Proposals to give workers right to request training

Workers are to get the right to ask their employers for time to train.

The proposal comes as part of the government’s draft legislative programme.

Under the plans, employees will be given the legal right to request time to train from their employers for the first time.

The proposed legislation would also see measures to expand and strengthen apprenticeships.

The government said it will consult on how best workers can be granted the right to request time to train, although it is expected that the practical arrangements would be modelled on the existing right to request flexible working.

Employers will be legally obliged to give serious consideration to any requests for training they receive but could refuse a request where there is a good business reason to do so. Employers will not be obliged to meet the salary or training costs to enable a request for time to train but the government hopes that many would choose to do so.

John Denham, Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, said: “If the job prospects of our workforce are to improve and the country is to succeed internationally, we have to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to rise as far as their abilities can take them.”

Mr Denham continued: “While it is right that we consult on this proposal, I believe that skills development has to become an integral part of working life for everyone. A right to request training will help ensure this becomes a reality. It will allow millions of employees to start a conversation with their employer about how they can become a more productive member of staff and in turn will encourage employers to better tap into some of the major government supported training programmes available to them.”

The new Bill will also look to establish apprenticeships as a key route to improving the national skills base.

A new National Apprenticeship Service will lead a push for more high quality apprenticeships, backed up by a new legal definition of an apprenticeship and a new right for suitably qualified young people to get an apprenticeship.

Commenting on the proposals, the CBI director-general, Richard Lambert said: “Employers will be pleased that the government has ruled out compelling them to train staff irrespective of their circumstances and opted to introduce the right to request instead. The most effective spur for training is the mutual benefit derived by both employer and employee, not regulation.”