Key Features - Social Partners and Companies
Involvement of Social Partners
The social partners (employers´ and employees´ representatives) are important players in the Austrian apprenticeship training system. Both they and the companies are involved in the entire lifecycle of a qualification from the need analysis to the review of the training programme. As such, they are engaged in both strategic and operative tasks.
Involvement of Companies
Companies constitute the core of apprenticeship systems, as the major part of an apprentice’ training occurs in a company supported by apprenticeship training agreements and in-company trainers. Apprenticeship companies typically have to be approved as training and learning venue to ensure that they live up to specific standards in terms of learning as well as work and salary conditions. At times companies can be so specialised so that they cannot cover all the learning outcomes. In some systems two or more companies may in that case jointly offer an apprentice place.