Connecting VR&E Participants to Registered Apprenticeship

Since 1995, the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) and United States Department of Labor (USDOL) Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS) have maintained a joint work group (JWG) to address Veterans’ employment issues and to take on special initiatives. In February 2020, USDOL’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and the Employment and Training Administration’s Office of Apprenticeship (OA) joined the JWG to launch a special project focused on increasing the number of VR&E Veterans and Servicemembers participating in Registered Apprenticeship programs (RAPs).

To support the transition of more VR&E participants into RAPs, the combined workgroup developed a set of trainings and resources for VR&E counselors and employment coordinators. This Desk Reference is meant to accompany a set of webinar-based trainings on the same topics. The information contained in this guide replicates the information contained in the recorded trainings and also includes a list of resources, a glossary of terms and acronyms, and an Appendix with more information on Chapter 31 and 33 benefits.