The Californer - Governor Newsom supports nearly 700,000 earn and learn opportunities, announces 49,000 new apprenticeships for Californians

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Oct 16, 2026

Governor Newsom supports nearly 700,000 earn and learn opportunities, announces 49,000 new apprenticeships for Californians

California created more than one in four new U.S. jobs over the past year — at more than twice the national rate

What you need to know: Governor Newsom's strategies to create more earn-and-learn opportunities continue to pay off for Californians, with 694,000 earn-and-learn opportunities created since 2019. Workforce training programs have helped boost job creation in California, with 129,300 jobs created year over year at twice the national rate.

Governor Newsom with pre-apprentices in Kern County

BAKERSFIELD – Governor Newsom today announced a $44.4 million investment to train 49,000 new apprentices through 131 programs statewide. Since 2019, California has supported more than 694,000 earn-and-learn opportunities, including nearly 267,000 registered apprentices.

Governor Newsom announced the new investments in Kern County after meeting with skilled workers who are training to become telecommunications installers and wirepersons who will build and maintain the power, lighting, controls, and electrical systems that keep businesses and industries running.

We're aligning our workforce strategies in a granular way through record-breaking apprenticeship programs. 1 in 30 Californians in the workforce have completed an earn-and-learn or apprenticeship program. Pathways to sustaining good-paying jobs. Our investments are paying off. California wages are 20% higher than the rest of the nation; California's productivity grew more than twice as fast as the rest of the nation.

Governor Gavin Newsom

From skilled trades to health care, education, and technology, earn-and-learn opportunities give Californians a direct path to in-demand careers while helping employers build the workforce they need. The latest investments include:

$15.9 million in funding to 67 programs supporting approximately 10,000 individuals through the Apprenticeship Innovation Fund (AIF).
$28.5 million in Employment Training Panel (ETP) funding to support 64 apprenticeship programs, training an estimated 39,040 California workers.

Governor Newsom and Labor & Workforce Development Agency Secretary Stewart Knox visiting the Kern County Electrical Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee

Creating more pathways to career advancement

Under Governor Newsom's leadership, California has also expanded non-traditional apprenticeships by 76%, growing opportunities in health care, advanced manufacturing, technology, and other high-demand sectors across the state's economy. New apprenticeships announced today bring the total earn-and-learn opportunities to more than 694,000 statewide since the Governor took office. During the Newsom administration, 1 in 30 Californians in the workforce have completed an earn-and-learn program, surpassing Governor Newsom's goal of creating 500,000 earn-and-learn apprenticeships by 2029. This includes serving 266,756 registered apprentices since Governor Newsom took office, putting the state on track to meet the Governor's ambitious goal of serving 500,000 registered apprentices by 2029, even as the state has already met the Governor's goal for earn-and-learn opportunities.

A B-Roll package of Governor Newsom's visit is available here.

"Every apprenticeship is an opportunity for Californians, no matter their background, to build a future with dignity, skill, and purpose," said Stewart Knox, Secretary of the Labor & Workforce Development Agency. "California's continued expansion of earn-and-learn opportunities ensures more workers have the tools to provide for their families and grow in their careers."

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"Apprenticeships have established themselves as one of the leading pathways to sustainable careers," said Dr. Jessica Grimes, Executive Director of ETP. "At ETP, it is an honor to support nearly 40,000 workers, whose lives will be positively transformed through this training."

"The best thing about the Operating Engineers apprenticeship program is that if you show up, they will teach you everything you need to know and do from day one," said Brandy Smith, a trainee in the ETP apprenticeship pathway. "This program has saved my family and put me in a position where I can fight for my family, and I love what I do!"

Building the future

Governor Newsom has focused California's workforce strategy with the goal of giving more employment options through earn-and-learn opportunities, including by:

Expanding career pathways with or without a four-year degree: Governor Newsom's Master Plan for Career Education is expanding youth apprenticeships, strengthening high school career pathways, improving workforce training, and building stronger regional partnerships.
Helping workers get credit for skills they already have: The Career Passport pilot launched by Governor Newsom provided $25 million to develop the program, plus $50 million one-time and $7 million ongoing to expand Credit for Prior Learning.
Making apprenticeships more accessible: Californians can use 529 college savings funds for registered apprenticeship programs.
Bringing education, business, and labor together: Governor Newsom convened leaders from higher education, business, and labor to help shape California's career education strategy and better align training with workforce needs.
Creating paid service opportunities for young people: More than 10,000 California Service Corps members were recently sworn in. Since 2019, more than 50,000 members have served nearly 26 million hours, making it the nation's largest public service program.

Fast facts about California's workforce

Career training and workforce development programs help bolster the state's economy and create more jobs for Californians.

129,300 Jobs added year over year September 2025–September 2026
>2× National job growth rate Year over year	18.15M Payroll jobs statewide September 2026, seasonally adjusted

More than one in four American jobs added over the past year were in California. The state added 129,300 of the nation's 496,000 net payroll jobs from September 2025 through September 2026 — about 26%.
California created more than twice its population share of new U.S. jobs from September 2025 to September 2026.
Unemployment fell by 106,500 Californians over ten consecutive months through September. The unemployment rate held steady at 5.1%, matching its lowest level since February 2024.
California's payroll job growth rate was more than twice the national rate over the past year.
California has 7.6 million small-business employees.
California has 1.2 million manufacturing jobs and produces over 40% of America's computer and electronics manufacturing output.
California is a $4.5 trillion economy — producing nearly 14% of America's GDP with just 11.5% of its population.

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