algy Posted February 23, 2012 Report Share Posted February 23, 2012 Are modern day apprenticeships a genuine way of teaching young persons trade/job skills or are they merely a way of exploiting those youngsters for cheap labour, in my day it was a system whereby you learned trade skills to enable you to make your way in industry, with some protection provide to you by the trade unions of the day, although in my case that did not apply as I was employed in a small non-union smithy, nevertheless I was treated fairly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cleopatra Posted February 23, 2012 Report Share Posted February 23, 2012 I think you hit the proverbial nail lovie. It's exploitation. By the government to mask the unemployment figures and by the employers to get cheap labour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolfie Posted February 23, 2012 Report Share Posted February 23, 2012 Well it's certainly cheap because the Apprentice National Minimum Wage is only £2.60 per hour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted February 23, 2012 Report Share Posted February 23, 2012 Well, at least that's something - the latest scam is "internships" - where you don't get paid at all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asperity Posted February 23, 2012 Report Share Posted February 23, 2012 Not many years before I went to sea apprentices used to have to pay the shipowner for the privilege of being trained on board one of his ships. When I started the money was no more than pocket money and I doubt the modern youth would contemplate getting out of bed for it never mind working away from home on a 70 hour week for 4 months at a time! ??: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reader Posted February 23, 2012 Report Share Posted February 23, 2012 It also took a few years to do an apprenticeship, not a few months !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
algy Posted February 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 It also took a few years to do an apprenticeship, not a few months !!! My apprenticeship was six years, then you were given your signed indentures and even then you were shown the door with the words "don't think you are a tradesman, you are only a journeyman", for the next twelve months minimum you would have to find alternative employment only to return after that period to be re-employed, that's if there was a job available for you, I never did return to work there!. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fugtifino Posted February 25, 2012 Report Share Posted February 25, 2012 Bit of a mixed bag, really, there's some good ones and some bad ones, and everything else in between. There's still some "proper" apprenticeships out there with employers like BT, UU and British Gas (ex nationalised industries), very competitive though. There are some good ones with other employers, and there are some shysters out there taking advantage of the £2.60 apprenticeship rate without really doing much in the way of training. It's not all doom and gloom though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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