§ 29.2 Definitions.

For the purpose of this part:

Administrator means the Administrator of the Office of Apprenticeship, or any person specifically designated by the Administrator.

Apprentice means a worker at least 16 years of age, except where a higher minimum age standard is otherwise fixed by law, who is employed to learn an apprenticeable occupation as provided in § 29.4 under standards of apprenticeship fulfilling the requirements of § 29.5.

Apprenticeship agreement means a written agreement, complying with § 29.7, between an apprentice and either the apprentice's program sponsor, or an apprenticeship committee acting as agent for the program sponsor(s), which contains the terms and conditions of the employment and training of the apprentice.

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

(1) A joint committee is composed of an equal number of representatives of the employer(s) and of the employees represented by a bona fide collective bargaining agent(s).

(2) A non-joint committee, which may also be known as a unilateral or group non-joint (which may include employees) committee, has employer representatives but does not have a bona fide collective bargaining agent as a participant.

Apprenticeship program means a plan containing all terms and conditions for the qualification, recruitment, selection, employment and training of apprentices, as required under this part and 29 CFR part 30, including such matters as the requirement for a written apprenticeship agreement.

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

Certification or certificate means documentary evidence that:

(1) The Office of Apprenticeship has approved a set of National Guidelines for Apprenticeship Standards developed by a national committee or organization, joint or unilateral, for policy or guideline use by local affiliates, as conforming to the standards of apprenticeship set forth in § 29.5;

(2) A Registration Agency has established that an individual is eligible for probationary employment as an apprentice under a registered apprenticeship program;

(3) A Registration Agency has registered an apprenticeship program as evidenced by a Certificate of Registration or other written indicia;

(4) A Registration Agency has determined that an apprentice has successfully met the requirements to receive an interim credential; or

(5) A Registration Agency has determined that an individual has successfully completed apprenticeship.

Competency means the attainment of manual, mechanical or technical skills and knowledge, as specified by an occupational standard and demonstrated by an appropriate written and hands-on proficiency measurement.

Completion rate means the percentage of an apprenticeship cohort who receive a certificate of apprenticeship completion within 1 year of the projected completion date. An apprenticeship cohort is the group of individual apprentices registered to a specific program during a 1 year time frame, except that a cohort does not include the apprentices whose apprenticeship agreement has been cancelled during the probationary period.

Department means the U.S. Department of Labor.

Electronic media means media that utilize electronics or electromechanical energy for the end user (audience) 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/transportable electronic media and/or interactive distance learning.

Employer means any person or organization employing an apprentice whether or not such person or organization is a party to an Apprenticeship Agreement with the apprentice.

Federal purposes includes 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.

Interim credential means a credential issued by the Registration Agency, upon request of the appropriate sponsor, as certification of competency attainment by an apprentice.

Journeyworker means a worker who has attained a level of skill, abilities and competencies recognized within an industry as having mastered the skills and competencies required 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, either through formal apprenticeship or through practical on-the-job experience and formal training.)

Office of apprenticeship means the office designated by the Employment and Training Administration to administer the National Apprenticeship System or its successor organization.

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 Registration Agency, as provided for in the criteria described in § 29.3(g) and (h).

Quality assurance assessment means a comprehensive review conducted by a Registration Agency regarding all aspects of an apprenticeship program's performance, including but not limited to, determining if apprentices are receiving: on-the-job training in all phases of the apprenticeable occupation; scheduled wage increases consistent with the registered standards; related instruction through appropriate curriculum and delivery systems; and that the registration agency is receiving notification of all new registrations, cancellations, and completions as required in this part.

Registration agency means the Office of Apprenticeship or a recognized State Apprenticeship Agency that has responsibility for registering apprenticeship programs and apprentices; providing technical assistance; conducting reviews for compliance with this part and 29 CFR part 30; and quality assurance assessments.

Registration of an apprenticeship agreement means the acceptance and recording of an apprenticeship agreement by the Office of Apprenticeship or a recognized State Apprenticeship Agency as evidence of the apprentice's participation in a particular registered apprenticeship program.

Registration of an apprenticeship program means the acceptance and recording of such program by the Office of Apprenticeship, or registration and/or approval by a recognized State Apprenticeship Agency, as meeting the basic standards and requirements of the Department for approval of such program for Federal purposes. Approval is evidenced by a Certificate of Registration or other written indicia.

Related instruction means an organized and systematic form of instruction designed to provide the apprentice with the 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, or by correspondence courses of equivalent value, electronic media, or other forms of self-study approved by the Registration Agency.

Secretary means the Secretary of Labor or any person designated by the Secretary.

Sponsor means any person, association, committee, or organization operating an apprenticeship program and in whose name the program is (or is to be) registered or approved.

State means any of the 50 States of the United States, District of Columbia, or any Territory or possession of the United States.

State Apprenticeship Agency means an agency of a State government that has responsibility and accountability for apprenticeship within the State. Only a State Apprenticeship Agency may seek recognition by the Office of Apprenticeship as an agency which has been properly constituted under an acceptable law or Executive Order, and authorized by the Office of Apprenticeship to register and oversee apprenticeship programs and agreements for Federal purposes.

State Apprenticeship Council is an entity established to assist the State Apprenticeship Agency. A State Apprenticeship Council is ineligible for recognition as the State's Registration Agency. A regulatory State Apprenticeship Council may promulgate apprenticeship law at the direction of the State Apprenticeship Agency. An advisory State Apprenticeship Council provides advice and guidance to the State Apprenticeship Agency on the operation of the State's apprenticeship system.

State office means that individual office or division of State government designated as the point of contact for the State Apprenticeship Agency.

Technical assistance means guidance provided by Registration Agency 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 compliance with this part or guidance from the Office of Apprenticeship to a State Apprenticeship Agency on how to remedy nonconformity with this part.

Transfer means a shift of apprenticeship registration from one program to another or from one employer within a program to another employer within that same program, where there is agreement between the apprentice and the affected apprenticeship committees or program sponsors.

[73 FR 64425, Oct. 29, 2008, as amended at 85 FR 14387, Mar. 11, 2020; 87 FR 58287, Sept. 26, 2022]