Design Your Own Roofing Apprenticeship Program

By Merry Duggan, RCS Reporter. 

You can create a customized roofing apprenticeship plan that works for you. 

In a recent RoofersCoffeeShop® (RCS) article, roofing professionals were encouraged to take advantage of the labor availability created by the current COVID-19 pandemic. There are many young people unable to find work right now. Many of these unemployed or underemployed individuals have skill sets with potential to learn the roofing trade from people within your own company. This article will talk about how a company, even a small one, can develop its own apprenticeship program to train and integrate new, qualified employees into the industry. 

Apprenticeship resources 

In 2017, the Presidential Executive Order Expanding Apprenticeships in America was signed. A task force was then developed to identify opportunities to promote apprentice programs as a popular way to get people prepared for jobs requiring technical skills. As a result, a number of apprenticeship programs have been created that are approved by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). 

There are resources online to help you develop and register your program, providing a training model that will award a credential for the apprentice upon completion of the program. Researching, selecting and contacting an existing program that could work for your business in your area would be an easy way to get started.  

The U.S. DOL even has an easy-to-use toolkit that can be accessed online. Instead of recreating the wheel, collaboration with one of these existing programs could save you time and effort in developing a program for your business. Working in partnership with a registered apprenticeship program will require you to write out your program, which means you will need to consider several things. 

Developing your program 

First you will need to identify occupation standards for your area. Every state has an apprenticeship division within its state office of labor and industry. An apprenticeship representative can assist with the identification of standards as well as the selection of a program type that best matches those standards in your state. Your program can be a registered program or an industry recognized program. The DOL views both as high-quality programs. 

Mentoring and guidance 

Select someone within your company or crew who can mentor an apprentice. Of course, this person should possess certain qualities that would make a good mentor. Strong leadership skills, patience, excellent work ethic and a knack for teaching are all qualities a potential mentor must possess. 

So much learning occurs during the hands-on part of the program that the relationship between mentor and apprentice must be strong. When successful, the company can enjoy improved quality and quantity of work with lower turnover and more efficient work habits. Consider extra training for a willing mentor and financial compensation for taking on this added responsibility. 

Program specifics and administration 

Details to consider include minimum qualifications for entry, probation period length, salary and incremental increases over the period of the program, who will be responsible for review, mentor/apprentice ratio and overall supervision. 

A designated staff person will need to oversee the administrative aspects of the program. That could be the mentor, job supervisor or business owner. This designated person will need to maintain records that include applications, interview forms, U.S. Department of Labor forms, certificates and job reviews.  

Promoting your program 

If you are using an apprenticeship as a recruitment tool for new hires, there should be a plan for marketing and outreach to provide a pool of candidates that meet the qualifications you have created for your program. The U.S. DOL can again provide you with some support in this area as well. American Job Centers can market your apprenticeship program to job seekers and even pre-screen applicants to make sure they met your program requirements.   

You’ve found your apprentice; now what? 

Once your new employee for the apprenticeship has been selected and is ready to start, they will sign an agreement. This document should include details such as a wage schedule, credit for on-the-job training and related technical instruction, completion requirements and credential receipt. Finally, once the required number of hours have been met to fulfill the requirements of the program and demonstration of required competencies is performed, the apprentice candidate would be eligible to receive a certificate of completion or credential through the apprenticeship program you have a relationship with. 

There has never been a better time to develop an apprenticeship program in your business. Take advantage of the availability of talent that exists in the labor pool right now. With a little bit of work, the creation of such a program in your business could help you build and retain the skilled workforce you have been hoping for. 

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