Apprentices



Much has changed in apprenticeship regulation in recent years. The Apprenticeship, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 (ASCLA) created a framework for apprenticeships, which are now available to anyone over the age of 16. There are different entry requirements for the different types of apprenticeship. There are apprenticeship levels up to and including post-graduate degree level, in around 1,500 occupations across 170 industries, including construction, manufacturing, IT and the creative and digital sectors. Key features of apprenticeships include:


• a minimum duration of one year (most apprenticeships last between one and four years); 


• all apprentices must be employees under an Apprenticeship Agreement. An apprentice cannot be self-employed, a worker or a volunteer;




• minimum working hours;




• minimum levels of guided learning hours for on and off-the-job training; and




• minimum requirements for skills training, including in English and Maths.




The ACSLA requires the whole of the apprenticeship to be delivered within contracted hours under the employment contract. In other words, all training time for off-the-job learning must be paid. For information on national minimum rates of pay for apprentices, see Chapter 4. In workplaces where a union is recognised, pay rates are likely to exceed the statutory minimum.



All Apprenticeship Agreements must take the form of a written statement of particulars of employment or contract of employment, which must include a statement of the skill, trade or occupation for which the apprentice is being trained (Apprenticeships (Form of Apprenticeship) Regulations 2012). 


The Apprenticeship Agreement is a contract of employment, not a “contract for apprenticeship”. Apprentices have all the rights and responsibilities of ordinary employees, including rights in relation to unfair dismissal and redundancy, statutory sick pay, statutory holiday pay and rest breaks under the Working Time Regulations, protection from discrimination (see Chapter 7: Discrimination) and from detriment if they join a trade union (see Chapter 5). 


Since apprentices with a valid Apprenticeship Agreement are now “employees”, this means that the law permits an employer to carry out a fair dismissal of an apprentice. However, given that the whole purpose of an apprenticeship arrangement is to provide a transferable qualification at the end of a set term, a tribunal is likely to demand particularly high standards, including high levels of employer involvement, clear rules, training and opportunities and/or clear evidence of very serious misconduct, where relevant, before an apprentice can be fairly dismissed. Apprentices are not exempt from the two-year service requirement for a standard claim for unfair dismissal (see Chapter 10). 



The position of apprentices in a redundancy situation is explained in Chapter 11, page 393. 




A contract will not be one of apprenticeship just because the employer labels it as such, or calls the worker an apprentice (Chassis & Cab Specialists Ltd v Lee UKEAT/0268/10). Indeed, using the label “apprenticeship” to promote an arrangement that does not qualify as a statutory apprenticeship is an offence (section 25, Enterprise Act 2016). 




There is specific funding available to employers to take on apprentices.




On 6 April 2017, the government introduced its apprenticeship levy, to fund new apprenticeships, charged at a rate of 0.5% of an employer’s pay bill and payable by employers whose payroll exceeds £3 million. Employers in England can access funding through a digital service. Although the levy is UK-wide, a different funding system applies in Wales and Scotland. The levy has not been a success to date, with a sharp (59%) drop in apprenticeships in the three months following its introduction. Critics blame complex rules and restrictions in accessing funds, and inflexibility over the organising and funding of off-site training. 


A regulatory body, the Institute for Apprenticeships, is in charge of regulating the quality of apprenticeship standards and advising on funding bands. Unlike apprenticeship models in other European countries such as Germany and Norway, there is no provision for union voice on the Institute board.


In 2016, the Maynard Task Force made recommendations to improve access to apprenticeships for people with learning disabilities, including modifying the Maths and English requirements and ensuring reasonable adjustments are in place (see page 231) and that Access to Work funding is properly understood by apprenticeship providers. The government says it is taking steps to implement these recommendations. 



Since April 2016, employer NICs for apprentices aged under-25 have been cut to encourage the creation of more apprenticeships.