In a move to strengthen the reputation of apprenticeships in the UK, the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) is set to give apprenticeships the same protection in law that university degrees currently hold.
Skills Minister Nick Boles said “If university graduates have their moment in the sun so should people who undertake apprenticeships. Businesses know their value so it’s high time they were recognised both by the public and in law as being equal to degrees.”
The Government is commitment to creating 3 million apprenticeships by 2020 in an attempt to provide the much needed skills to the young people of the country and in turn help to establish the UK as the fastest growing economy in the G7.
Nick Boles continued “We want far more employers to get involved in apprenticeships. This means making sure that we practise what we preach in government, so we’re going require all public sector bodies – schools, hospitals, prisons and police forces – to employ apprentices.
“Apprenticeships give young people the security of a regular pay packet, but probably more importantly it gives them the dignity of holding a recognised qualification, apprenticeship are seen as an important weapon in the Governments arsenal in helping to carry the UK economy forward.”
Ian Abel, Head of Employment commented “Apprenticeships in the UK simply don’t have the employment and legal status that they deserve; this latest reform my the Government is a positive step forward, and in particular giving some legal protection to the term ‘apprenticeship’ should help tackle some in the injustices in this area that we see on a regular basis.
“However the Government needs to be careful to differentiate between genuine skilled apprenticeships (such as plumbers, electricians etc), and unscrupulous employers currently advertising ‘apprenticeships’ as a way to pay the reduced ‘apprentice rate’ to young employees, such as the major supermarkets that I have seen currently offering ‘retail apprenticeships’.”
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