First Minister confirms 500 extra apprenticeships

youth employment boost at start of Apprenticeship Week

An extra 500 Modern Apprenticeship places will be funded over the next year following a £3.8 million investment, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed today.

The funding will also be used to create more opportunities for young people still at school through work-based Foundation Apprenticeships for senior secondary pupils, which will provide industry recognised qualifications and first hand insight into the world of work.

The 500 places – announced to mark the start of Scottish Apprenticeship Week – are the first step to expand Skills Development Scotland’s current apprentice programme from 25,000 to 30,000 by 2020.

The First Minister met with some of the female apprentice mechanics at GTG Training which is owned by Arnold Clark, to highlight the opportunities open to young women through the new funding to encourage them to consider roles traditionally filled by men.

Arnold Clark has seen 160 apprentices starting this year – of whom 31 are female.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “It’s vitally important that all of our young people in Scotland – no matter their background – have the opportunities available to get on in life.

“Apprenticeships not only offer our young people better job prospects – they also have a positive impact on businesses and industry, bringing value to employers and our economy.

“We have already seen youth unemployment reach its lowest level in seven years and with further investment in our young workforce – like these 500 apprenticeships – we can hope to see that continue to improve.

“I also want to make sure that these opportunities are open to everyone. Traditionally, some sectors have been dominated by men and women have felt that there are barriers to them entering.

“As we continue the expansion of our successful apprenticeship programmes we need to make sure that more young women are aware of the tremendous opportunities that an apprenticeship provides.

“I want our young women – as well as our young men – to be inspired and supported to achieve whatever they want in life.”

Carol Henry, Group HR Director, Arnold Clark said: “As a large employer and supporter of developing the young workforce of Scotland, I am pleased to see the continued efforts being made around the extension of apprenticeships. For young people to succeed in today’s workplace, it is essential that they are equipped with the right skills and knowledge. The public and private sector have an important role to play in ensuring valuable learning opportunities continue to be available to young people.”

News of the extra 500 places follows hot on the heels of yesterday’s announcement of a £125,000 investment to support female apprenticeships.

Women will receive further help in taking up careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) from a new programme to support Modern Apprenticeships (MAs).

The Scottish Government is investing a further £125,000 in the CareerWISE initiative to raise awareness of STEM MAs to girls and their parents, break down barriers to women taking them up and showcase employers taking action to address gender diversity in MAs.

CareerWISE, which is delivered by Equate Scotland at Edinburgh Napier University, was created in 2013 to raise awareness of STEM careers for girls from school age onwards.

The announcement coincides with the start of Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2015, the annual showcase to highlight the benefits of MAs to both employers and potential trainees.

Cabinet Secretary for Fair Work, Skills and Training Roseanna Cunningham said: “The CareerWISE programme has made a considerable impact over the last 18 months however there remains the need to address gender balance in the STEM sectors in Scotland.

“The Scottish Government still firmly believes that there is no such thing as a job for a boy or a job for a girl. Our continued support for the CareerWISE programme and its new focus to support young women access STEM MAs sits at the heart of our drive for a more productive and fairer work place.

“I am very pleased to be able to fund this very specific piece of work that CareerWISE will take forward. This is further illustration of our determination to respond positively to recommendations of the report into Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce.

“We need more women to take up non-traditional career paths to achieve gender equality in the workplace. We are also committed to creating 30,000 new MA opportunities every year by 2020 and more women placed in STEM sectors will help us move towards that goal.

“This year’s Scottish Apprenticeship Week looks like being the biggest yet with dozens of events up and down the country with a number of Scottish ministers getting involved in both local and national initiatives. BT have already seized the initiative by announcing 90 new MA posts on Friday, and I hope the next week’s activity encourages even more employers to consider the advantages of MAs to their business and the wider economy.”

Skills Development Scotland, Chief Executive, Damien Yeates, said: “Modern Apprenticeships provide excellent opportunities for young people to work, learn and earn.

“Programmes such as CareerWISE help young women see the real benefits of Modern Apprenticeships and work-based learning as valuable career options.

“We want Scottish Apprenticeship Week to inspire young people to find out about apprenticeships and take up the great opportunities apprenticeships provide to give their careers a great start.”

Linda Somerville, Project Director at Equate Scotland,added: “Building on the success with Careerwise, Equate Scotland will partner with employers to encourage them to take positive action to offer young women access to MAs, to address skills shortages in these sectors.”

Support not stereotypes, says Lazarowicz

Young people looking for their first job: Mark Lazarowicz MP calls on Government to offer support not stereotypes

Mark Lazarowicz MP is highlighting a new scheme run by the voluntary sector EY Foundation that will offer paid work experience, advice and support to young people in Edinburgh looking for their first job.

Youth unemployment (amongst 16-24 year-olds) is still running at 18.1% in Scotland and 16.9% in the UK as a whole. In Scotland it has increased by 4.5% since 2008.

