Right to Request Time Off for Training

The Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 received Royal Assent on 12 November 2009 and introduces a new section to the Employment Rights Act 1996. From April 2010, employees who have worked in a large business (one that employs at least 250 staff), for a currently unspecified period (likely to be 26 weeks), will have a legal right to request unpaid time away from their core duties for training purposes. It is the Government's intention for this right to be extended to include employees in businesses regardless of their size from April 2011.

The proposals will work in much the same way as the provisions under which employees already have the right to request flexible working arrangements. Therefore, any requests for unpaid time away for training will need to be considered seriously by the employer and such requests may only be rejected on prescribed statutory grounds where there are sound business reasons for doing so. In addition, employers may also be able to reject such requests if the proposed training will not "help the employee's effectiveness on the employer's business and the performance of the employer's business".

A guidance leaflet was produced by the Government in November 2009 which provides some detail relating to this new right. Please note that the regulations relating to the right to request time off for training purposes are subject to possible further change as the new regulations have not yet been issued.