The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has announced approval of The InterNational Electrical Testing Association (NETA) National Guideline Standards (NGS) for Apprenticeship Programs for an Electrical Testing Engineering Technician.
On March 18, 2025, the U.S. DOL published the Office of Apprenticeship Bulletin No. 2025-49 to formally inform Office of Apprenticeship (OA) staff, State Apprenticeship Agencies (SAA), registered Apprenticeship program sponsors, and other registered Apprenticeship partners of the new National Guideline for Apprenticeship Standards for the InterNational Electrical Testing Association (NETA). This approval includes the first-time recognition on a federal level of the new job classification of Electrical Testing Engineering Technician.
“The U.S. Department of Labor’s approval of the NETA Apprenticeship program represents an important milestone in NETA’s strategic initiative to actively address the workforce needs of our industry,” said NETA Board of Directors President, Dan Hook. “Through our approved apprenticeship program, NETA now offers a detailed roadmap for the development of both current and new employees of NETA Accredited Companies to meet the growing demand for certified electrical testing technicians.”
According to the U.S. DOL, the NGS apprenticeship model provides NETA national recognition and certification of their apprenticeship program standards template, while providing a pathway for expedited State registration of the sponsoring organization’s local programs (i.e., NETA Accredited Companies), as well as localized technical assistance and many other tangible benefits of local apprenticeship stakeholder partnerships.
The intent of NETA’s NGS for Apprenticeship program is to provide NETA member companies with a framework for local implementation in the development and offering of internal training programs following a vetted, approved, and structured NETA curriculum for the Electrical Testing Technician, per ANSI/NETA ETT-2022. In addition to maintaining the curriculum to ensure relevancy and the incorporation of new and evolving electrical testing requirements and practices, NETA will provide ongoing support in the form of training materials and online content managed through NETA’s Learning Management System (LMS).
