Survey shows most firms see apprenticeships as more cost-effective than hiring skilled staff
More than three-quarters of employers rely on apprenticeship programmes to provide skilled workers for the future, research reveals.
Figures from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) showed that 83% of employers rely on the schemes, while the same number said apprenticeships lead to higher productivity.
The research comes as the first Apprenticeship Week kicks off around the country. Of the organisations surveyed, 80% believe apprenticeships improve staff retention and turnover, and 88% said they lead to a more motivated and satisfied workforce.
Most (59%) think that training apprentices is more cost-effective than hiring skilled staff.
Constructionskills is holding nine regional events across the country to mark Apprenticeship Week. These include a British Gypsum workshop with drylining apprentices in Nottingham and a workshop in the West Midlands about getting the most from apprentices.
Skills minister David Lammy said: “The global economy is evolving rapidly and the jobs of yesterday will not be the jobs of tomorrow. Apprenticeships have a vital part to play in ensuring our nation’s competitiveness, which is why the government is committing more than £1bn to increase the number of apprentice places by 2010/11.”
The LSC research was conducted by Populus and is based on responses from 204 organisations.
There are 240,000 apprentices working in over 130,000 organisations in England, across 80 different industry sectors.
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