Time Off to Train derailed?
The future of one of the previous government's flagship schemes
now looks doubtful after the announcement of a complete review of
the scheme by the coalition government. The review could mean
that SMEs employing up to 250 people will not have to comply with
the new procedures from April 2011.
Time Off to train (TOTT) was introduced for larger businesses
(employing 250 people or more) in April this year, and was set to
be rolled out to SMEs in April 2011. Under the scheme,
employees have a right to request time off work to train.
Although the employer does not have to pay for the training, or for
the time off in most cases, an employer which receives a request
from an employee does have to follow a procedure to consider the
request. The procedure includes meeting with the employee and
giving a right of appeal if the employee's request is not
granted. To lawfully refuse a request, the employer must give
one of a number of specific reasons.
Over the summer, the coalition government announced a full
review of the scheme ahead of it being rolled out to SMEs in April
2011, as part of its commitment to reduce the burden of "red tape"
on employers. The consultation paper asks whether the scheme
should apply to SMEs as planned; whether it should remain as it is,
or even whether it should be scrapped altogether.
What's likely to happen?
The very fact that there is a formal review of a scheme already
underway seems to indicate the outcome of the review will be that
it will not apply to SMEs. The government has already
indicated it wants to reduce the burden of regulation on SMEs by
asking the Low Pay Commission to take into account their particular
difficulties in its next review of the National Minimum
Wage. The procedures which TOTT imposes on employers
could be seen as another burden – in management time – on SMEs.
Given this slant, it also seems likely that larger employers
have a strong case for arguing TOTT should not apply to,
either.
The outcome of the review should be known early in the new year,
and watch this space for further news.