Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The figure of a 40% increase in apprenticeship registrations in 2021 sounds impressive. That means basically that there were 16,000 apprentices last year and there are 25,000 this year. Much still has to be done to make sure that it works. I sense that there is a problem among the public where employers do not see the value in apprenticeships. There is a certain amount of risk from an employer’s point of view in the apprentice moving on after they have taken them on and trained them for four years. That is an issue that will have to be addressed by a combination of employers paying apprentices properly and then paying them properly when they qualify. However, there has to be the ability to show an employer that it works and has a value for them as well. That is the big problem. What measures will be taken to ensure apprentices will be retained in their apprenticeships and that employers will offer apprenticeships as well, because that is vitally important?

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