National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) celebrates apprenticeship programs across the country at businesses, in communities and alongside educators. If you're looking for labor, it's a great opportunity to showcase why your apprenticeship program is a cut above the rest. 

If your looking for a new career, apprenticeship programs are the perfect place to start. Now in its fifth year, National Apprenticeship Week kicks off today until Nov. 17, 2019. During the week, there will be open house events for apprenticeship programs across the country. 

If you are hosting an apprenticeship program event, you are invited to issue a proclamation to be included on a nationwide apprenticeship map that outlines the basis of your apprenticeship. 

According to the Department of Labor (DOL), the top five occupations for apprentices in many states are sheet metal workers, electricians, plumbers, HVAC professionals, and construction laborers.

Over the next decade, roughly 3.5 million manufacturing jobs will likely need to be filled, according to a 2018 report on the skills gap in manufacturing by accounting and research firm Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute. And the widening skills gap — caused in part by baby boomer retirements and economic expansion — is expected to result in 2 million of those jobs going unfilled, the report says.

For sheet metal shops looking to attract their next generation of workers, apprentice programs are a crucial part of recruitment and have shown to be effective in attracting the ever elusive millennial generation. 

For more information about apprenticeships across the country, visit apprenticeship.gov.