Tech Companies Turn To Apprenticeships Amid Labor Shortage

With the economy still recovering from the ongoing pandemic and employers struggling to find skilled workers, industries associated with white-collar occupations including the tech industry are moving towards the budding interest in apprenticeship programs where companies can train potential employees in-house while building a talent pool internally.

When it comes to apprenticeships the goal is to reach a different audience. For each participant, their term typically lasts around a year where they receive paid on-the-job training while also working with a mentor who helps them develop the necessary skills they will need in their desired position. After graduation apprentices are then brought on into a full-time, entry-level position.

"Businesses are always going to be willing to pay for something that's useful, and we're solving a pain point. The cost of onboarding talent, apprenticeships aside, is already high, and not only do apprenticeships make employees more loyal to their company -- 85 percent of Multiverse apprentices stay with their company once graduating to an entry-level position -- it also fills a gap in the tech job market.

Euan Blair, CEO, and Founder of Multiverse

With new funding and a push for expansion from the federal government, apprenticeships are quickly gaining traction. With companies like London-based Multiverse leading the charge and other corporate giants like ClassPass and Verizon have joined more than 300 organizations globally in designing a universal apprenticeship model for companies across the world to use. Using a third-party administrator like Multiverse help to conduct a skills assessment so that businesses avoid unconscious bias in the onboarding process which can also help to diversify their current workforce.

Since expanding Multiverse into the U.S. founder Euan Blair has found a market for his business with even more potential than what he first observed in the United Kingdom. In the U.K. the total student debt hovers around $185 billion, while in the U.S., that number is around $1.75 trillion. The return on investment when it comes to a college degree in the U.S. has diminished, and now many young people are looking for work alternatives making apprenticeships the future of our workforce.