The Labor Department’s December 19, 2016 apprenticeship rule draws two boundaries that should not be confused. One identifies the programs covered: registered apprenticeship. Another concerns which sponsors must develop an affirmative-action program. An exemption from that second requirement does not remove the nondiscrimination obligations attached to the first. December 25 is a retrospective context date, not a new announcement. [2016-29910]

The final rule adds four protected bases: age 40 or older, genetic information, sexual orientation and disability. It covers programs registered federally or with federally recognized state apprenticeship agencies. Its scope is therefore more specific than a general rule for every employer or training provider, and the age protection has an explicit threshold rather than covering every age distinction. [2016-29910]

The November 6, 2015 proposal described two existing affirmative-action-program exemptions: fewer than five apprentices and participation in a qualifying approved equal-opportunity program. That history explains the separation of duties. The final rule retains conditions: the small-program exemption cannot be used to circumvent requirements, while the approved-program route requires substantive evidence and disability coverage, not merely a sponsor’s preferred label. [2015-27316][2016-29910]

The announced effective date was January 18, 2017. Compliance periods vary by section, including 180 days, two years and the first compliance review; the final text gives newly registering sponsors specific timing. These are stages in one rulemaking, not independent evidence of successful recruitment. Neither an exemption nor an expanded list of protected bases amounts to a guaranteed apprenticeship or job. [2016-29910][2015-27316]

Source documents

  1. Apprenticeship Programs; Equal Employment Opportunityhttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2016-12-19/html/2016-29910.htm
  2. Apprenticeship Programs; Equal Employment Opportunityhttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2015-11-06/html/2015-27316.htm