The North and Leith MP is urging young people in Edinburgh to apply for the Foundation’s Smart Futures scheme, a ten-month paid work experience programme.

He said: “Schemes like Smart Futures and the City Council’s Edinburgh Guarantee are priceless opportunities for young people to get experience and the skills to succeed in finding their first job.

“Labour is committed to introducing a compulsory Jobs Guarantee that would ensure young people who are unemployed start gaining vital work experience and skills.

“Too often the Government resorts to negative stereotypes, talking of the well-worn path from school gate to Jobcentre and on to a life on benefits.

“The reality is that the vast majority of young people desperately want to work and are eager to apply for schemes like Smart Futures – the Government should learn from it and the Edinburgh Guarantee because too often it’s the Government that’s failing not young people.”

The scheme gives young people work experience and the chance to meet with people in business and get valuable tips on writing CVs, application and interview advice, as well as an EY Foundation mentor throughout Sixth Year.

The City Council’s Edinburgh Guarantee aims to ensure that every school leaver goes into employment, further education, or training by bringing them together with employers. There is more information on how it works at

https://www.edinburghguarantee.org/about-us/

Applications for the EY Foundation’s summer 2015 Smart Futures scheme are now open until 1 March 2015 and anyone keen to apply can find more information on it at http://ukcareerguide.ey.com/schools/ey-smart-futures

More Scots women move into work

‘a strong economy will help tackle the inequality that blights our society’ – John Swinney

Deputy First Minister and Finance Secretary John Swinney has today welcomed news that 2014 has been another encouraging and buoyant year for Scotland, according to employment statistics covering the period Aug-Oct 2014.

Female participation and youth employment are seen as the key successes of 2014.

The level of youth unemployment in Scotland has fallen by over 26 per cent in the last 12 months and is now at its lowest in the last five years, alongside a fall in the overall Scottish unemployment rate.

Latest Labour Market Statistics show female employment has risen by 46,000 over the year to reach 1,288,000 – the highest female employment level on record.

The number of women claiming Jobseekers Allowance fell by 8,900 over the year. At 27,900 it is at its lowest level since February 2009.

Scotland has a higher female employment rate than the UK – with the Scottish rate 3.2 percentage points above the UK rate. Scotland also has a lower female unemployment rate and higher female participation rate than the UK.

Mr Swinney said: “2014 has seen Scotland consistently outperform the UK on employment, unemployment and inactivity rates and Scotland’s economy continues to go from strength to strength.

“A real success story over the last year is increasing female participation and the narrowing gender gap in employment rates. Over the last two years, the gap between male and female employment rates has narrowed in Scotland, unlike the UK – with the gap closing by 3.6 percentage points in Scotland.

“As the Scottish economy grows our task is to ensure that everyone is able to benefit from that economic success. It is a top priority of this government to tackle the inequalities that blight our society, and by strengthening and stabilising our economy with an active and engaged workforce we can go a long way to make that happen.

“With discussion on further powers for the Scottish Parliament now taking place it is essential that we have the full tools we need to support employment opportunities for everyone in Scotland.”

Youth employment strategy to be ‘refreshed’

Edinburgh’s young people to have their say

Scotland’s Youth Employment Strategy is to be updated to reflect the strengthening economic conditions and the Government’s ambition to radically improve how young people move from education to employment .

Employers, public bodies and the third sector all now have the chance to contribute to a ‘refreshed’ strategy which is expected to be published later this year.

Cabinet Secretary for Training, Youth and Women’s Employment Angela Constance will meet around 60 young people in Edinburgh later today to gauge their views on the best ways to help 16 to 24 year olds into work. She said: “The Scottish Government’s Youth Employment Strategy was published in late 2012 as a cross government drive to ensure the right links were being made by government, local authorities and other key partners.

“Much has changed since then, with the latest figures showing that youth unemployment has fallen from 91,000 to 65,000 in the last two years. The number out of work is still unacceptable but Scotland’s economy has returned to pre-recession levels and employment in the general population is higher than ever.

“I am determined to maintain a strong focus on youth unemployment so that young people will continue to benefit from the economic growth that we are delivering. There has also been considerable activity at government level, not least our response to the work by the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce.

“History tells us that following a period of economic difficulty, it takes longer for the jobs market for younger age groups to recover, but I am determined to push beyond even the pre-recession levels of youth unemployment of around 13 per cent.

“We share the Commission’s vision of a world class system of vocational education and of a 40 per cent cut in youth unemployment by 2020. But to ensure we are doing everything in our power to help our young women and men to succeed and to take advantage of the strengthening economy, our approach must continue to evolve and our central strategy must reflect the current economic conditions.

“With the full range of economic levers that an independent country would have including taxation and welfare, we would be able to better align our service so that we make an even greater difference in the lives of our young women and men.”

