Intel is starting up a workforce development program with some help of the state of Arizona in order to bolster the state's growing semiconductor industry.
The program is meant to train people to become manufacturing facility technicians in a formal apprenticeship, the first of its kind in the United States from the technology company. According to a news release, the apprenticeship will feature educational components from the Maricopa County Community College District.
“Facility technicians are especially difficult to find,” Christy Pambianchi, Intel's Chief People Officer, said in a statement. “There is a much smaller pool of trained applicants with this specific skill set. The Intel apprenticeship program addresses this challenge by expanding the semiconductor talent pipeline and providing critical support structures, especially needed for women and underrepresented groups, to help meet the workforce demand of the future.”
The state government has poured $4 million into semiconductor apprenticeships in order hopes to get the jobs filled at Intel, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and others filled by locals.
