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Apprenticeships are a force for good, says CIPD
HR News |
09/02/2012
Employers of all sectors and sizes can benefit from apprenticeships, it has been claimed.
According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), such placements have benefits not only for young jobseekers, but organisations themselves.
To mark National Apprenticeship Week, which is currently underway in the UK, the organisation has issued guidance designed to ensure government funding for apprenticeships delivers for all stakeholders.
CIPD has warned that apprenticeships must be embedded in a workforce planning approach, as part of a long-term strategy on workforce growth and skills development.
The role apprentices play in the organisation and how they will be supported, particularly by their line manager, must be made clear, the organisation said.
And employers must secure the support of the existing workforce and senior management, as well as line managers and trade unions.
CIPD added that the training apprentices receive on and off the job needs to be high-quality and tailored to employer needs, and relationships with training providers must be carefully managed.
Alternative and more informal recruitment methods need to be considered, especially when likely candidates are very young and have no prior work experience.
Ideally, the apprentice should be placed at the heart of the apprenticeships programme, with employers providing ongoing support, pastoral care and mentoring, CIPD added.
The organisation said employers must provide fair access to their apprenticeships and widen the talent pool from which they recruit in terms of gender, ethnicity and diversity.
Katerina Rüdiger, skills adviser at the CIPD, commented that good quality apprenticeships can offer an alternative, high-quality route into work and help improve youth employability.
"They are also a useful tool to achieve a more balanced skills profile in the UK and respond to employer skills needs," she stated.
"Recent government policy has been to encourage more employers to offer apprenticeships but if employers who've never hired apprentices before are being incentivised to do so, it's vital that they get the guidance they need to ensure the apprenticeships serve the needs of employers and employees alike."
John Hayes, minister of state for further education, skills and lifelong learning, said evidence shows apprentices help boost productivity and give businesses a competitive edge.
Most organisations going down this route manage to recoup their investment in less than three years, he said.
Posted by Stephen Wilkinson
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