Module 1- The Untapped Potential of Apprenticeships for SME's

The European Commission support for the production of this
publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents
which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission
cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the
information contained therein."
www.apprenticeshipalliances.eu
This programme has been funded with
support from the European Commission
Module 1 - The Untapped Potential of
Apprenticeships for SMES
The European Commission support for the production of this
publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents
which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission
cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the
information contained therein."

Apprenticeships explained with
examples from additional
countries/regions and why
Apprenticeships work for SME’s
Introduction
Learning
Objectives
1
SME Video Case Studies2
Overview of occupational apprenticeships
Types of Apprenticeships3
SME’s share how their businesses have benefitted from
apprenticeships
Learning from Best Practice
Models
4
Apprenticeship Alliances
Model 1 Resources
Extra Information Resources
Spotlight on a number of European Apprenticeship
Strongholds
5

Apprenticeship is a programme of formal
education and training. It combines work-
based learning alongside experienced staff
and “off-the-job” learning which may be
delivered in an education or training centre
or sometimes in the workplace.
On successful completion of a number of
phases of training, apprentices receive
professional qualification in their chosen
apprenticeship.
Apprenticeships becoming an increasingly
attractive career path option for learners
and a talent pool source for employers.
Introduction
What are Apprenticeships?
1

The Elements of Apprenticeships
• It is centred on a formal employment programme that trains
learners to do a specific job and leads to formal qualification
• Programmes last from one to six years depending on the
individual country’s apprenticeship scheme
• Pay a salary, usually low wages to start with but increases
with experience and skills
• Includes a mix of on-the-job training and work experience,
and formal, classroom-based learning
1
Apprenticeships offer an opportunity to develop a new career
without any previous experience. Typically:

This form of training is with the
employer where the apprentice gets
practical training and experience of
doing the job. In addition to the skills
and knowledge gained, the apprentice
will develop competence, confidence
and the ability to perform to industrial
standards. The apprentice may be
assessed on the ability to perform
specified tasks to pre-set standards.
How do Apprenticeships work?
- Practical Training (On-the-Job)
1

This form of training is usually
based in training centres or
educational colleges but may also
be delivered in the work place. It
involves learning practical skills
together with theoretical
elements. Apprentices will be
required to pass a series of
Modular Assessments (tests)
throughout this training.
- Technical Training (Off-the-Job)
1

– An example of phased
apprenticeship in Ireland (ROI)
1
Source: https://careersportal.ie/apprenticeships/traditional_apprenticeships

Introduction Video –
What are Apprenticeships?
Apprenticeship Alliances (RAISE)
1
Overview of
Apprenticeships
Examples from England,
UK Gov.co.uk
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R14D1ieLY5M

Benefits of Apprenticeships for
SME’s
Apprenticeships can help all types of businesses across a wide
range of sectors harness fresh new talent. They can help equip
your workforce with the practical skills and qualifications that your
organisation needs now and in the future and you will enjoy the
benefits of having a loyal and motivated workforce that you have
trained to meet your own specific business requirements.
Many employers have reported that by employing apprentices
they have realised a growth and improvement in productivity in
their businesses. There is also a real sense of contributing to the
skills need of their local economy.
1

Deeper Look at Benefits of
Apprenticeships for SME’s
1. Tailored work force addressing skills gaps – Apprenticeships
afford companies the opportunity to train competent
employees to meet the specific needs of the company (versus
hiring externally)
2. Fresh Approaches - bring fresh, new ideas and add value into
the organisation
3. Opportunities for Peer Learning - passing on skills and
knowledge to an apprentice
4. Support Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
5. Financial Incentives – some apprenticeship programmes offer
employer incentive payments for example: when the
apprentice finished their apprenticeship
1

“The Apprenticeships programme has helped us train and develop
the apprentices we need for the long-term success of our business.
Our apprentices add to our organisation making it more effective,
competent, productive and competitive by addressing our skills
gaps directly.“
- Peter Dixon, Group
Chief Executive, Phoenix
Energy Holdings,
Northern Ireland
Source: https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/content/company-testimonies-apprenticeships
Benefit Key to Long Term Company Success

