Reducing risk when taking on an apprentice by Pathway Group, A guide for employers

2. Apprenticeships’ popularity are
growing
• A survey by the
Department for Business,
Innovation and Skills
found that 72% of
businesses said an
apprentice improved
their product or service
quality.
• 81% said they would
recommend them to
others.

3. Taking on an apprentice is a
commitment
Employers commit to:
 a new member of staff
 their training and development
• Depending on which basis you employ the apprentice,
this can affect their rights.

4. Taking on an apprentice is a
commitment
In short, when
employing an
apprentice,
employers need to
avoid setting up a
contract by default
conferring additional
rights on their
trainees.

5. So what’s the best way to employ
an apprentice?
• Apprenticeship agreements
were established in the
Apprenticeships, Skills,
Children and Learning Act
2009.
• An arrangement,
agreement or contract
cannot be an
apprenticeship agreement
unless it meets specific
requirements.

6. So what’s the best way to employ
an apprentice?
• For example, it must be
in writing and must state
it is entered into in
connection with a
qualifying
apprenticeship.
• This approach is the
simplest and most
effective way to employ
an apprentice.

7. What do I need to avoid when
employing an apprentice?
• Often employers will try to
use their standard
contracts and change the
job title or heading to
“apprentice”.
• This meets the
requirement for the
agreement to be in writing,
but fails to include all the
required clauses,
unintentionally creating an
apprenticeship contract.

8. What’s the problem with an
apprenticeship contract?
The key difference
between an
apprenticeship contract
and an apprenticeship
agreement is that the
contract puts the
‘training’ at the centre of
contract and places the
onus on the employer to
deliver that training.

9. What’s the problem with an
apprenticeship contract?
• Apprentices who are
employed under an
apprenticeship agreement
can be treated like
ordinary employees and
the normal unfair
dismissal rules apply.
• Apprentices who have
apprenticeship contracts
have additional rights.

10. What’s the problem with an
apprenticeship contract?
• If the apprentice
breaches the contract,
this does not necessarily
mean the employer can
stop the training.
• They can only be
dismissed fairly for
misconduct if they are
effectively unteachable.

11. What’s the problem with an
apprenticeship contract?
• An apprenticeship
contract cannot be
terminated because of
redundancy unless the
employer’s business
closes or fundamentally
changes.
• It cannot simply be that
the need for apprentices
in the business has
reduced, as with ordinary
employees.

12. What’s the problem with an
apprenticeship contract?
If ‘unfairly’ dismissed, it
is likely the apprentice
will be awarded more
compensation to reflect
the loss of earnings
under the
apprenticeship contract
plus the loss of potential
future earnings.

13. By ensuring you set
up an apprenticeship
agreement correctly,
you can enjoy the
many benefits of
employing an
apprentice without
the risks.
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