asked the Minister for Labour the total number of women apprentices currently registered with AnCO; and the trades involved.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Women Apprentices.
12.
There are eight women apprentices currently registered with AnCO. They are all apprentice upholsterers in the furniture industry.
Eight out of how many? Would it be 1,000?
Is the Deputy referring to the total number of apprentices in the country or in the centres?
In the centres.
There are about 500 apprentices with private employers in the furnishing trades, but none of these are in the centres.
In what way do AnCO recognise an establishment in which a female is employed?
That is a separate question.
Every question I ask seems to be a separate question. Can the Minister say in what way AnCO recognise an establishment in which a female is employed?
I do not know what the Deputy means.
How do AnCO establish that people are serving their time? Who decides that?
Would the Minister not agree that since there are only eight registered female apprentices, all of whom are in the upholstery trade, this is a matter of serious concern in terms of the training provided?
If I had been asked if any female had been refused apprenticeship, there might have been some reason for the question. We do not discriminate against the type of person applying for apprenticeship.
Surely the figures are self-evident?
Will the Minister consider the question I have asked him? There are people serving their apprenticeship in establishments where they are getting a fair chance of learning a trade but that trade may not be recognised by AnCO.
That is possible.
It is happening.
If the employers applied to AnCO for permission to employ apprentices AnCO would deal with the situation on the basis of the training facilities available in the firm but they cannot go around finding out everywhere there are apprentices.
We do not wish them to do that but things are made difficult for these people.
We make it easy for them.