doctor Bob
Established Member
you forgot "fanny" .................. great days.too busy with beer pong / clubmed holidays / gap year(s) "to find myself" / clubbing it / other self indulgent BS and generally pissing it against the wall.
you forgot "fanny" .................. great days.too busy with beer pong / clubmed holidays / gap year(s) "to find myself" / clubbing it / other self indulgent BS and generally pissing it against the wall.
I'm just going to put aside the vitriol about art history (although, I would note it's not that far removed from the history of furniture or interior joinery, which I think a few people on the forum have more than a passing interest in) and assume you're unlikely to be convinced of the value of scholarly research in anything which can't immediately be translated into money, or by the concept of transferable skills in a "knowledge economy".Can't expect to stay in the game if you don't understand the rules of how to win and too much ground has been given already to the bleating voices of those whom want to study "art history" on the taxpayers penny that has led to an almost complete annihiliation of trade apprenticships and places to learn the trades.)
The YOUTH did that, not the old, and only now 20 odd years later are they realising thier monumental mistake.
To be fair the engineering firm my dad worked for stopped taking on apprentices a few years after he Finnished his because they got fed up of training people for them to leave as soon as they where qualified!I'm just going to put aside the vitriol about art history (although, I would note it's not that far removed from the history of furniture or interior joinery, which I think a few people on the forum have more than a passing interest in) and assume you're unlikely to be convinced of the value of scholarly research in anything which can't immediately be translated into money, or by the concept of transferable skills in a "knowledge economy".
Having done that I can safely say that your assertion about apprenticeships is entirely inaccurate.
I've had more than passing involvement with trying to establish new degree apprenticeships (it's very difficult and horrendously burecratic) and have spent a fair bit of time speaking to older colleagues who were heavily involved with CITB and PROSkills (The process industries skills council) about the decline of apprenticeships.
In their estimation the end of the craft apprenticeship came about as the result of ongoing political meddling by people who wanted to turn everything into neat qualifications, whilst not listening to the voices of Industry Representatives who actually hired apprentices and skilled workers.
That's got damn all to do with young people, but at least a bit to do with who their parents and grandparent's voted for.
Also, even if we suddenly got the old apprenticeship schemes, and all the poly's and technical colleges which supported people who started via an apprenticeship route to develop into foremen, (and managers, and engineers, and even directors) back tomorrow...
We just don't have the industry sectors which could support a huge number of skilled apprentices anymore, because of...
Wait for it...
Political and Economic decisions made as far back as 40 years ago.
Like it or not, when it comes to the big issues around access to well paid, skilled employment and the vocational training which enables that in the UK; the die was cast a long time ago...
In fact there's a good chance that the root causes stem from decisions which were being made in westminster back when you were still in short trousers!
Decisions which had become largely irreversible by the time I was born, but wouldn't fully materialise for decades
I spent a good half an hour looking at "a bike wheel on a bit of white woodchip wall paper" in the MOMA, New York. By heck it don't half make you realise what it's all been about, I was absolutely delighted my wife decided we should spend the whole day there, just to really really understand it all, my day was topped of when a group of dancers in body stockings started to do a dance workshop. A modern interpretation of childrens games, it was at this point I had an epithany and became enlightened and one with the piece,, unfortunately they threw me out when I tried to join in.I'm just going to put aside the vitriol about art history (although, I would note it's not that far removed from the history of furniture or interior joinery, which I think a few people on the forum have more than a passing interest in) and assume you're unlikely to be convinced of the value of scholarly research in anything which can't immediately be translated into money, or by the concept of transferable skills in a "knowledge economy".
That usually points to them not paying them what they were worth in the labour market.To be fair the engineering firm my dad worked for stopped taking on apprentices a few years after he Finnished his because they got fed up of training people for them to leave as soon as they where qualified!
Modern art isn't exactly my cup of tea either, but you can't argue that people aren't making a decent whack from it... (Or rather from being persuasive enough to part the pretentious from their money).I spent a good half an hour looking at "a bike wheel on a bit of white woodchip wall paper" in the MOMA, New York. By heck it don't half make you realise what it's all been about, I was absolutely delighted my wife decided we should spend the whole day there, just to really really understand it all, my day was topped of when a group of dancers in body stockings started to do a dance workshop. A modern interpretation of childrens games, it was at this point I had an epithany and became enlightened and one with the piece,, unfortunately they threw me out when I tried to join in.
........ they didn't really throw me out.....but they did want punters to participate.
They got fed up of being out competed by firms that incurred no extra costs training people but offered a small wage increase to newly qualified staff according to my dad firms where constantly trying to poach people directly from school grounds so everyone stopped training and the skills went!That usually points to them not paying them what they were worth in the labour market.
It's a common enough pitfall for employers to fall into, the normal story being either:
- The company has rules restricting pay progression for staff, but other companies will pay a premium to get a skilled person right now...
Or
- People trained in house are subject to the "rusty halo" effect, because everyone remembers a time before they were competent, whilst someone joining fully trained doesn't have to deal with that, and gets ahead faster. When everyone coming up behind them sees that happening they think "stuff that, I'm not staying" and get out at the first chance.
