New approach to tackling job crisis (From The Argus)
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New approach to tackling job crisis
3:31pm Friday 10th February 2012 in Comment and Analysis By Phil Frier
In Brighton and Hove, 20% of 15 to 24 year olds are unemployed.
Young people can usually get a part-time job in the city in leisure or catering. But when they want full-time work it becomes a lot more difficult.
Everyone agrees that the best way to learn is on the job but most young people are not the finished article when they leave school at 18.
It is often too much of a risk for an employer to take on a raw recruit, especially in tough times.
So, in partnership with The Argus, Brighton and Hove Albion, the council and the Jobcentre, City College has completely re-designed the apprenticeship scheme which has been going for a number of years.
This new approach will give young people the kind of skills they need – before they look for full time employment.
The idea is that apprentices spend two years at City College on vocational courses to give them the basic social and technical know-how.
Then they will be more ready for the world of work.
We believe it is a great alternative to higher education and brings fantastic benefits both to our students and also to the employers themselves – and we already have 250 apprentices on our books.
In Brighton and Hove we are looking in particular at digital media, catering and hospitality, hair and beauty and retail.
Apprentices can learn the basic skills of the job in a safe, controlled environment.
The benefit for employers is that the training programme is heavily subsidised and they get the benefit of eager workers with relatively low costs. It’s a win-win situation.
But we recognise that many businesses in Brighton and Hove are small, with fewer than 10 people.
So we will provide full support to make the process as seamless as possible.
The apprentices can be employed through an agency so we take responsibility for employing the young person, removing the risk and the bureaucracy.
And both the apprentices and employers get the support of a professional trainer from City College.
The employers then take on the real responsibility of training the apprentices on the job.
The great thing about Brighton and Hove is that there is a very strong vision shared between the employers and the local authority to tackle youth unemployment.
I don’t think that happens in many other cities.
People here are really willing to work together to collaborate and get this moving.
Apprenticeships are fairer than unpaid internships, which are generally aimed more at graduates.
They do provide a way into employment – but some may hold the view that it is a means for employers to get labour without putting anything back in.
I know graduates who have been stuck in unpaid internships for more than a year.
But our scheme promotes a clear commitment from the employers to the apprentices.
And that commitment is paid back by the energy and enthusiasm of apprentices that have already acquired the basic skills they need at college.
The standard payment for apprentices is about £11,000 a year so we are not talking vast sums.
But the wage demonstrates to the employee that the company values their contribution and allows young people from poorer backgrounds to get their foot through the door.
Getting this going depends on developing strong partnerships with stakeholders across the |city.
We will work closely with our partners to deliver this programme for young people in the city.
One of our most valuable partnerships is between between City College and the Amex, which started in 2005.
Now 60 students from the college work for the Amex catering team Azure.
Schemes like the Albion’s Want to Work programme offer the unemployed as many opportunities as possible to improve their employability skills and increase their employment options.
Martin Perry, the chief executive of Brighton and Hove Albion and a former chairman of governors at City College, deserves praise for forging links with the college and creating jobs.
Next month we are opening a City Jobs and Skills Shop in Queen’s Road.
This will be a place where employers and young people can come to meet and find out about each other.
There will be an online site, set up to work almost like a dating agency where prospective employers and apprentices will be matched up according to their needs.
We are using social networking sites like Facebook and LinkedIn to really engage with young people to show them what is out there.
We have been talking to the Green cabinet and there is a lot of support to develop these opportunities.
Last week I told an audience of more than 200 business owners at the Amex that apprenticeships were crucial for getting young people into work.
City College already works with more than 120 employers in the city like American Express.
So there is a tremendous appetite in Brighton and Hove to tackle the issue.
There is so much untapped talent among young people in this city. They deserve that we get this right.