Productivity Boast and Good
Return on Investment
• In England (UK), 76 % of companies say apprentices provide a
higher level of productivity, while 81% say that they help boost
the productivity of the whole company
• Reliable Investment - While there is a small cost in hiring
apprentices, there’s is usually a helping hand available in the
form of government grants and incentives for companies taking
on apprentices. The model can help save recruitment and
retraining costs. The cost-beneﬁt of a apprenticeships/dual
vocational training is balanced for the company. But an
essential advantage is: expenses in recruiting of personnel can
be reduced because employees are already trained in the
company.
1
Source Populous research - http://www.populus.co.uk/poll/apprenticeships/

“The programme has helped us train and develop the apprentices
we need for the long term success of our business. Our apprentices
add to our organisation making it more effective, competent and
competitive by addressing our skills gaps directly.“
- Paul Hamill,
Head of HR Kainos,
Northern Ireland
Source: https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/content/company-testimonies-apprenticeships
Benefit Addressing Skills Gaps

Applied Learning
• Applied Learning - Apprenticeships
create powerful learning
experiences to help SME’s drive
business performance and improve
the knowledge transfer from
education/training to a real and
live business environment.
1

“Apprentices are fundamental to our future skill
requirements. A key advantage of recruiting an
apprentice is their loyalty and commitment to
the company.“
- Jo O’Brien
Bentley Motors in Crewe,
England, UK
Source: http://www.learndirect.com/business/news-events/press-releases/2013-3/march-2013/how-
apprentices-benefit-your-business/
Information on other UK regions
Benefit Develop the career of a loyal member of staff

Committed and Content
Work Force
• Hiring apprentices demonstrates a
willingness to invest in and develop
the workforce. Moreover, one of the
big benefits of training an apprentice
is that it gives the company to
opportunity to shape a young persons
work habits and to retain over time, a
qualified and motivated employee. As
a matter of fact, apprentices often
becoming the most loyal members of
staff!
1

“You need to make sure that anyone you take
on will add value to our business, so the rules
are no different from any other member of staff.
As such, all candidates will gain valuable
interview experience even if they are
unsuccessful. “
- Tracy Ewen is the
Managing Director of IGF,
Scotland
Source: https://fleximize.com/articles/004884/why-smes-need-apprentices
Benefit Apprentices add value to the organisation

“SME employers can really inspire school kids on apprenticeships,
given the opportunity. I regularly visit local schools and this has
led directly to my company taking on 16 apprentices in the past 15
Years.”
- Richard Bridgman, Chairman,
Warren Services Ltd and
Chairman, SEMTA East England.
Source: Making Apprenticeships More Accessible to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises.
Benefit Corporate Social Responsibility

Role of Apprentice Employers
Employers play a vital role in the training of apprentices.
The employer is expected to:
• Provide a working environment which focuses on learning and
apprenticeship training;
• Provide a safe working environment which complies with
health and safety regulations;
• Direct and guide student learning through on-site supervision
by a qualified journeyperson;
• And assess the progress of the student and work with training
providers to progress the students career paths.
1

When should SME’s become
apprentice employers?
When they want:
• Employees who competently fulﬁl the tasks and duties needed
in their company, now and in the future
• A productive and innovative contribution from trainees
• To show social responsibility and contribute to their local
economy and community
• Workers to be loyal to their company
• To save costs for incorporation and retraining.
1

Benefits to
SME’s
• Apprenticeships are a good way of growing your business
and of moulding an employee to fit your company’s needs;
• Recruitment is simpler than you may think, with as much -
or as little - help from your provider as you want;
1
In the UK, some core messages used to recruit Apprentice
Employer SMEs include:
Source: Making Apprenticeships More Accessible to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, Jason Holt

Benefits to SME’s
• Apprentices like most new employees generally have
probationary periods during which they need to show that
they have the potential to complete their apprenticeship
and perform well in their role. The apprentice’s position,
like any other employee’s can be terminated if their
performance is unsatisfactory
• It is possible to recruit first as a standard employee and put
the employee onto an apprenticeship at a later date;
• You can take someone on as an apprentice at any age from
16;
1
Source: Making Apprenticeships More Accessible to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, Jason Holt

Benefits to SME’s
cost/benefit of apprenticeships
EXPENDITURE
a. Personnel expenditure for trainees:
» Training allowance (at employers
discreation)
» Legal social benefits
» Agreed and voluntary social benefits
b. Personnel expenditure of training
personnel:
» Wages and salaries
» Legal social benefits
» Agreed and voluntary social benefits
c. Other costs:
» Rent and energy
» Material and documents
» Fees and contributions
» Administrative expenditures
1
YIELDS
a. Productive outputs and
collaborations
b. Minimisation of personnel acquisition
costs
c. Stabilisation of the wage and salary
structure
d. Saving of training costs
e. Qualifications to adapt external
employees » Minimisation of
miscasting and follow up costs
f. Reduction of fluctuation costs
g. Improvement of the image / of the
attractively of the enterprise

