EDUCATION
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for which tests were offered included vehicle mechanic, electrician, mechanical fitter and typesetter. Serving workers in these trades were invited to apply for the tests and the response was good, with the number of applicants for the electrician trade far exceeding the planned test capacity.
Training Authorities
The Clothing Industry Training Authority and the Construction Industry Training Authority are statutory bodies set up in 1975 to establish and operate training centres for their industries. The former is financed by a levy based on the export value of clothing and footwear items while the latter is financed by a levy based on the value of construction works exceeding $1 million. The new Construction Industry Training Centre in Aberdeen became operational in September 1989 and there are now three training centres for construction trades and two for training in clothing and footwear manufacture.
Apprenticeship Scheme
The Apprenticeship Ordinance provides a legal framework for the training of craftsmen and technicians. It requires an employer to enter into a contract of apprenticeship when engaging a person aged between 14 and 18 in one of the 42 designated trades specified in the ordinance, unless that person has completed an apprenticeship in the trade. The contract must be registered with the Director of Technical Education and Industrial - Training. Contracts for apprentices engaged in non-designated trades or for apprentices aged over 18 engaged in designated trades may also be registered voluntarily. The apprenticeship period of the designated trades is normally three or four years. However, the period may be shortened by any period not exceeding one year if the apprentice has obtained relevant special qualification before entering into an apprenticeship.
The Apprenticeship Section of the Technical Education and Industrial Training Department is responsible for administering the ordinance. Its duties include advising and assisting employers in the training and employment of apprentices, ensuring that the training is properly carried out, helping to resolve disputes arising out of registered contracts and co-operating with educational institutes to ensure that apprentices receive the necessary complementary technical education. Courses of instruction for apprentices, normally on a part-time day-release basis, are provided at the Hong Kong Polytechnic and technical institutes.
To enforce the ordinance, inspectors of the Apprenticeship Section conduct inspections and visits at regular intervals to apprentices and establishments covered by the ordinance.
Apprenticeship contracts registered in 1989 totalled 5 400, of which 900 were for non- designated trades. These contracts covered 4 720 craft apprentices and 680 technician apprentices. By the end of the year, 10 280 apprentices were being trained in accordance with the ordinance.
Vocational Training for the Disabled
The Technical Education and Industrial Training Department provides vocational training for disabled persons. It operates two government skills centres for the disabled and sub- vents another three centres operated by voluntary agencies. The total capacity of these five centres is 756 training places, of which 240 are provided with residential facilities. These skills centres offer two broad groups of courses. The first and major group prepares disabled persons for open employment while the second group prepares them for main- stream technical education.