// Tesco criticises “inflexibility” of government’s Apprenticeship Levy fund
// CEO Ken Murphy has called on the government for urgent reform
Tesco CEO Ken Murphy has expressed his concerns over thousands of staff missing out on new training due to restrictions on the government’s Apprenticeship Levy fund.
Murphy has called on the government for urgent reform, saying stringent rules mean the grocer is offering fewer apprenticeships than before the levy was introduced.
He criticised the “inflexible” fund for “needing work” as it “puts entry level apprenticeships at a disadvantage over those who are already in management positions”.
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More than £600 million was handed to the Treasury in the last year from employers that could have funded over 60,000 apprenticeships.
Murphy said Tesco has been able to make use of just 14% of the £100 million it has put into the fund.
He added that the government “needs to fix this levy and prioritise entry-level apprenticeships” which “improve skills and typically raise pay by 20% within four years”.
National Apprenticeship Week, which ended last week, celebrates the achievements of apprentices.
Tesco has now contributed more than £100 million to the apprenticeship levy since it was launched in 2017, and it has only been able to use 14% of that.