A wide range of reports stress
employers’ demand for workers
with strong occupational skills
many of which cannot be
acquired within the classroom.
In the section which follows we
hear from SME’s in a series of
videos as they share their
stories of apprenticeship
programmes across Europe.
SME Video Case
Studies US
Apprenticeships in Practice
2

Margaret Reilly, former apprentice now business owner and apprentice employer
truly knows the benefit of Apprenticeships for SME’s having come through the
programme herself. Her advocacy for apprenticeships is demonstrated by the fact that
she is now an apprentice employer. www. granddesigns.ie
SME Case Study Video
Margaret Reilly, Grand Designs,
Drogheda, Ireland
2
Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=cS9PxRWGV_4

The benefits apprentices can bring to business are discussed by Michael
Morrissey, Morrissey Chartered Accountants, NI (UK)
SME Case Study Video –
Michael Morrissey, Morrissey Chartered
Accountants, NI (UK)
2
Source:
https://www.youtube.co
m/watch?v=bPJRwtaXA1
Y

Although not an SME, Hitachi have an interesting story to tell about
taking on their first apprenticeships in conjunction with Brooklands
College.
Graham Lines, Hitachi,
England, UK
2
Source:
https://www.youtube.co
m/watch?v=1na-lgnUV70

Hitachi Case
Study
Continued –
Interview with
an Apprentice
2
Source: http://www.hitachirail-
eu.com/careers/opportunities/case-studies

EEGGER employ about 20
apprentices at a time. They
recruit 4 apprentices every year
to train them over the 3 years of
the “Bac Pro”. These apprentices
are between 15 and 18 years old.
The aim is to employ these
apprentices full time at the end
of the 3 years when they are fully
qualified. In the video we meet
David is an ex-apprentice who
mentors now the 4 new
apprentices every year.
EEGGER, France
2
Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNr_Ftd
XA_g

Mr Raphael Gobin was an
apprentice himself. He is now the
owner of an SME and employs 2
apprentices.
Mr Godin knows the benefits of
apprenticeship and is happy to
employ apprentices himself as he
understands the benefits for both
the apprentice and the employer.
Mr Raphael Gobin ,
France
2

Aranow Packaging Machinery,
Spain
2
Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOk_-
mfWW88
Through different testimonials
this video explain the
advantages from the both
apprentice and the company’s
perspectives about reception
and learning process in a dual
professional training in
packaging and packaging
machinery at Aranow
Packaging Machinery.

Eisma Mediagroup,
Netherland
2
Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-
qjIAuH0kc
In this video, Rex Bierlaagh
innovation manager at Eisma
Mediagroup explains their
motivation for getting involved
in training apprentices.
Eisma Mediagroup are keen to
work closely with people with a
fresh view on existing
businesses. And also contribute
to the development of young
people.

There are many different types of
apprenticeships on offer in different
countries. In the slides which follow,
we have a brief look at Poland,
Northern Ireland (UK), Ireland, France,
Spain and the Netherlands.
Apprenticeships are available for new
entrants to a job or to existing workers
significantly changing their job roles
Types of
Apprenticeships US
Spotlight on a number of
European Apprenticeship
Strongholds
3

✓ Demand for skilled employees on the labour market
✓ Strong small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)
✓ Interest, commitment and capability of companies to train
✓ Strong and competent representation of employer and
employee interests (chambers / labour unions)
✓ Broad-based acceptance of VET standards through strong
involvement of social partners in VET and culture of cooperative
engagement
✓ Strong regulatory capacity of government
✓ Competent VET teachers and trainers
✓ General education system makes young people ready
for VET
What are the macro pre-
conditions for apprenticeships?
3

The French VET system offers several apprenticeship-type
schemes and structured work-based learning programmes,
based on alternate schemes and both work-based and school-
based learning.
There are two main apprenticeship schemes in France:
✓ the contrat d’apprentissage -youth from 16 to 25 in initial
training under the Ministry of Education
✓ the contrat de professionnalisation - youth 16-25 years or
unemployed in vocational training under the Ministry of
Labour
Types of Apprenticeships
in France
3

