Examine the major government attempts to improve Vocational Training in the UK in the last 20 years.
LEISURE MANAGEMENT
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES
ASSIGNMENT 2
Examine the major government attempts to improve Vocational Training in the UK in the last 20 years.
WEIGHT - 60%
Today the concept of continuous training in Human Resource Management (HRM) is the key to business success. Investing in the workforce is an investment in the business especially for service providers. However employers have not always thought this way and there are still a few who still feel that training is not essential. Since the development of HRM in the workplace, an emphasis has been placed upon work based training to improve the productivity of the organisation. Over the past twenty years the government has increasingly tried to improve vocational training and education, as it is their belief that this will improve economic competitiveness and success (Horton, 2000). Vocational training is practical and offers work related skills, unlike academic qualifications. Nowadays, businesses seek skilled workers, however, 'the UK is suffering from a shortage of professionals with vocational skills' (Woolnough, 2002, p. 4). Vocational qualifications are deemed as second class to academic qualifications and the word vocational has been turned into a derogatory term (Wood, 2002). Why has this happened? The government has attempted to improve the Vocational Education and Training (VET) system but have always promoted the academic route as the one which should primarily be aimed for.
During the late 1970s there was an increase in youth unemployment and by 1985 only 27 per cent of 16 year old school leavers were finding work (Sisson, 1994). The Youth Opportunities Programme (YOP) was introduced in 1978 by the Lady Thatcher's Conservative government to tackle youth unemployment. The scheme included work experience and short training courses, although it has been stated in Atkinson (1985, p. 29), that it provided 'little in the way of training'. By 1982 nearly half of school leavers went onto the programme and in essence this lead to its demise. The Manpower Service Commission (MSC) failed to keep up with the growth and by 1981 only one in three people in the YOP scheme were gaining employment (Sisson, 1994). At this time unemployment rose above 2.5 million (Observer, 1997) and the major riots in Toxteth (Gates, 1997) and Brixton was the consequence of youth unemployment (Sheppard, 2002). The Conservative government required a new method to tackle youth unemployment. As a result the MSC devised the New Training Initiative (NTI) which provided vocational training for all young people and adults who are not covered by apprenticeships (Sisson, 1994). In 1983 the YOP scheme was replaced by the Youth Training Scheme (YTS), once more YTS provided work experience and education to school leavers. However, both the YOP and YTS came under intense criticism. Firstly, it was an easy way for the government to reduce embarrassing employment figures (Gray and Morgan, 1998). Secondly, it would 'restrict the number of workers joining trade unions so reducing the bargaining power of the workforce' (Haralambos, 1990, p. 307). Thirdly, the programme was no more than a source of cheap labour for employers (Sisson, 1994). And finally it was just a simple way of taking up the time of young people and reducing crime and social disorder (Haralambos, 1990, p. 307).
The government was also criticised by employers as the provision of funding was 'too low to provide any useful level of training in highly skilled occupations'. Suggests were also directed towards the governments policy being misdirected therefore sacrificing quality for quantity (Tilley, 1990).
In addition, during 1983 the Technical and Vocational Education Initiative (TVEI) started a scheme for 14-18 year olds. This initiative included work experience to produce pupils who would have a better understanding of the work environment, this initiative ran in conjunction with the day-to-day curriculum already present in schools (Haralambos, 1990).
986 saw the formation of The National Council for Vocational Qualifications (NCVQ) by the government in response to the restructuring of vocational qualifications (NVQ Briefing document, 2002). These qualifications had to be competence based where students are assessed on their ability to complete a job. The criteria is set by 'leading bodies' from an industry. NCVQ does not award qualifications, it approves the qualification with the submission of evidence of skill and understanding of the subject by the pupil (Graham and Bennett, 1998). NVQ's are hard to gain for an individual not in employment, as they are assessed ...
