for the workforce. Unions’ involvement helps standardize training quality and offers stackable credentials and career pathways through connections with career technical education (CTE) and higher education institutions.
Moreover, regional apprenticeship committees with union involvement create an industry-led, apprentice-centered model that fosters growth and sustainability of training programs. Partnerships also support a new kind of high school diploma where traditional academics are integrated with trade skills, enhancing student engagement and employment prospects.
These partnerships are particularly beneficial for historically underrepresented groups such as women, people with disabilities, and justice-involved individuals. For example, in Milwaukee, a woman was the first to run a printing apprenticeship program for a union, abolishing a requirement that apprentices had to be high school graduates to open up the field to a diverse pool.
In summary, high school trade union partnerships provide robust pipelines to skilled trades careers, benefit students financially and educationally, and help unions and employers build a skilled, diverse workforce. Their challenges are mainly logistical and organizational but are addressed through state investments and community collaboration. These partnerships are transforming technical education by closely linking it to real work opportunities and industry standards.
- Special education can be improved through these partnerships as they provide opportunities for students with diverse backgrounds, including historically underrepresented groups like women, people with disabilities, and justice-involved individuals.
- Education and self-development can be enhanced by these partnerships, as they offer stackable credentials and career pathways through connections with career technical education (CTE) and higher education institutions.
- Career development is fostered by these partnerships, as they offer structured training and mentorship that increase the quality and preparedness of new tradespeople entering their fields, and provide a "farm system" or talent pipeline that improves workforce stability.
