6A-23.002. Definitions

As used in Rules 6A-23.002, 6A-23.003, 6A-23.004, 6A-23.005, 6A-23.006, 6A-23.008, 6A-23.009 6A-23.010 and 6A-23.011:

(1) “Administrator” means the Administrator of the Florida Department of Education’s (Department) Office of Apprenticeship, or any person specifically designated by the Administrator.

(2) “Apprentice” means a person at least sixteen (16) years of age and who has entered into an apprenticeship agreement with a registered apprenticeship program sponsor and who is engaged in learning an apprenticeable occupation through actual work experience under the supervision of journeyworkers. The apprentice must be a paid employee of the sponsor or participating employer.

(3) “Apprenticeship Agreement” means a written agreement between an apprentice and a participating employer or an apprenticeship committee acting as agent for the participating employer, which contains the terms and conditions of the employment and training of the apprentice.

(4) “Apprenticeship Committee” means those persons designated by the sponsor to administer the program. A committee may be either joint or non-joint, as follows:

(a) “Joint Apprenticeship Committee” means a committee composed of an equal number of representatives of employers and employees, which has been established by an employer or group of employers and a bona fide collective bargaining agent or agents to conduct, operate, or administer an apprenticeship program and enter into apprenticeship agreements with apprentices selected for employment under the particular program.

(b) “Non-Joint Apprenticeship Committee” means a committee which may also be known as an individual or unilateral or group non-joint (which may include employees) committee, has employer representatives, but does not have a bona fide collective bargaining agreement as a participant.

(5) “Apprenticeship Program” means a plan containing all terms and conditions for the qualification, recruitment, selection, employment, and training of apprentices, including the requirement for a written apprenticeship agreement.

(6) “Apprenticeship Training Representative” means an individual representative of the Department properly authorized to act on behalf of the Department in matters concerning registered apprenticeship and preapprenticeship.

(7) “Cancellation” means the termination of the registration or approval status of a program at the request of the sponsor, or the termination of an Apprenticeship Agreement at the request of the apprentice.

(8) “Certificate” means documentary evidence that:

(a) The Department has approved a set of standards developed by an organization, joint or non-joint, for policy or guideline use as conforming to the Standards of Apprenticeship;

(b) The Department has registered an apprenticeship program as evidenced by a Certificate of Registration; or

(c) The Department has determined that an individual has successfully completed apprenticeship training as verified by the program sponsor.

(9) “Competency” means the attainment of manual, mechanical, or technical skills, and knowledge as specified by an occupational standard and demonstrated by a written and hands-on proficiency measurement.

(10) “Completion Rate” means the percentage of an apprenticeship cohort that receive a certificate of apprenticeship completion within one (1) year of the projected completion date. An apprenticeship cohort is the group of individual apprentices registered to a specific program during a one-year time frame, except that a cohort does not include apprentices whose apprenticeship agreements have been canceled during the probationary period.

(11) “Department” means the Florida Department of Education, which is the Registration Agency for federal apprenticeship purposes.

(12) “Electronic Media” means media that utilizes electronics or electromechanical energy for the end user to access the content and includes, but is not limited to, electronic storage media, transmission media, the Internet, extranet, lease lines, dial-up lines, private networks, and the physical movement of removable or transportable electronic media or interactive distance learning.

(13) “Established Industry Practices” means the length of training required by the majority of registered program standards for the particular apprenticeable occupation.

(14) “Established Journeyworker Hourly Rate” means the average of the hourly rates paid to journeyworkers within the same apprenticeable occupation by participating employers in an apprenticeship program.

(15) “Federal Purposes” means any federal contract, grant, agreement or arrangement dealing with apprenticeship; and any federal financial or other assistance, benefit, privilege, contribution, allowance, exemption, preference or right pertaining to apprenticeship.

(16) “Interim Credential” means a credential or certificate issued to the apprentice by the program sponsor, employer, or third-party credentialing entity.

