Apprentice Application

malky39

I am looking for some advice. Is it legal for an organisation to put a age limit or criteria on a advert for an apprenticeship vacancy

King_Nothing

Criteria as in what? Qualifications held? don't see a problem with that. Age is a tricky one though and I don't think is allowed.

Yorkie1

I might be wrong here, but I think that if the funding for the apprenticeship comes from the government, there is a maximum age limit.

malky39

Sorry I should have just said age, i know they can ask for certain qualification etc. I understand that yes the government do provide funding up to a certain age. But does this mean that they can refuse your application purely because of you falling outwith the age range for funding.
Is this another case of one rule for some and another for others, surely age discrimination is age discrimination funding or not

girleight@

Yes it is age discrimination, but it is likely to be hard to prove.

malky39

Even if they sent me an email saying "As such this vacancy, as stated on the job description, is only open for 16 to 25 year olds. Unfortunately we are unable to accept your application form."

Yorkie1

malky39 wrote: »

Sorry I should have just said age, i know they can ask for certain qualification etc. I understand that yes the government do provide funding up to a certain age. But does this mean that they can refuse your application purely because of you falling outwith the age range for funding.
Is this another case of one rule for some and another for others, surely age discrimination is age discrimination funding or not

I have no authority to back my reply up as I haven't looked into it fully, but I believe they can - the apprenticeship wouldn't exist if it wasn't for the funding, and the funding is only available on certain terms.

But I can't say for sure.

gibson123

Availability of funding does not make it lawful to discriminate on age grounds. It is one reason why many employers shy away from apprentices, they can only access funding for a certain age group but cannot lawfully recruit the specific age range. However apprenticeships have historically been for school leavers, and the age equality legislation which was supposed to make things fairer, has lowered the chances of young people entering the workplace. Like most equalities legislation there is usually a group that loses out.

However it would be up to you to take the employer to court and you have to work out if it would be worth your while, what would you get out of the situation?

Funky_Bold_Ribena

malky39 wrote: »

Sorry I should have just said age, i know they can ask for certain qualification etc. I understand that yes the government do provide funding up to a certain age. But does this mean that they can refuse your application purely because of you falling outwith the age range for funding.
Is this another case of one rule for some and another for others, surely age discrimination is age discrimination funding or not

Yes because if they can't get the funding then the job doesn't exist. The job is for an apprentice with all the legal status that being and employing an apprentice carries. It's a tri-partite agreement between 3 parties; it's not the same as a regular job.

saintjammyswine

Relating to Local Authority but applicable to all employers

"Age discrimination and recruitment

Employers who limit the age range of applicants for apprenticeship schemes will be directly discriminating against anyone outside of that age range.
Direct discrimination on the grounds of age is capable of being justified under the Equality Act 2010 (previously the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006). However, each local authority would have to demonstrate with evidence that restricting the age range of applicants was a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. A local authority may have an objective of increasing the numbers of young people it employs, or the local authority may be seeking to address high levels of youth unemployment in their community. However, these elements of justification are untested in the courts and local authorities will have to examine the particular circumstances of why they wish to limit the age range of applicants to establish if the discrimination is capable of being justified.
As a general rule of thumb, the courts will need to be satisfied that the local authority had no other reasonable way that it could achieve the same outcome to meet the needs of the business.
The government funding for apprenticeship training is tiered according to the age of the apprentice, with a higher percentage of funding for younger apprentices. However, restricting recruitment opportunities for apprentices in line with the government funding levels will be discrimination on the grounds of age and this is unlikely to be justifiable.
LGE recommends that apprenticeship schemes should be open to all age groups because local authorities may be able to meet their objectives without formally restricting the age range of applicants. For example, a local authority may be able to run advertising campaigns designed to attract younger people. However, many employers find that applicants for apprenticeship jobs are usually younger people because these posts are normally lower paid"


Still clear as mud eh!!