Sounds like the apprentices were looking out for their own best interests which is entirely reasonable, whilst the various companies were fighting amongst themselves as they are wont to...They got fed up of being out competed by firms that incurred no extra costs training people but offered a small wage increase to newly qualified staff according to my dad firms where constantly trying to poach people directly from school grounds so everyone stopped training and the skills went!
I wonder how many are left that can teach high lvl apprenticeships especially in engineering?Sounds like the apprentices were looking out for their own best interests which is entirely reasonable, whilst the various companies were fighting amongst themselves as they are wont to...
In principle this is the kind of thing the apprentice levy is meant to prevent, by forcing all large companies to fund training at the same level of, and redistributing a portion of that funding to smaller firms to level the playing field...
Unfortunately the process of developing and delivering apprenticeships which qualify for funding is phenomenally burecratic, which pairs with a 20+ year break in delivering "proper" apprenticeships has made the results so far underwhelming to say the least.
At least in Sheffield there's a huge number of people and resources, with a number of strong programmes running.I wonder how many are left that can teach high lvl apprenticeships especially in engineering?
Judging by the firm's involved there looking for the 1 percent! So how much work are the apprentices actually doing? Are we going to end up with another generation of school based learners that can talk the job better than they can do it?At least in Sheffield there's a huge number of people and resources, with a number of strong programmes running.
The integration between the University, the UTC (University Technical College, an FE college focused on engineering supported with resources and staff from the two uni's), the Advanced Manufacturing Research Center, AMRC Training College, Rolls Royce, Boeing, McClaren, Kyrocera and Sandvik are pretty tight, delivering HNC and Degree level apprenticeships for about 7 years now.
Sheffield Forgmasters maintains a full range of craft apprenticeships in all aspects of forge, foundry, fabrication and machining work.
LUK/Schaffler have craft apprenticeships in metallurgy and machining, with high performing apprentices offered the opportunity to go on for a HND, Degree, or management trainee program on the company...
What's notable however is that they're all tied to gigantic well resourced companies of the sort that are comparatively rare as employers in the UK these days.
It's been that way for as long as I can recall, when I left school the people going on to apprenticeships in desirable engineering disciplines tended to have done A-Levels or a mix of A-Levels and a B-Tech.Judging by the firm's involved there looking for the 1 percent!
I know someone who apprenticed at LUK in metallurgy, who did 4 days a week working and one day a week at college, and a couple of month-long training courses in Germany.So how much work are the apprentices actually doing? Are we going to end up with another generation of school based learners that can talk the job better than they can do it?
If you are referring to Edward colston a statue in bristol I can assure you nobody thought he was the sole reason for slavery. Also the crowd was made up of a large range of ages - lots of over 40s. Bristolians understand that he was just one slave trader, but he’s the one who built bristol. He’s the one who had his statue put up 100 years after he died and that’s the same statue that Bristolians campaigned to remove for 20 years. Where are the people campaigning to put it back? There are none. The colston society voluntarily voted to disband. Sounds like democracy to me. Like every other civic monument - the people decide if it stays there, not ‘history’.oh and read more bloody history so that they don't go on a rampage pulling down statues of people they think are the sole reason for slavery in the 16th & 17th centuries when the black people themselves have a lot to answer for in that regard (and the arabs and pretty much everyone else - oh and the christians advocated it as well, go check for yourself - have they ransacked any churches? nope.)
Exactly this. A voice of reason!We are in danger of applying lessons learned during our lives (I left school 50 years ago) to a very different very different world today. It is at best only partly helpful, and at worst completely inappropriate.
Young people need to think about what the world holds in the next 30-50 years, not what happened and expectations 30-50 years out of date.
Traditional career paths will become increasingly rare. Career success will rely on product design, product development, promotion, logistics etc. Service industries will continue to thrive with greater leisure time.
The rewards will likely go to those who have very good social and service skills, and are responsive to changes in their market and business sector.
As work will favour the bright, innovative, responsive, articulate, imaginative, the opportunities for lifes "plodders" will become more difficult. A life working in mundane but sound jobs (eg: railways, retail sales, building, assembly lines, etc) will become scarce.
This transition is the reason for current debates over "universal basic income" payable to all to provide a minimum standard of living.
The balance between material success and other of lifes pleasures may also be changing. Covid may have made people increasingly appreciate the value of friends, family, community, health etc, and the relative triviality of material goods once basic needs are met.
Roy . as I am a " boomer " child born in 1961 I can can say that I had a lucky childhood an a Cumquats teenager period, growing up with the fuel crisis, armsrace , fear of the 3rd WW possiblities of a thermo nuclear war. Top that with my generation entering the workplace in 1977/8 into massive young peoples unemployment and very few oppertunities for work.But at least we had the industries that could have helped, Steel, Mining and ship building. I lived through the Thatcher years and for us baby boomers it was like our version of the blitz. She finished the days when you left a job Friday to start a new one Monday, so many companies fell and dole ques grew with estate agents doors being blocked by the numbers of keys returned.