Over the course of the past 15 or so years, there is some mold making apprentices working in plastic mold maker shop. And these apprentices were all hired somewhat recently by the same plastic mold company.
What this means is that the guys with the specialized skills are getting ready to retire and there is nobody to replace them. I’ve seen politicians give lip-service to enabling American manufacturing with tax incentives and programs, but, here in the shop nothing has changed. Nothing that I can see.
The only reason for these apprentices is that the CEO recognizes the need, not because anybody sent him information from a high-level seminar or meeting. The old guys made enough of a ruckus that the management actually responded.