Will More Money Encourage More People?

The minimum wage for apprentices has been risen from £80 to £95 per week after the number of people joining the scheme fell.

The change began on 1 August, and the TUC believe that young women are the most likely to benefit most from them.

Those serving as apprentice that are under the age of 19 or in their first year of their apprenticeship are exempt from the national minimum wage, but the average weekly pay for most apprentices is more than £170 per week.

Female apprentices in hairdressing and childcare are among the lowest paid according to the TUC.

More Needs To Be Done?

According to Brendan Barber, the general secretary of the TUC: “The majority of apprentices are paid well above the minimum rate. But for many trainees, particularly young women, struggling on around £80 a week, an extra £15 will go a long way.

“The next move must be to protect apprentices with the minimum wage, so that employers cannot exploit young trainees by ignoring the minimum pay rate. At a small cost to employers, this would improve the reputation of apprenticeships and encourage more young people to enrol,” he added.

The most recent figures show that the number of young people who began an apprenticeship in England in 2008-09 fell, but the total number in the UK did rise overall.

For 16 to 18 year olds, the number of people choosing apprenticeships fell by 8.3% to reach 81,700. Those between the ages of 19 and 24 taking on apprenticeships fell by a lesser amount of 2% to 68,000.

However, the total number of people going into apprenticeships that are over 25 nearly quadrupled to 46,800 balancing out the other figures.

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Time For Everyone To Play Fair

The Competition Commission has made formal recommendations for the government to establish an ombudsman to rule dispute between supermarkets and suppliers after supermarkets failed to come to a voluntary arrangement, as well as a strengthened code of conduct.

The new measures follow the Commission’s two year investigation into the supermarket industry, which ended in April last year.

After extensive consultation since, Marks and Spencer, Waitrose and Aldi backed the creation of an ombudsman, but other retailers opposed it saying it created ‘red tape’.

Competition Commission’s Peter Freeman said: “We made every effort to persuade retailers of our case as it would be the quickest way to establish the ombudsman.
 
“We are now left with no alternative but to set out the new code of practise and recommend the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, set up the ombudsman,” he added.

Everyone Must Behave Fairly

It’s thought the ombudsman will cost £5 million to run each year, and will prevent supermarkets from making adjustments to existing terms and conditions with suppliers, and require them to enter a binding settlement to resolve any dispute with a supplier.

British Retail Consortium (BRC) said that the Business Secretary should refuse the proposal as customers will be the ones to lose out.

The BRC’s Andrew Opie said: “This should be about customers. The last thing needed at any time, let alone in a recession, is a multi-million-pound bureaucracy, unnecessarily piling on costs and pushing up shop prices.”

The president of the National Farmers Union, Peter Kendall, said that farmers and other small businesses welcomed the move.

He said: “There are a lot of underhand practices going on and we want someone to make them behave fairly.”

Swift Action Must Be Taken

There have been many suggestions over the years that supermarkets use their power to take advantage of small suppliers, and the Commission found that some are taking advantage, such as when a product is stolen, the cost is often borne by the supplier.

Promoter of fair trade, Traidcraft, said the new code would not protect small suppliers unless there was an ombudsman to enforce it:  “Nothing in the history of the supermarkets suggests they will be any more willing to apply this code than its predecessor. In fact, in the recession the situation has worsened, with suppliers coming under increased pressure,” said Fiona Gooch, from Traidcraft.

“It is crucial the government acts swiftly to establish an independent ombudsman to stem unfair practices and help the grocery sector return to being a fair market,” she added.

What Do You Think?

Do you support the introduction of an ombudsman or not? We would love to know your thoughts and opinions. Leave your comments here.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has confirmed that the government will be offering graduates struggling to find work trips abroad thanks to expedition company Raleigh International.

The scheme will pay for 500 graduates under 24 to travel to places like Costa Rica and India to take part in projects like building schools.

This comes as it is revealed that there are currently forty eight graduates chasing every job offered according to research by the Association of Graduate Recruiters.

The expeditions will be 10-weeks and will enable graduates to work on community and environmental volunteering projects in remote countries.

Unfair

David Lammy, Higher Education Minister said that volunteering would help new graduates develop the “communication and leadership skills that are so highly valued in the workplace.”

The government will pay Raleigh £500,000 to support graduates who otherwise would be unable to afford to go on such trips. According to a British newspaper, graduates must raise £1,000 to pay for flights and eligible vaccinations.

Applicants for this will have to prove an expedition overseas is beyond their financial means without the bursary. Normally, these expeditions would cost £3,000 per person.

Matthew Pickin taught in Malawi in his gap year, and says the scheme is unfair to those who had to pay £3,000, and that working to afford to be able to go abroad brought more satisfaction while being out there.

Government Not Helping Everyone

A recent graduate also disagrees with the scheme saying it’s like a “smack in the face” for those that aren’t picked.

He said: “I am out of work and I am currently funding my own re-training – currently heading for £3,000 – to make myself more employable and because the government will not help me.”

The government has increased its campaign to help graduates find work in the recession since the most recent batch of University graduates leave.

On Wednesday it announced 2,000 internships would be made available through a graduate talent pool website, and the Work and Pensions Secretary invited businesses, councils and charities to bid for a share of £1 billion to create 47,000 jobs for young people for six months at minimum wage.

‘Creative Thinking’

The outlook is also causing many graduates to stay in education.

National Union of Students president Wes Streeting said the governments “creative thinking” was welcomed to give graduates an opportunity to gain new skills.

He said: “With youth employment reaching the one million mark, funding opportunities foe skills development is surely better than the soul destroying experience of sitting at home watching Jeremy Kyle, on the dole.”

Although, chief executive of the Taxpayers Alliance, Matthew Elliot, said the scheme was a “headline grabber” that would dent taxpayers pockets.

He said: “The government needs to stop spending. It needs to focus on creating the right economic climate to allow entrepreneurs and business men to be able to hire new graduates.”

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Targeted!

Bogus emails are apparently targeting people who are aiming to meet next Friday’s tax credit renewal deadline according to credit reference agency Equifax.

These emails offer tax refunds in return for credit card or bank details. It is therefore making sure people know that organisations such as HM Revenue and Customs do not ask for details such as these either via email or telephone.

The government introduced the tax credit system in 2003, but it has been the cause of many problems such as overpayments ever since it began.

In recent weeks most people have received tax credit renewal packs in the post in order to sort out their own.

Always Double-Check!

Equifax external affairs director, Neil Munroe, said that fraudsters were showing “cynical timing” as they send out emails to people offering relief from tax bills.

He advised: “If you were worried about money and then got the email you might think all your prayers had been answered.

“They ask for credit card or bank details and if you gave those you could find yourself very quickly a victim of ID fraud. However, generally a person would be alerted to a tax refund at the end of the financial year.”

He also warns that people should always double-check with the tax authority if they are not sure what to do about any documents they receive.

Other prevention tips to avoid becoming victim to this fraud, or similar things include the installation of virus protection software on your computer, having a range of passwords, and destroying hard drives on old computers.

What Do You Think?

Could more be done by the government  and HM Revenue and Customs to prevent such fraud? What else can the general public do to protect themselves? We would love to know your thoughts and opinions on this. Leave your comments here.