SALT LAKE CITY — It’s an office space on Redwood Road in Salt Lake City with no name or sign, but no lack of energy. The spirit inside can be felt through the food, clothing, and, of course, the people.
Dozens of immigrants gather in the space at the Pan African Westside Salt Lake Co-op, a local organization that works to get resources to those new in the area.
Hamzah and Mustapha are both recent participants in the co-op’s first-of-its-kind apprenticeship program. Mustapha is a future electrician, with his family back in Morocco providing motivation.
“They asked me every time, when you bring us, we want to go to America. I say 'OK, OK!” he said.
The program was recently approved by the Utah Department of Workforce Services to be added to the Apprenticeship Eligible Training Provider List.
"We thought we’d try something that would be maybe a wake-up call for the community…they have a better chance to succeed when you have a better income," explained Al Kalashnikov, president of the co-op.
With the help of partners like Utah Health and Salt Lake Community College, the co-op was able to create a first step for immigrants trying to find a career. It’s that one step before you take on the training of the trade of your choice, almost like a community college before going to the big university.
“When you have an apprenticeship program, it follows a strict protocol of having employers on one side, and then you also have an instructional component on the other side," explained Kalashnikov, "and so what we are as intermediaries, we draw up a plan of having a pre-apprenticeship program.”
The group gives a tight-knit community with the tools they need to succeed.
“Don’t give up," said Mustapha. "Continue! I love that, yeah, yeah.”
