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Firms Relabelling Low-Skilled Jobs As Apprenticeships, Says Report (bbc.com)
Fast food giants, coffee shops and retailers are relabelling low-skilled jobs as apprenticeships and gaining subsidies for training, a report says. BBC: The study by centre-right think tank Reform says many firms have rebranded existing roles after being obliged to contribute cash to on-the-job training. It adds that 40% of government-approved apprenticeship standards do not meet a traditional definition of them. The government says "quality" is at the heart of its apprenticeship reforms. As part of the changes, it introduced an apprenticeship levy on organisations paying more than $4.3m in salaries a year. They have to pay 0.5% of their wages total into a "digital account" held by HMRC. They then "spend" these contributions on apprenticeship training delivered by registered providers. They can also get back up to 90% of the cost of training. But they are also entitled to pay apprentices lower than the standard minimum wage.
If this article didn't make sense, here's why: In America, apprenticeships are generally the realm of blue collar trades.
In the UK, this is true, however they also broadly include it to also mean "paid internship for office jobs".
Why? Probably the same reason a boot is a trunk, the letter U is sprinkled everywhere, and beer is served at room temp (not bad) /Giorgio A. Tsoukalos meme hands saying "England".
This isn't a problem in America because of the word apprenticeship's association with blue collarwork.