State labor officials tour Local 12 Apprenticeship Training Center

Boston, MA Representative Josh Cutler (D-Duxbury), Kip Diggs (D-Hyannis), Donald Wong (D-Saugus) and Chris Flanagan (D-Barnstable) of the House Committee on Labor and Workforce Development toured Plumbers and Gasfitters Local 12’s training facility recently as part of an ongoing campaign to promote the benefits of union apprenticeship programs.

“Apprenticeships offer a tried and tested career pathway to develop our future workforce,” said rep. Cutler. “Employers win by tapping into new pools of qualified workers and apprentices get hands-on work experience, classroom instruction, and a certificate – not to mention a paycheck and healthcare coverage as they are learning a new skill. Promoting registered apprenticeship programs will pay big dividends for the Commonwealth’s workforce.”

The state labor delegation toured the Local 12 training center in Dorchester on March 30^th, and also visited Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 17 and Cengage, an education technology company. The tour was part of an effort by labor officials to elevate and modernize the state’s registered apprenticeship programs, which are the goal of rep. Cutler’s legislation, H. 1857.

“The best path toward family-sustaining wages, homeownership, quality health care and an opportunity to build wealth is through union labor,” said Tim Fandel, business manager of Plumbers and Gasfitters Local 12. “Providing opportunities for paid apprenticeships is also the best way to build communities, ensure pay equity and workplace safety, and increase the ranks of reliable, licensed plumbers and gasfitters. We thank rep. Cutler and the delegation for supporting the trades and creating opportunities for the next generation of union contractors.”

Plumbers Local 12 proudly represents some of the hardest working, highly skilled men and women in the plumbing industry. Their training programs offer a five-year apprenticeship program and extensive journeymen training. They help their signatory contractors grow by identifying new opportunities, and by providing the most skilled and highly trained workforce in the industry.