CopyPublished | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 25 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 1036, 1982 Fla. App. LEXIS 20569
...As noted above, the statutory provision relating standards for the apprenticeship program speak in terms of “uniform” standards. “Uniform” is generally regarded to apply equally to all those affected. The only exception or limitation to this requirement of uniformity is contained in F.S. § 446.081, which provides as follows: “Nothing in this chapter or in any apprentice agreement approved under this chapter shall operate to invalidate any apprenticeship provision in any collective agreement between employers and employees setting...
...ollective agreement between employers and employee may set up higher apprenticeship standards than the minimum standards approved or authorized by Chapter 446, it follows that such agreements may not contain lower standards. Stated differently, F.S. § 446.081 allows different standards between union and nonunion apprenticeship programs only when higher standards are provided in the collective bargaining agreement....
...fact provide for an entry apprentice wage rate of thirty-five percent (35%) of the established journeyman hourly rate. This conflicts with the statutory requirement of uniformity in standards, and is not within the exception or limitation allowed in Section 446.081(1)....
...They further point out that the collective bargaining agreements generally contain provisions for apprentices to receive fringe benefits in addition to their rate of pay. While such rationale may be laudable, it simply finds no authority in the statutes and, indeed, conflicts with § 446.081(1)....
