Apprentices… Know your rights
As an Apprentice, it can sometimes be hard to understand your place in the company and what you are entitled to and your rights. Well look no further, we have you covered.
One of the core principles of British values is the rule of law, so we are taking a look at what the rule of law means for apprentices and how this applies to them.
There are 3 fundamental rights that I will be discussing in this article. The National Minimum Wage (NMW), zero tolerance of discrimination and the right to take leave.
These are the core 3 employee/apprentice rights (obviously there are so many more, but no one has the time to go through everything). Every employer has to honour these rights to you, and if they do not, you are entitled to take legal action.
1. National Minimum Wage
Let’s start with the most simple, the National Minimum Wage or NMW for short. Before I go into detail, please check out this handy infographic below to show you how much you should be earning.
Just to be clear though, if you are an apprentice you are entitled to the minimum wage of £5.28 per hour, although one bonus is, depending on your age, after the first year it will increase to the National Minimum Wage for your age group.
To make it simpler, let’s break it down further, for example, you are a 19-year-old who is 14 months into your Apprenticeship. You SHOULD currently be on £7.49 per hour. But up until the 12-month mark, the employer is entitled to pay you £5.28 per hour (Apprenticeship Minimum Wage).
2. Zero tolerance of discrimination
Discrimination in the workplace should never be tolerated. Whether you’re an Apprentice or a Manager, you are not allowed to be discriminated against. The law protects you on dismissal, employment terms and conditions, pay and benefits, and redundancy. You can be dismissed from your job but it has to be fairly and for a genuine reason.
3. The right to take leave
As an apprentice, you are an official employee of the business, which means you are entitled to annual leave, just like anyone else. If you work a 5-day week, you must receive at least 28 days paid leave per year which equates to 5.6 weeks per year. The employer is allowed to tell you when to take your annual leave.
These are the 3 fundamental rights, every apprentice and employee is entitled to. If you feel you do not have these rights you can discuss this with your employer or, if you don’t feel comfortable raising this with your employer, talk to your assessor for advice.
Toby Greenfield
Toby is our Learner Engagement Marketing Apprentice and is involved with all things social media and content development. He is also responsible for attending careers events and delivering presentations. Toby is dedicated to showcasing the apprenticeship opportunities available for individuals and businesses to embark upon.
