Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

A genuine apprenticeship programme should be a crucial part of our higher education system and we should be expanding apprenticeships to other sectors. As with other forms of education, we should also challenge the financial barriers that exist to someone taking up an apprenticeship. The then Labour Party and Fine Gael Government scandalously introduced apprenticeship fees in 2014. These so-called registration fees can cost students thousands of euro and should be scrapped.

We also need to ensure that apprenticeship schemes are not used as a source of cheap labour for bosses. Apprentices should have full employment rights and equal pay for the work they are doing. This is not what we are seeing with the new JobBridge 2.0 scheme, the so-called work placement experience programme, WPEP. Two weeks ago, an apprenticeship scheme for bar workers was launched, where workers would do paid bar work and spend one day a week in class learning other skills relating to bar management. While there are some concerns around this, at least the workers are getting paid for their work and will come out with a level 7 qualification. At the same time, bars are advertising on Government websites to get unpaid bar workers on the JobBridge 2.0 scheme. Rody Bolands bar in Rathmines is looking for a bartender to work 30 hours per week for six months, completely unpaid. All the worker will get is €3.43 an hour welfare top-up paid by the taxpayer, with nothing from the employer. Bolands is not alone. The Brandon House Hotel in Wexford is looking for a food and beverage assistant on the JobBridge scheme as well. We need to ban-----

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