The contrat d’apprentissage schemes covers all sectors.
• Service Sector
Hotel and restaurant sectors (12% of contracts)
Business services sector (7% of contracts)
Retail and car and motorcycle repair - 19% of contracts
Industry - 21%
• Construction accounts for 20% of the contracts (where 89% of
new apprentices are employed in small companies with fewer
than 50 employees.)
• Hairdressing and beauty care are 6% of the contracts.
in France
3
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/epale/sites/epale/files/refernet_fr_2014_wbl.pdf

Interestingly, small companies with fewer than 50 employees
remain the primary employers of apprentices, absorbing 77% of
new contracts
in France
3

The contrat de professionnalisation scheme also covers
all sectors and again the service sector is the primary
user with 79% of new hirings, including the two largest
tertiary sectors: retail, car and motorcycle repair (24%
of new contracts) and business services (17% of new
contracts).
The construction sector accounts for 6% of hirings,
while industry is responsible for 15% of new contracts.
in France
3

In the Polish educational system, the dual system apprenticeship
is a part of VET and sees learners spend majority of time
acquiring skills at employers’ premises, (mainly craftsmen) after a
contract is signed between an employer and an apprentice
(juvenile worker 16-18 year olds) Learning at school takes place
two days a week (theoretical knowledge: general and vocational).
This type of dual system is designed for students from basic
vocational schools (around 61% of them are apprentices/juvenile
workers).
The apprenticeship is organised in SMEs, mainly in handicrafts.
Source: https://cumulus.cedefop.europa.eu/files/vetelib/2015/ReferNet_PL_2014_WBL.pdf
in Poland
3

There are two forms of apprenticeship training in Poland:
• Occupational training (nauka zawodu) which aims to prepare
an apprentice to work as a qualified worker or a journeyman
and covers practical training at the employer’s and theoretical
education realised at school, at the employer’s premises or in
Centres for Education and Professional Development called
ODiDZ (this training is classified at ISCED 3 level);
• Training to perform a specific job (przyuczenie do
wykonywania określonej pracy) which aims to prepare an
apprentice to work as a vocationally trained worker and may
apply only to some selected activities related to occupational
training (this training is classified at ISCED 2 level).
in Poland
3

in Poland
3
Example of automotive
mechanic and
automotive technician
qualification pathways
in Poland.
Source: http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/news-and-press/news/poland-
two-stage-upper-secondary-vet-programmes

Up until 2012 the Spanish Education system did not have an
apprenticeship programme. Today a significant number of
companies participate in the new model of dual VET, enabling
students to combine training in schools with training in real work
environments. There are two methods of practical training in the
workplace:
• SIMPLE ALTERNATION combines training time in school and in
company, without involving the academic recognition of time in
the company
• DUAL ALTERNATION combines training time in school and in
company + the academic recognition of learning achieved by
students for in company activities.
Types of
Apprenticeships in Spain
3

The company hosts the apprentice through the training period,
according to the national VET legal frame, in two phases:
Types of
Apprenticeships in Spain
3

Vocational education and Apprenticeship education in the
Netherlands is very advanced and consists of three layers
(Cedefop, 2004). It starts very early (age 12) with the lower strand
in compulsory education : preparatory vocational education . It
continues in senior secondary vocational education and it peaks in
vocational, or rather professional, higher education (in
professional universities).
Apprenticeships are very well embedded in the Dutch system, it is
no surprise that they cover - Economy & Trade, Health Care &
Welfare, Industry, Logistics & Transportation, Health Care &
Welfare and Agriculture, Beauty Care, Media & Design and
in the Netherlands
3

Currently in Northern Ireland there are around 170
approved apprenticeship frameworks across a
diverse range of occupational areas and sectors.
Apprenticeship frameworks are developed by
industry representative bodies to ensure they meet
the demands of each sector.
in Northern Ireland
Source: https://www.economy-ni.gov.uk/sites/default/files/publications/economy/apprenticeships-
guide-for-employers.pdf
3

in Northern Ireland
✓ Administration and
Management
✓ Agriculture and Land
✓ Building Service Engineering
✓ Construction
✓ Creative
✓ Engineering
✓ Finance
✓ Hair and Beauty
✓ Health, Social Care, Children
and Young People
3
✓ Hospitality
✓ IT & ICT Services
✓ Leisure and Sport
✓ Manufacturing and Processing
✓ Motor and Plant
✓ Retail and Customer Care
✓ Science and Medical Services
✓ Services
✓ Transport & Distribution
✓ Utility and Utility Services

