With grant funding provided by the Alameda County Workforce Development Board,  Oakland Workforce Development Board, Contra Costa Workforce Development Board, and City of Richmond Workforce Development Board AMBayArea is helping manufacturers set up apprenticeships within their company.

While manufacturers can create their own apprenticeship program, many benefit from utilizing an established program that has all the standards in place and is registered with the state of California. AMBayArea is working with the California Tooling & Machining Apprenticeship Association (CTMAA), which is a non-union-affiliated organization.

Participating companies identify an existing employee or a new hire as a potential apprentice, complete a few forms, and register the person as an apprentice. CTMAA charges an annual fee per apprentice to cover the costs for the management of the apprenticeship. However, AMBayArea is able to cover this fee for the first year using the grant money.

While an internship is typically a short-term employment to give a student experience, an apprenticeship involves providing a full-time employee or new hire the opportunity to take classes to improve their skills while being mentored by experienced tradespeople at your company. The apprentice will be contributing to the revenue of the company while continually improving their skills to become more productive.

AMBayArea members, including Casa Sanchez Foods and M.A.R.S. Engineering are currently participating in the program with others in the pipeline. Apprenticeships can include industrial maintenance, manual machining, CNC machining, quality control, tool & die, and more.

Manufacturing apprenticeships range from two to four years, depending on the complexity of the trade.

Apply Today

Companies interested in applying for the apprenticeship program, can complete the online form or email mark@ambayarea.org for details. AMBayArea members are given priority, but all manufacturing companies are encouraged to apply.