Tesco boss calls for youth employment reform

Tesco CEO Ken Murphy has called on the government to make youth employment a priority, claiming the apprenticeship levy is “restrictive and impractical”, and that reform is needed. 

Writing in This Is Money, Murphy also announced a new Tesco apprenticeship scheme for 16-18-year-olds, aimed at students that are “struggling and desperately need support”.

Murphy wrote that the issue of youth employment was a “societal issue that needs to be addressed through the combined effort of business and government – and retail plays a crucial role in that”.

He said: “The apprenticeship levy is restrictive and impractical, if well intentioned. And my opinions are not unique. The British Retail Consortium, the industry body, recently described the levy as ‘outdated’ and ‘broken’.

“If reforms had been made when we first started asking for them five years ago, we would have recruited an additional 2,500 apprentices in Tesco alone.”

It comes as Tesco has launched the Stronger Starts apprenticeship for 16–18-year-olds.

According to Murphy, Stronger Starts is about “making a positive difference in communities and this apprenticeship is aimed at students that are struggling and desperately need support”.

It is the first Tesco apprenticeship that requires no education qualifications and can give young people the equivalent of five GCSEs.

Murphy said: “Entry level apprenticeships are proven to improve skills and typically raise pay by 20 per cent within four years at Tesco. But poorly designed Government policy means we can’t offer enough of them. We can only offer 150 Stronger Starts Apprenticeships, when we know there will be demand for so many more.

“To date we have put in more than £100million to the Apprenticeship Levy but according to the Government, our new Stronger Starts apprenticeship barely qualifies for levy funds.”

He added: “In fact, since 2017 a combined £2bn of levy funds have been returned, unused, to Treasury and the number of entry level apprentices has plummeted. As politicians put pen to paper on their manifestos, I hope that helping young people get into work is top of their agenda and if they finally start listening to retailers – they’ll see we have some practical ways to help bridge the gap between education and employment. The social and economic imperative is clear. Reform is a win-win for workers, business and the economy.

“So, if the government is serious about levelling up the country, helping people into skilled, secure employment and driving growth after two difficult years of inflation, then now is the time for a clear statement of intent.”