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986 saw the formation of The National Council for Vocational Qualifications (NCVQ) by the government in response to the restructuring of vocational qualifications (NVQ Briefing document, 2002). These qualifications had to be competence based where students are assessed on their ability to complete a job. The criteria is set by 'leading bodies' from an industry. NCVQ does not award qualifications, it approves the qualification with the submission of evidence of skill and understanding of the subject by the pupil (Graham and Bennett, 1998). NVQ's are hard to gain for an individual not in employment, as they are assessed in or close to work, therefore, this has lead to the General National Vocational Qualification (GNVQ) (Bolton, 1997). Businesses have argued that the NVQ is not related to real life situations and the assessment is too paper based and bureaucratic (Bolton, 1997). However, if an employer sees that an employee or potential employee has spent the time and effort completing an NVQ, will this not show commitment and a certain degree of knowledge in the particular subject area which employers are looking for? The government has pushed to get more and more school leavers to university, thus neglecting the promotion of vocational skills and qualifications. Woolnough, R. (2002, p. 4), suggests
'that many potential graduates would be better off learning practical skills that employers need and want, rather that embarking on courses that do not lead to direct employment... ...people have degrees but no particle ability'.
Today the United Kingdom (UK) is suffering from a shortage of workers with vocational skills. People who once may have become skilled trade's people are now going to university and attaining 'mediocre degrees that are little use to them and employers' (Woolnough, 2002, p. 4). The Times newspaper critically attacked Tony Blair's Labour government for a commitment of getting half of school leavers into university, 'stating that vocational training has been neglected in the drive for a knowledge economy' and 'devaluing our occupational skills' (Pierce, 2000, p. 7).
There was a review of management education and training in 1987. It was recognised that the UK was way behind other countries with regards to formal management training (Boyett and Currie, 2001). Accordingly, 'the government and industry resolved to improve the professional standing of managers' (Horton, 2000, p. 306). Consequently, the Management Charter Initiative (MCI) was developed. This initiative was intended for managers to develop management skills through a NVQ framework, 'it was assumed that the acquisition and development of the accredited management skills would lead to good management' (Horton, 2000, p. 306).
Training and Enterprise Councils (TEC's) were set up in 1991. Their purpose was to 'identify the employment-related training need in their area and direct training schemes which are of obvious need and relevance to employers' (Bolton, 1997, p. 107) via funding from the government. Tec's also offer opportunities for the unemployed and disabled people to gain qualifications relevant to employment. TEC's are responsible for implementing one of the government's guarantees, which is to offer every young person the opportunity to have access to youth training.
In 1994 concerns over the adequacy of the provisions for disadvantaged people, lead the government to announce that TEC's were to move to a performance related funding agreement. The TEC's were 'outcome orientated' and targets had to be met. However, people on the Training For Work (TFW) programme were not finding work. It was soon felt that people were being put on courses that did not have any relevance to work (Harrison, 1997). In 1996 the government announced that 25 million pounds would go to TEC's to fund schemes for disadvantaged people (Harrison, 1997).
The business lead and government supported body, Investors In People (IIP) was introduced in 1994, to boost the promotion of training for business needs (Harrison, 1997). IIP was developed by the employment department and managed by TEC's. To receive IIP status an employer must achieve a certain standard in four areas. The employer must develop the employee to achieve business objectives, review training regularly, carry out development throughout an individuals career and invest in training and development (Armstrong, 1996).
In 1995 after a lengthy pilot study TEC's issued Youth Credits to 245,000 young people. These credits were given to school leavers to use for training up to NVQ level 2. However, the Dearing Report (1996) found that more than half of the young people dropped out of the scheme and that it was a waste of post-16 education funds, therefore, it proposed that it should be phased out and National Traineeships take over (Reid and Barrrington, 1997).
Directly connected to the TEC's are the Modern Apprenticeship (MA) scheme, which is funded by TEC's and intended for 16 to 17 years olds. They were announced in 1993, piloted in 1994 and implemented in 1995 (Bolton, 1997). Also in 1995 came the Accelerated Modern Apprenticeship (aMA) scheme for 18 to 19 year olds. Both apprenticeship schemes merged in 1990 due to a lack of interest in the aMA. The framework of MA's are developed by Industrial Leading Bodies (ILB) and usually work up to NVQ level 3 (Gray and Morgan, 1998).