(17) “Journeyworker” means a person working in an apprenticeable occupation who has successfully completed a registered apprenticeship program or who has worked the number of years required by established industry practices for the occupation. Use of the term may also refer to a mentor, technician, specialist, or other skilled worker who has documented sufficient skills and knowledge of an occupation through practical on-the-job experience and formal training.

(18) “On-the-Job Training” (OJT) means the process by which an apprentice or pre-apprentice acquires knowledge and skills under the supervision and tutelage of an experienced journeyworker within an apprenticeable occupation registered with the Department. On-the-Job Training is the monitoring and training responsibility of the sponsor or participating employer.

(19) “Participating Employer” means a business entity which:

(a) Is actively engaged by and through its own employees in the actual work of the occupation being apprenticed;

(b) Employs, hires, and pays the wages of the apprentice and the journeyworker training the apprentice;

(c) Evaluates the apprentice; and

(d) Is signatory to a collective bargaining agreement or signatory to a participating employer agreement with the program sponsor which is registered with the Department.

(20) “Provisional Registration” means the 1-year initial provisional approval of newly registered programs that meet the required standards for program registration, after which program approval may be made permanent, continued as provisional, or rescinded following a review by the Department, as provided for in the criteria described in subsection 6A-23.003(6), F.A.C.

(21) “Quality Assurance Assessment” means a comprehensive review conducted by the Department regarding all aspects of an apprenticeship program’s performance. The review will also determine whether the Department is receiving notification of all new registrations, cancellations, and completions as required.

(22) “Registration Agency” means a recognized State Apprenticeship Agency that has responsibility for registering apprenticeship programs and apprentices; providing technical assistance; and conducting reviews for compliance and quality assurance assessments for federal purposes.

(23) “Registration of an Apprenticeship Agreement” means the acceptance and recording of an agreement by the Department as evidence of the participation of the apprentice in a particular registered apprenticeship program.

(24) “Registration of an Apprenticeship Program” means the acceptance and recording of a program by the Department as meeting the basic standards and requirements for approval of a program for federal purposes. Approval is evidenced by a Certificate of Registration.

(25) “Related Technical Instruction” means an organized and systematic form of instruction designed to provide the apprentice with knowledge of the theoretical and technical subjects related to the apprentice’s occupation. Such instruction may be given in a classroom, through occupational or industrial courses, correspondence courses, electronic media, or other forms of self-study approved by the Department.

(26) “Sponsor” means any committee, group of employers, employer, group of employees, educational institution, local workforce board, community or faith-based organization, association, or any combination thereof operating an apprenticeship program and in whose name the program is registered or approved.

(27) “Standards of Apprenticeship” means the minimum requirements established for each apprenticeable occupation under which an apprenticeship program is administered.

(28) “State Apprenticeship Advisory Council” means an entity established to assist the Department and provide advice and guidance on the operation of the state’s apprenticeship system.

(29) “State Apprenticeship Agency” means an agency of a state government that has responsibility and accountability for apprenticeship within the state to register and oversee apprenticeship programs and agreements for federal purposes.

(30) “Technical Assistance” means guidance provided by the Department staff in the development, revision, amendment, or processing of a potential or current program sponsor’s Standards of Apprenticeship, Apprenticeship Agreements, or advice or consultation with a program sponsor to further comply with state and federal apprenticeship laws or guidance from the Department on how to remedy nonconformity.

(31) “Transfer” means a shift of apprenticeship registration from one program to another or from one employer within a program to another employer within the same program where there is an agreement between the apprentice and the affected apprenticeship committees or program sponsors.

(32) “Work Processes” means an outline of journeyworker supervised work experience and OJT with the allocation of approximate hours to be spent in each activity.

Rulemaking Authority 446.041(13) FS. Law Implemented 446.021 FS. History–New 6-9-81, Formerly 38C-16.02, Amended 5-29-90, Formerly 38C-16.002, Amended 9-4-97, Formerly 38H-16.002, Amended 3-29-11, 6-25-19, 2-20-24.