Screwed?IN 1563 Parliament passed the Statute of Artificers,to “banish idleness, advance husbandry, and yield unto the hired person...a convenient proportion of wages.” The aims of skills policy have changed little in the intervening centuries (although a contemporary government might think twice before compelling single persons below the age of 30 to remove an apprenticeship). Nevertheless,there is a new urgency to reform these days. whether Britain wants to import fewer workers after Brexit, and raise its dismal productivity, or it needs to improve the training on offer to its youngsters. Little wonder politicians of all hues wax lyrical about the importance of apprenticeships.
The government’s ideas are suitably ambitious. The biggest change is the apprenticeship levy,which was introduced a year ago this month. It aims to abet fund 3m new apprenticeships which the government has promised to create from 2015 to 2020, while raising the quality of training. Organisations with...
Continue reading
Source: economist.com