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Building trades back bill to require apprentices on public construction projects
Summary
Unions urged the committee to favor H.2085/S.1303, which would phase in a requirement that a portion of work hours on public construction projects over $1 million be performed by registered apprentices to expand training opportunities and ensure on‑the‑job hours needed to complete apprenticeships.
Representatives of the Massachusetts Building Trades, registered apprenticeship programs and construction unions urged the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development to support H.2085 and S.1303, legislation that would require a growing percentage of on‑site work hours on public construction projects over $1,000,000 be performed by registered apprentices.
"This legislation requires that public construction projects in excess of a million dollars actually utilize apprentices," Frank Callahan, president of the Massachusetts Building Trade Unions, testified. He and other union witnesses described the rule as a way to guarantee the on‑the‑job hours apprentices need to progress through multi‑year training and to expand the pipeline of skilled workers.
The bill proposes phased targets: starting at 5 percent of project hours, increasing to 10 percent and then 15 percent over approximately two years (testimony described a graduated scale of 5, 10 and 15 percent). Apprentices and training directors described how on‑site hours — not just classroom instruction — are essential for licensure and safe work. "Massachusetts sets the bar of electrical license for a reason," said Renee Leona Dozier, a licensed journeyman electrician and business agent at IBEW Local 103, defending current ratio and classroom/work-hour requirements.
Apprentices and program directors said the requirement would create consistent opportunities for apprentices to log the hours needed to complete their programs, reduce completion delays tied to market cycles, and maintain a local skilled workforce for public projects. Apprentices described registered programs as "earn-as-you-learn" pathways that provide wages, health benefits and retirement and noted high demand: unions regularly receive two to three times more applicants than available slots.
Supporters framed the proposal as complementary to prevailing wage and workforce development goals and as an investment in long‑term, local workforce capacity. They asked the committee for a favorable report; no formal legislative action was taken in the hearing.
