Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Howard: A cruel master to apprentices

Thousands of apprentices will miss out on proper, quality training, the AMWU today warned, following an announcement by the Prime Minister that laws that guarantee apprenticeship conditions will be stripped as part of his industrial relations proposals.

The Prime Minister claimed that by removing the quality guarantees for apprentices he would create more opportunities for young people.

“The Prime Minister’s statement that he is creating opportunities for apprentices is deceitful.

He is really giving employers the opportunity to kick apprentices around from site to site, underpay them, and take away their current rights to full training”, said AMWU National President, Julius Roe.

“The Prime Minister wants to see apprentices complete lower level qualifications which tie them to a particular employer or dead end job rather than completing a fully rounded trade qualification which opens up a well paid career. “

“This is an appalling and irresponsible move by the government and will exacerbate the enormous skills shortage Australia is currently facing."

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