Bosch Rexroth Corporation, an engineering company in Bethlehem, recently received a $49,500 grant to assist with the implementation of its apprenticeship program.
The company will identify positions that will require succession by looking ahead to the next two to five years and will work with regional universities and career and technology centers to identify potential successors. The company will then pair those successors with mentors to help them gain the skills needed to succeed in their positions.
“Our strength is and will continue to be our associates, and this training for those associates will help to ensure that Bosch remains at the forefront of innovation,” Richard Cory, director of human resources at Bosch Rexroth, said. “We thank organizations such as Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation and DCED. Without their support, it would not have been possible to be awarded funding for this training program.”
Gov. Tom Wolf’s $30 million PAsmart initiative includes $10 million for apprenticeships and job training. Through the Apprenticeship Training Office (ATO), it aims to expand apprenticeships in both traditional and non-traditional occupations. It will also expand the Department of Labor and Industry’s Industry Partnerships program, which connects businesses with educational and economic development partners to provide job training.
Since 2016, when the ATO was created, the number of registered apprentices in Pennsylvania has increased by 27 percent to approximately 17,000, and total registered apprenticeship programs have grown to around 800.
“As Pennsylvania’s workforce ages, we need to support companies that are developing innovative solutions to training younger talent,” Wolf said. “When companies take an issue like retiring talent and turn it into an opportunity to strengthen their workforce, it helps the company, it helps its workers, and it helps Pennsylvania.”