What should i do ? - Rights of an apprentice

[Roadyz]

I am a 3rd year apprentice plumber working for a very small Ltd Company. and to be honest i feel trapped.

I am Contracted to 39 Hours a week

i normally work 45 - 50

i know there is "seemingly" no such thing as compulsory overtime but i dont get left with much choice as the "job needs to be finished" so he says

i dont mind doing my bit, but when your doing full bathroom renovations totally yourself for less than 7 quid an hour you dont feel like being generous with your time

i just feel that with the current building downturn i would struggle to get anything better.

i know that the previous apprentices' life was made hell after he rocked the boat, things got so bad he eventually left.

just want to pull my hair out To be honest

i Have 13 months until i am time served,

What are my options?

 

[wms]

You option is to think back to before you had a trade and appreciate the fact that this company has invested in you, its called pay back time! thats the way of the world.

 

[Roadyz]

I do agree. to some extent,

i do appreciate the chance i have been given
i work almost totally unsupervised - what i mean by that is i normally i am the only person on a job, from beginning to end, I Can ask for advice, but thats it.

It is a good Company to work for, in the respect that the trust me to do all the work, But i feel that I do a high standard of work and deal with alot of pressure.

I was considering asking for more money

 

[nickso]

I was considering asking for more money

good luck.

if i were you i'd ask but if he started getting arsey about it i'd do my time and see what he does at the end of it. if he wants to keep you on and you are not happy with the terms i'd walk. no point in staying just for security alone IMO.

 

[wms]

the advise I always give to my lads is stick it out get your papers then prove to me you're a valuable asset to the company and then we can talk. although i do feel you are being put on if you are expected to do the whole job on your own but then a gain i have a lad who's nearly 18 and can walk most jobs on his own, even given him his own van to give him the chance to go and do this,. the beauty of it is once you have got your trade its yours for life. I Know where you are coming from, been an apprentice my self,
if you do ask for more money the best way to approach this is to gently remind the gaffa what you can do for him ask customers for referrals on your work. do not let him think you are demanding more or your off, as this is a guaranteed hiding to nowhere. more what you could offer the company in return, unfortunately you have picked a bad time in the industry to feel despondent.

 

[Roadyz]

13 months aint a long time.

 

[^woody^]

The idea of an apprenticeship is that you learn - learn from various other tradesmen about how to do work differently. It is not about being used as cheap labour. And its not about just doing bathrooms day in and day out

I don't agre with WMS in this case - has the company really invested in this apprentice or is he just being abused, while the company gets the training grants?

Ask to work with someone.

If you are not finished by the normal end of the day, then either stop work at a suitable point and finish the next day, or tell your supervisor that you will work over for overtime rates.

I'm not certain how apprenticeships are managed nowadays - who runs this at the firm, and is there training body who you report to? Can you leave, can they make you leave an apprenticeship?

If the company treats you like this now, then what makes you think that they will be any better when you finish your time? What will you have learnt in this time with them? Are you really better off as you are?

You need to sort the situation out for your own future's sake

 

[Roadyz]

has the company really invested in this apprentice or is he just being abused, while the company gets the training grants?

I do everything except the tiling, ( i do all the joinery work also) bit of a kick in the nuts when your making 230 p/w - Wonder how much the job quote is for >

i know i will be in good standing to go out myself when my time is out, but thats little consolation at the moment....

 

[hairyben]

Probably best to grin and bear it, concentrate on what you're getting out the deal, not the discrepancies between your contact and reality.

Apprenticeships aren't reffered to as "serving time" for nowt

I did a couple of years as an apprentice on a 37hr contract working with sparks on a 42hr contract. Many employers like to think they're getting something extra, and they're too arrogant to see the disharmony they create.

 

[experience]

13 months may seem like a long time but believe me it will fly. Worst thing you could do is leave or get sacked from this job and not be able to get another one and not be able to finish your apprenticeship!

 

[breezer]

Wonder how much the job quote is for >

What the job is being charged for is nothing to do with what you get paid, you should be paid by the hour. a job should be quoted to take a set number of hours.
In that quote is material cost, your cost, and profit. out of that profit comes telphone calls, your transport, the lady in the office who does nothing ec.

That said, a certain amount of overtime is to be expected, to, as you say get the job one, but you should be paid a higher rate for this over time. Even as an aprentice you should get paid OT

 

[GPlumb]

I know 3rd and 4th year apprentices that are earning £14-18 an hour.

Why don't you look for another firm?

 

[breezer]

I know 3rd and 4th year apprentices that are earning £14-18 an hour.

Why don't you look for another firm?

think i will go and work for them at that much

come on then who and what is this company that pays £18 / hour

unless of course you are not telling us that they are self employed

 

[craig66]

18 quid a hour,my arse
personely,having 2 apprentices,i think you are a bit cheeky,
your boss has been training you to do your job for 3 years,the majority of that he has been earning the grand total of nowt off you,once you can do the job to a decent standard its payback time,i think 7 quid a hour is fair for a apprentice,a a pound a hour i was on and that was in 1989,now thats ****,think yourself lucky

 

[D_Hailsham]

when your doing full bathroom renovations totally yourself

Speaking as a customer, I would be very concerned if I was paying top whack for a bathroom which was being installed by an apprentice, even if he was very good. It would be interesting to know what Trading Standards thought about the practice.