I have so many people asking me why I employ apprentices for my salon, Serenity Loves, and for Jo Bevilacqua and encourage everyone I mentor to employ apprentices for their small businesses. So I thought I would write a blog on how apprentices have been fundamental in all my small businesses and why you should look into hiring them into your businesses.
– Loyalty
This is a huge one for me! Loyalty is one of my biggest values! If you bring an apprentice in at the early stages of their career journey, they will more than likely stay with you for a longer amount of time because they have grown with you. As small business owners would know, loyalty can be very hard to find in people. And it especially hurts when an employee decides to leave. It’s hard to not take it personal. But when you give someone a chance to work for you, help them get a qualification AND they are learning and growing every day, their loyalty to you is much stronger.
– They learn from the start what the expectations are and how to do things
All businesses are different and they all teach their staff different ways to do things. By hiring an apprentice, you can train them exactly to your business standards and needs. It can be more difficult to hire someone who already has a background in that industry, as it means you will have to spend more time retraining them to your business expectations. By employing someone who has never been in that industry before, it is easier to train them as they won’t know any different.
– Business costs are lower
Apprenticeship schemes are lower than ever and you may even be lucky enough to get apprentices funded for you. This means that all you would need to pay is their minimum wage (£3.90 per hour, from April 2020 it will increase to £4.15 per hour). But if you do need to pay for them to do the qualification, it is only 5% so not a huge cost for businesses. As a plus, because their wages are lower, this means that National Insurance and Tax on the business is lower too! Especially for small business owners, it’s important to try and keep your costs as low as possible so because their minimum wage is lower, it’s a win win situation for everybody.
You can find all information about NLW and NMW HERE!
“I loved the idea of an apprenticeship after dropping out of college. I love learning new things, so the idea of working and getting a qualification at the same time was ideal for me. My confidence and knowledge grow every single day” – Chelsie
“I wasn’t sure about apprenticeships at first but after looking into it properly, I felt it was more suited to me. Being an apprentice has allowed me to find my feet, grow my confidence and generally have a more positive outlook on life.” – Hayley
Have you got apprentices in your small business? We would love to know how they have benefited you and your business?