In 1998, the Secretary of State for Education and Employment presented the white paper to parliament, within which, was the New Deal (Torkildsen, 1999). The New Deal requires people to take up employment and training. The New Deal was initially intended for young people and the unemployed under 25 years old (Jones, 1998), however, eight months later the Chancellor extended the deal to older workers up to 65 years old (Sherman, 1998). People who have recently started claiming benefits would be required to attend job interviews or risk their benefits being cut (Sherman, 1998). The deal appeared to have a larger interest in cutting the welfare bill, than it does on training the workforce.
Over the past 20 years the government has attempted to improve vocational training and involve people in work. However, the UK is very much behind its European neighbours who do not seem to have problems implementing a programme or system and ensuring its success. 'The government has placed education and training at the centre of its economic and social policy' (Lloyd, 2002), nonetheless, young people are leaving school without basic maths and literacy skills.
On comparing the UK to Germany, there are distinct differences. In Germany the receivers of vocational training are highly regarded in society, there is not the perception that people completing vocational education are not able enough to achieve in academic route. The German VET system is standardised and formal. There is a legal responsibility for German employers to grant up to one week training per year for each employee and employers must release employees on technical education. Students are also supported financially for academic and vocational education, by both the government and employers. The apprenticeship systems prove very popular and academic students may complete an apprenticeship to complement their background. Less than ten per cent of apprentice's drop out of the scheme from a total of half a million students (Graham and Bennett, 1998).
Germany has an in-house management development programme with adults generally participating in annual education and training. Germany works by the model of lifelong training, unlike the UK. Less than 25 per cent of senior managers in the UK possess degrees, compared to the 65 per cent of German managers (Graham and Bennett, 1998).
With the implementation of IIP in the workplace, the training level should be higher than ever, however, a survey in 2000 found that 'only 39 per cent of employees reported they had received any training in the previous twelve months' (Lloyd, 2002, p. 63). The government requirement for IIP certification is regular training. When the IIP status is given to a business there does not seem to be any follow-up checks to confirm that an organisation is carrying out the procedure required to meet these standards. One problem with government initiatives is that once they have been implemented they are rarely followed up and just left to the hope that the initiatives will work. Unfortunately for the government the UK has been left with a major shortage of skilled people and young people without basic literacy and mathematical abilities. This makes it increasingly hard for employers when they have staff that have trouble spelling correctly. Wood, (2002, p. 17), states the importance of general education for businesses,
'I cannot emphasise enough how damaging it is to British business if people are inadequately qualified. I am aware of many UK companies that have to provide remedial training to bring employees up to scratch educationally before they start with training to enable them to do their jobs properly, a cost burden that our competitors in other countries do not have to bear'.
The importance of developing employees to suit the need of a business is one which will directly affect the HR manager. In addition the intense promotion of 'learning to work' from the government has allowed HRM in the workplace to be a very imperative factor of an organisation. Furthermore, there is the assumption that training employees will lead the organisation to business success, nevertheless, some employers still do not provide training for their staff.
Throughout the past twenty years the government has attempted to improve vocational training, however, NVQ's for example are still seen as second best to the traditional academic route. The increase in youth unemployment in the early 1980s lead the government to implement youth training schemes and apprenticeships, nevertheless, the government has been criticised for the various schemes from employers and the press alike. The late 1980s saw the set up of the NCVQ in response to the restructuring of vocational qualifications, again the government was criticised for the lack of people on these courses. Throughout the 1990s employers have been suffering from a shortage of workers with adequate vocational training and basic literacy and maths skills. People on the TFW programme were not finding work and concerns over the TEC's adequacy of provision for disadvantaged people was noticed. IIP was introduced to boost the promotion of training within the workplace. Employers had a responsibility for their employees training needs, however, in a survey in 2000 it was found that only 39 per cent of employees were receiving training. From the above information it seems that businesses need a HR manager to help the business through its training needs, as some managers still do not understand the importance of training the workforce. There are many reasons why this does not happen but in theory training is the key to business success.
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