NEJATC Green JobsTraining
Local 429 participated in a nationwide JATC “Green Jobs Training” Open House event in May with over 65 other JATC programs involved. The goal was to raise awareness to congressman, senators, and local leaders of the need for this type of training and how the IBEW and NECA have risen to the forefront of the conversation.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers is leading the way to getting the rest of the electrical industry ready for the “green movement” coming to Tennessee. The IBEW Local 429 and NECA, the National Electrical Contractors Association, are reaching out to contractors, vocational training programs and local leaders and politicians. With all the talk currently pointing towards a new renewable energy economy, the nation will have to address the need for green energy training before we can reap the benefits. The IBEW Local 429 and it’s partner NECA are answering the call for more in depth training with classes starting this summer through the Nashville Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee (NEJATC) located in Nashville.
With daily technological improvements to solar photovoltaic devices, more efficient wind turbines, and the addition of windows and shingles now having the capacity of providing energy to a home, the need for qualified installers will grow expediently in the next few years. The problem is that while the demand may grow so will the number of under qualified and under trained individuals opening their doors to a new stream of money coming in from the Federal and Local governments in order to capitalize, at the home owner or business owners expense. Our goal is to maintain the high standards and certifications needed to improve the services and education of the individual, providing more employment opportunities to our community.
This month the NEJATC will introduce its green jobs curriculum, which collects more than 70 green training lessons into one single curriculum. This training will be the first of it’s kind, not only in the Middle Tennessee area but the first one for electricians in the United States. Apprentices will experience hands on learning while earning money applying what they’ve learned in the field. IBEW apprentices are doing more than training for a job, they are embarking on a lifelong career in both the renewable energy and electrical industries. These courses will also be available for Journeyman upgrades as well.
The NEJATC training center, a joint venture of the IBEW and NECA , is among more than 65 facilities in the country to open its doors this week to policy makers, the media, and leaders of the electrical industry.
Local stations WKRN News 2 and WTVF News 5 both ran stories on the open house event which you can see on there websites. We will have links provided in our LINKS section of our website. Local 429 would like to thank everyone who helped to put this amazing event on and everyone who attended.
