Apprentice ratio bill passed by Wisconsin Assembly

A bill to increase the apprentice-to-journeyworker ratio on Wisconsin construction sites has passed the Assembly.

The Wisconsin Assembly on Feb. 19 on a party-line vote passed a bill that would allow journeyworkers to train two apprentices on a job site at a time. Assembly Bill 241 will go to the state Senate next.

Under a state law passed in 2018, Wisconsin journeyworkers can train no more than one apprentice at a time unless a collective bargaining agreement states otherwise.

The bill in the current legislative session isn’t expected to affect the balance of apprentices and journeyworkers set in collective bargaining agreements.

The Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin and Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce registered in support of the proposal, citing the need for more future skilled workers. Union groups have filed against the bill and shared safety concerns.

In January, the Associated Builders and Contractors reported that the U.S. construction industry must attract around 349,000 new workers in 2026 to meet demand.

In 2025, the state counted 18,524 apprentices and 3,095 employers participating in the registered apprenticeship program, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development reported. It was the fourth year in a row the state workforce agency counted a record number of RA participants.

Lawmakers said collective bargaining agreements have their own ratios

“We’ve heard time and time again how we need more housing and how we need more Wisconsinites in the well-paid skilled trades,” said Rep. Dave Maxey, R-New Berlin, in a floor session. Maxey was one of the bill’s authors with Sen. Chris Kapenga.

Maxey said if the bill were signed by the governor, it would not affect union apprentices who are under collective bargaining agreements. He also used Michigan and Iowa as examples of states where the allowed number of apprentices on job sites per journeyworker was higher.

The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 890 has an agreement with the Janesville and Beloit-area electrical contractors association, which allows a ratio of three apprentices to one journeyman wireman.

ABC and manufacturers point to an increase in demand, but unions call for caution during apprenticeship influx

Proponents of the bill credited Wisconsin megaprojects and reshoring efforts under President Donald Trump’s administration as drivers of demand for more workers.

“I think, especially in light of manufacturing jobs that are going to keep coming back and construction jobs going on with what Trump’s doing, it’s going to increase the demand,” said state Sen. Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, in May 2025.

The Wisconsin Laborers District Council, Plumbers Local 75 and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Construction Electrician Local Unions filed in opposition to the bill, according to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission.

There were more apprentices starting now than there was work available, said Corey Gall, president of the Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association.

“There are more people wanting to get into apprenticeships than there is work right now,” said Gall, who is also the co-chair of the DWD’s Wisconsin Apprenticeship Advisory Council. “We don’t have contractors using the current ratio. This legislation is not needed or wanted by our local unions or members, nor our contractors.”