© 2024 Peoria Public Radio
A joint service of Bradley University and Illinois State University
Donate
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

New Body Aims To Address Diversity In The Trades

Northern Public Radio | By Chase Cavanaugh
Published January 1, 2020 at 5:27 AM CST

Starting next year, the Illinois Department of Labor will have a new way to address diversity in apprenticeship programs.

Apprenticeship programs fall under the various building trades, such as electricians, ironworkers, bricklayers, and pipefitters. The Department’s Deputy Director, Jason Keller, said a state law creates a new body in the Department as part of an effort to increase diversity in the trades.  It’s called the Bureau on Apprenticeship Programs.

“We want to be able to help identify those barriers, remove them, and make those recommendations to see how we can increase those numbers," Keller said.

In addition to reporting on these “barriers,” the Bureau will also compile statistics on race and gender from labor union members and contractors whose projects are publicly funded.

Copyright 2021 WNIJ Northern Public Radio. To see more, visit WNIJ Northern Public Radio.

State News
Chase Cavanaugh
Chase started in radio while earning his Master's in diplomacy and international commerce at the University of Kentucky. He was bitten by the radio bug while volunteering at Radio Eye (a local equivalent to NIRIS) and soon became a reporter at WUKY. After four years of reporting in Kentucky's Bluegrass, Chase traveled north to join WNIJ as Morning Edition producer. He organizes our morning broadcast, making sure the host is well-supplied with interesting, fresh content. In addition to his pre-dawn duties, Chase reports on a variety of developments in our broadcast area but is particularly drawn to anything with a political or international connection. He is also an avid board gamer.
See stories by Chase Cavanaugh