Understanding the Apprentice Act 1961: Can Trainee Period Count as Work Experience?

Apprentice Act 1961 Clarification

The Apprentice Act 1961 clearly indicates that trainees are not considered workmen or employees. Therefore, we can only issue a training certificate and not an experience certificate. If we were to count the trainee period as experience, then the trainee would be classified as an employee, which is unconstitutional.

It is not clear what you exactly want to know. No doubt, an apprentice shall receive a certificate for being trained in a trade. However, the title of the certificate—whether 'experience' or 'apprentice'—does not really alter the status of the person as an employee or trainee since it depends on what they actually did on the premises of the employer, i.e., training or actual job.

Regards,
B. Saikumar
HR & Labour Law Advisor
Mumbai

Management Trainees and Job Experience

Food Corporation of India initially appoints Management Trainees and provides them with training for different streams while paying them a stipend. After the successful completion of the training period, they are appointed as Managers.

Now, tell us whether their training period will be considered as job experience or not.

Thanks,
Naresh

One way to look at it is: if you joined the company with a job offer and the company provided you training, you can count that as experience. However, if you did not have a job offer (i.e., joined the company for the training purpose), you wouldn't count that as job experience. The rule of thumb is when you joined the company, did the company give you a job offer or a training offer?

Trainee Status: Employee or Not?

The Food Corporation of India (FCI) invites applications every year for the post of Management Trainee. The training period is one year, and after successful completion of training, the applicants are given a job/employment offer. Now, the question is, FCI, which is the employer, states that the Management Trainee period is not considered as experience, and the trainee is not an employee. However, the Honorable Court rejected this. Please advise.

Regards.

As per the Government of India order, "Training period is counted as duty and it is counted in his/her experience for departmental exam."

Questions on Experience Counting

There are two questions: whether experience is counted in a Departmental Exam for a higher post, for Direct Recruitment for a higher post, or in both cases.

FCI advertised AGM post by direct recruitment. Both departmental and open candidates applied for the same post. Now, a few department candidates filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court against the FCI for not counting their Management Trainee period as experience. The Judge gave a personal opinion that the training period of a Management Trainee shall be counted as experience even in a Direct Exam. I think it is not the right decision. Please suggest...

The trainee is not an employee. However, as per the internal circular of FCI, they have treated the training period of individuals whose services are subsequently confirmed as regular employees in the same organization for the purpose of computing service, enabling them to appear for departmental tests, etc.

Purpose of Allowing Departmental Tests

The purpose of allowing for departmental tests and the nature of duty assigned to trainee cadre employees should not be clubbed together. This is because a trainee means a learner or a person who has been taken to fill a regular vacancy. After acquiring the necessary skills or knowledge to perform a particular task during the training period, he may be absorbed as a probationer or regular employee.

Regards

Thank you for your reply. Please expand on your response and suggest whether, in the case of Open/Direct Recruitment, the trainee period of a Management Trainee may be counted as experience. In Direct Recruitment, anyone can apply for a job with the prescribed qualifications. The qualifications cannot be relaxed for departmental candidates in an open exam where the post is open to all. The judge mentions in his judgment that the benefit of the doubt can be given in Direct Recruitment to departmental candidates to consider their training period as experience, although there is no official order from the Government of India regarding whether to consider the training period as experience or not.

Regards,
N K Sharma

Considering Training as Work Experience

Where training is a part of the selection process, can we consider the training period as work experience? The format of the selection process is as follows:

- Written Exam = 70%
- Group Discussion = 10%
- Interview = 10%
- Induction Training = 10%

Selection Phases

- Ist Phase: Preliminary Selection is done based on 90% marks (Written, GD, and Interview).
- IInd Phase: The Final Selection List is prepared based on 100% marks after the successful completion of training (by including training marks).
- IIIrd Phase: Any failure in training results in disqualification.

Please suggest by considering the above judgment. The position of AGM was open to all applicants, but only departmental candidates were provided with the benefit of a training period, excluding others. This is unjust for those who applied for the position and are in need of the same training period.

Regards

Including Training Period as Work Experience

Whether the training period served in a position at a different organization can be included as part of the work experience for the subsequent position where the appointment was made through direct recruitment by a different employer.

Please let me know if you need any further assistance.