Victoria, British Columbia — In a recent study funded by the B.C. government and the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum (CAF), on average, apprentices in the trades show an overall positive financial return for employers.
This study represents an update of a similar study from 2006 and 2009 in which the returns of apprentices from 13 trades were compared. These trades include construction, manufacturing, mining, forestry, mineral and resource extraction, marine and shipbuilding, aerospace, automotive, and tourism and hospitality.
This recent study was commissioned with the purpose of understanding if employer participation in apprenticeship training represents a return on investment to employers.
According to the study, while the return on investments to employers differs by trade, the results overall showed a positive return in most trades for employers who invested in apprenticeship training, and the investment increased in each year of the apprenticeship.
Specifically, for every dollar invested in apprenticeship training, employers received a positive return of approximately 36 cents in an average range of 35 cents for construction to 43 cents for industrial trades.
For the automotive industry in particular, the average return on training investment (ROTI) findings equaled $1.36 for every dollar invested in training (an average return of 36 cents). For motor vehicle body repairers, the ROTI was $1.91 (an average return of 91 cents).
In addition to financial benefits, employees also reported a range of non-financial benefits associated with training apprentices and these included such factors as better retention of internally trained journeypersons.
To see the full report, click here.
