A United States Department of Labor (USDOL) approved Youth Apprenticeship program allows for individuals who are 16 to 24 years old to enroll in a registered apprenticeship program while still attending school full-time, either high school or college. The premise of Youth Apprenticeship is for younger individuals to become employed and begin their apprenticeship program sooner while receiving credit for RTI and OJT hours counting toward program completion. Youth Apprenticeship programs are required to have USDOL-approved standards.
Youth apprentice requirements:
- Age 16 to 24
- Attending high school or college as a full-time student
- Completed a signed 671 with employer and parent signature if still under 18
- Receiving RTI through a Youth Apprenticeship program
- Receiving paid OJT while working for an employer
- Follow the State and Federal Child Labor Laws
- Follow any state license requirements
Why Youth?
Youth Apprenticeship allows 16- to 24-year-olds the ability to receive the same benefits as an individual in a Registered Apprenticeship program and not be held to the 2,000 hours of OJT required in your Traditional Registered Apprenticeship program.
Q & A:
Q: I have a Registered Apprenticeship program, and my standards say that 16 is the minimum age. Why do I need a Youth Apprenticeship program?
A: You must follow your standards. Two issues with program standards include:
- All Standards require a minimum of 2,000 hours of OJT per year.
- Standards may include the high school diploma or GED requirement before being accepted into the program.
An individual 16 to 17 years of age attending high school or a college as a full-time student up to 24 years of age could not be put into a Registered Apprenticeship program since they would be unable to receive the 2,000 hours of OJT yearly. For example: In a year, an individual worked 40 hours a week for the 2 months while not in school and then worked 4 hours per day, 5 days a week the remaining 10 months of the year. The total hours of OJT would be 1,200 hours for the year.
They typically would not be meeting the high school diploma or GED requirement either being between 16 to 17 years old.
Q: Can I remove the diploma or GED requirement and receive 16- to 17-year-old apprentices into my Registered Apprenticeship program?
A: No. To put a 16- to 17-year-old into a Registered Apprenticeship program, you could remove the diploma or GED from your standards, but you would still be subject to the minimum 2,000 hours per year OJT requirement. A full-time student would be unable to meet this requirement.
Resources
US DOL Youth Apprenticeship
Arkansas Child Labor Laws
Child Labor Bulletin 101
Fact Sheet #43 US DOL Child Labor
US DOL Contact for labor standards questions:
Nathan Butler
US DOL Wage and Hour Division
[email protected]
(501) 413-3103
Arkansas Youth Approved Programs (Map)