In a joint statement YouthLink Scotland, Scottish Youth Parliament, and Young Scot, said: “As organisations who work with young people we welcome the government’s continued focus on youth employment. It is important that an updated youth employment strategy listens to the views of young people so we can develop the right employment programmes, training and opportunities that reflect their needs. A well supported, vibrant and dynamic youth work and young people’s sector will play a key role alongside the strategy in bringing skills and positive opportunities to young people.”

Sixty new jobs at Scottish Gas in Granton

At least sixty new jobs will be created at Scottish Gas HQ on Granton’s waterfront, it has been announced. Parent company Centrica plans to create 300 jobs at contact centres across the UK.

The majority of the new posts will be created in Cardiff and Edinburgh,with the remainder going to Uddingston, Leeds, Leicester, Manchester, Oldbury and Stockport.

The jobs come on top of 300 similar jobs recently filled. At least twelve school-leavers will be among the new recruits, as part of British Gas’ commitment to tackle youth unemployment.

Kevin Roxburgh, Director of Customer Services at British Gas, explained: “These extra 300 jobs show our continued focus on customer service excellence. We’re looking for people who are committed to helping customers, to join the 28,000-strong team at British Gas.

“These front line roles are critical to delivering the service our customers expect, helping customers with everything from bills and boiler breakdowns, to engineer visits and energy efficiency.

“Our contact centres are vital to the running of our company. They’re the main point where we’re in touch directly with customers, so it’s important we get it right.

“We’ll be ensuring customers get a swift response and resolution to their queries, by ensuring the right people are always on hand with the knowledge and expertise to help.”

Mr Roxburgh added that all new employees will undertake a comprehensive training period where they will be given the knowledge and expertise to deliver excellent customer experience.

Encouraging signs as wages outstrip inflation

Brighter outlook for job seekers as unemployment falls again

There have been more indications that economic recovery is gathering pace with the publication of the latest figures by the Office of National Statistics yesterday.

Unemployment has dropped below 7% for the first time since the recession and employment has seen the biggest annual jump in a generation, the latest figures show.

Unemployment fell by 77,000 in the last 3 months, taking the unemployment rate to 6.9% for the first time since 2009.

In the largest annual rise in nearly 25 years, the number of people of people in a job rose by 691,000 – more than double the population of Newcastle – bringing the record number of people in work to 30.39 million.

Wages also rose on the year by 1.7%, against yesterday’s announcement that March’s inflation had dropped to 1.6%, and job vacancies rose again, up 108,000 over the past year bringing the number of vacancies in the UK economy to 611,000.

Minister for Employment Esther McVey said: “More young people are in work, more women are in work, wages are going up, and more and more businesses are hiring – and it’s a credit to them that Britain is working again.

“But there is still more to do – which is why I’d go even further and call on more employers to work with us to tap into the talent pool the UK offers.”

In Scotland, employment levels are at their highest since records began with 2,575,000 people over 16 now employed. The employment level is now 13,000 above its pre-recession peak of 2,562,000 in 2008.

National Statistics also published yesterday by the Scottish Government showed Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 0.2 per cent over the fourth quarter of 2013 and increased by 1.6 per cent during 2013, the fastest annual growth since 2007.

The highest employment level record has been met by an increase in employment of 68,000 over the year, driven by an increase of 46,000 in the female employment level. The female rate of employment in Scotland is now 1.8 percentage points above the UK.

Scotland has again outperformed the UK across all headline labour market indicators, with a lower unemployment rate, higher employment rate and lower economic inactivity rate: details not missed by First Minister Alex Salmond.

Although the Scottish unemployment rate increased by 0.1 percentage points over the quarter, over the year it fell by 0.8 percentage points and now stands at 6.5 per cent compared to 6.9 per cent in the UK as a whole.

For the 17th consecutive month the claimant count decreased in Scotland with the number of people claiming Jobseekers Allowance falling by 2,400 over the month to March.

Welcoming the latest labour market figures, First Minister Alex Salmond said: “Today’s historic jobs figures show the Scottish Government’s policy of investing in infrastructure to boost the economy is making significant progress with employment levels at a record high. To put it in perspective, there are 285,000 more people in employment today than there were when the Scottish Parliament was established in 1999.

“Scotland is outperforming the UK across employment, unemployment and inactivity rates which goes to show even with the limited powers over the economy at our disposal we are improving our country’s economic health.

“Everyone aged between 16 and 19 is guaranteed an offer of a place in training or education through Opportunities for All and just this week we revealed we will create thousands of additional Modern Apprenticeship places, bringing our total target for MA’s to 30,000 every year by 2020 – double the level we inherited in 2007.

“This commitment to equipping our young people with the skills that they need will be further strengthened with the appointment of Angela Constance as Cabinet Secretary for Training, Youth and Female Employment.”