Apprenticeships have traditionally been associated with
technical and practical careers in five areas: motor mechanics,
engineering, printing, electrical work and construction.
The system in Ireland in being reformed though with new
apprenticeships being introduced, in areas as diverse as
financial services, accounting, medical devices, software
development, travel agency, butchery, chef, warehousing and
plastics technology.
Many of these are areas where there are severe skills shortages.
Also, apprenticeships will now be offered in third-level
institutions as well as in further education and training
institutes.
in Ireland
Source: http://www.apprenticeship.ie
3

The German government is currently helping
18 countries around the world set up
apprenticeship schemes, and some companies
export and adapt the model themselves.
In the slides that follow we look at how the
German system works and how it has become
ingrained in German company culture.
Learning from Best
Practice Models
USSpotlight on a Germany a
European Apprenticeship
Stronghold
4

Best Practice Models - Germany
4
In 2014 in Germany there
were 328 government-
recognised training
occupations under the
Vocational Training Act
(BBiG) or the Crafts and
Trades Regulation Code
(HwO). The number differs
slightly each year.
Click on image left to view
list of occupations.

Best Practice Models – Dual System
of Apprenticeship in Germany
4

Germany’s labour market values workers trained for specific
occupations. Most positions, from electricians to nursery-
school teachers, require standard training and certification.
Over 500,000 new apprenticeship contracts are concluded
every year.
The system developed historically out of the medieval guild
system. It’s base is the concept of “occupation”.
Sources: https://www.ft.com/content/1a82e8e0-04cf-11e7-aa5b-6bb07f5c8e12
http://www.apprenticeship-toolbox.eu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=143:apprenticeship-
system-in-germany&catid=92&Itemid=307
4

In December 2016, the unemployment rate for 15-24-year
olds in Germany was 6.7 per cent, compared with 17.3 per
cent across EU member states.
Germany's youth apprentice schemes have been hailed as
the country's biggest weapon against youth unemployment,
with more than 65 percent of young people starting careers
with vocational training after they finish school.
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/id/100996324
4

“"Germany is close to full employment right now and
apprenticeships are clearly something that have helped drive
growth - the apprenticeship schemes work very well in the
family-run Mittelstand (small and medium sized enterprises --
SMEs) as it provides cheap labor for companies while young
people get training."
- Carsten Brzeski,
ING economist
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/id/100996324
Apprenticeships in Germany – spotlight on SME’s

The key to the high employability of graduates from dual
programmes in Germany is, without a doubt, the involvement of
companies in the design and implementation of vocational
education.
Companies are so committed to Germany's dual education
system that German companies opening overseas (particularly
in the US) are transferring the system and using it to address
skills gaps and training up local staff with similar apprenticeship
models.
Apprenticeships are ingrained in
German Company Culture…
4
Source: http://www.ippr.org/files/publications/pdf/nsaw-case-study-wieland-lezcano-
feb2016.pdf

Stihl, a chainsaw
manufacturer based in
southern Germany, has
exported the dual
education system to the
US.
4
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuX9ATIrlrs
Germany Companies exporting the
German Apprenticeship Model to the
US - Stihl

Manufacturers in the US
say there is a critical
shortage of trained
workers in the United
States. In South Carolina, a
German company is
training students in skilled
labor through
apprenticeships.
US
4
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Sun5FS6VKw

The BMW factory in
Spartanburg, South Carolina,
is offering the German Dual
System to workers with a
program that offers part-
time work, an all-expenses
paid associates degree and
near guarantee of a job and
future education down the
road.
US
4
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpDAocHVxwM

Wieland, Lezcano and Stiftung in their Case Study of the German
Model suggest that the best way to convince companies to engage
in apprenticeship is to provide economic arguments: training
apprentices can be cost-effective for companies.
They argue that for several years now, studies in Germany and
Switzerland have proven this, and a recent ex-ante simulation study
in Spain suggests that dual VET can also be profitable for companies
in countries without a long tradition in the dual system. Similarly,
governments looking to promote dual VET should thus focus on
economic arguments.
Replicating Germany Success and
convincing companies to engage
in apprenticeships…
4
Source: http://www.ippr.org/files/publications/pdf/nsaw-case-study-
wieland-lezcano-feb2016.pdf

Model 1 Resources
Extra Information Resources
Apprenticeships NI 2017
Operational Requirements
See more useful documents
in the resources section.
5

Module 1- The Untapped Potential of Apprenticeships for SME's

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