Denver — March 3, 2022 — Pinnacol Assurance, Colorado’s leading workers’ compensation insurance provider, is seeking applications for its award-winning work-based apprenticeship program. The program is nationally recognized as one of the most established and robust youth apprenticeships in the CareerWise Colorado system. Pinnacol’s recruiting period ends in May, and applications are being accepted today. Denver Metro area sophomores and juniors in participating school districts are encouraged to apply.
Work-based apprenticeships follow a “learn-and-earn” model that pays apprentices as they prepare for a career. Students attend high school part time and work at Pinnacol part time, all while earning a competitive hourly wage and access to the robust perks and benefits Pinnacol offers. Students start in their junior or senior year and hone the hard and soft skills they need to jump-start a career and prepare for the future of work.
Pinnacol apprentices receive exposure to key work functions in business operations and technology. They also receive classroom-style training from dedicated support staff and serve on corporate teams alongside their adult colleagues, doing meaningful work that positively impacts the business. They can earn college credit from CSU Global, and all students receive at least one industry certification.
Hear more from Pinnacol apprentices and program staff.
Pinnacol onboarded its first cohort of 23 apprentices in 2017, and has since hired nine full-time employees from their apprenticeship program, including auditors, software developers, junior enterprise content managers, customer experience representatives and underwriting account managers. Now apprentices make up 5% of Pinnacol’s workforce, and the program is an integral part of Pinnacol’s talent acquisition and development strategy.
Built in partnership with CareerWise Colorado, Pinnacol’s apprenticeship program has received numerous awards for its ability to offer transformational opportunities to students while creating a pipeline of young, trained talent. Its program is at the center of advocacy efforts by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Apprenticeship Building America program and JPMorgan Chase’s global skills readiness initiative to expand apprenticeship programs in Colorado and the nation.
Government and business leaders are keenly aware of the power of apprenticeship, thanks in part to former Pinnacol apprentice and current Pinnacol employee Naarai Navarro, who testified in front of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP Committee) as part of the “Getting America Ready to Work — Successful on the job, apprenticeship training programs to help workers and businesses get ready to work” hearing.
Interested and eligible students should apply today to become an apprentice.
