Increasing the number of apprentices in England to catch up with similar economies would boost Britain’s GDP by £4bn a year, according to the think tank Demos.
A new report for National Apprenticeship Week argues that raising apprentice levels by up to 300,000 required to match other G20 countries would help bridge the productivity gap between Britain and competing nations.
It would also reduce youth unemployment, currently running at 20%. The Up to the Job report shows on average, that an apprenticeship typically raises an employee’s productivity by £214 per week, leading to both increased wages and company profits.
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