Derek Wyszynski’s Post

As far back as my family tree goes in Poland, the men in my family were laborers. The word we used to use is “peasants.” When my great grandfather fled mandatory conscription in the Russian army at the turn of the 20th century, he wrote “laborer” on his immigration paperwork. Speaking only Polish, he married and raised a family in Detroit as a general laborer, working long hours for little pay. My grandfather worked at Packard Auto as an assemblyman “on the line.” It was a good paying job - but we used to call that kind of job “unskilled.” Drafted into service in WWII, he not only fought honorably, but served as a translator (as his parents only spoke Polish he was fluent) when his unit liberated a subcamp of Dachau. He returned home, uniform full of medals, worked for a few years at Packard until it closed. Being “unskilled” he took a job as a city sanitation worker - we used to use the term “garbage man” - where he worked for over 25 years until he retired. My father faced a similar future, graduating high school he stated working at Chrysler Auto “on the line.” But he did something different - he accepted an opportunity as a skilled trades apprentice, and left Chrysler (losing 5 years seniority) to work at General Motors. As an apprentice machine repairman, he fixed the machines that built cars. And as time went on, and more robots and machines replaced his former co-workers on the line, he earned much better wages, possessing “skills” learned both in the classroom and on the job. With those wages, he moved his family from the city into the suburbs, bigger houses, greener lawns, better schools. His son (me) spent yesterday at an event with the President of the United States at the White House. And last night the grandson of a garbage man and great grandson of a peasant who never spoke English was in the West Wing and the Oval Office. Apprenticeship changed the trajectory of my family, permanently. I have been afforded great opportunities because of the work my dad did as an apprentice and my child now has an unlimited future because of the choices he made. I want to afford this opportunity to every American family. This is why I work every day. This is why I bother you here on LinkedIn taking about apprenticeships all the time. I know they are transformational not because I read it in a book or an article. I am proof. Work with me to make this dream a reality for others.