Fair employment - People Director CITB Employee Review

A good number of very skilled, caring and experienced front line staff who try their best to deliver the best outcomes for a future work force despite the company challenges outlined below.

A toxic culture appears to exist from the top down, with many decisions seemingly driven by departments whose role is supposedly to provide support. The irony of this is not lost on many staff. A significant concern is the number of individuals employed to oversee frontline teaching staff through “quality checks”, “learning walks” and unannounced observations, only to provide predominantly negative feedback afterwards. In many cases, these individuals have little or no background in construction, yet feel qualified to criticise subject-specific delivery, teaching methods and industry practice. There also appears to be a lack of understanding of neurodiversity. Apprentices and staff who are neurodivergent are often judged heavily on spelling, grammar and punctuation, regardless of whether these skills are relevant to the learning outcome or job role. Rather than receiving meaningful support, they are frequently marked down and subjected to further criticism. Staff morale is further damaged by organisational decisions that create uncertainty and mistrust. Employees have been recruited into roles only to be required to reapply for their own positions within weeks of starting, following reductions in the number of available posts. The cumulative effect of these practices is a workforce that feels undervalued, scrutinised and demoralised. Positive achievements often go unrecognised, while criticism appears to be the default approach. Morale is consequently very low, and many talented staff are left feeling unsupported and disengaged. Unfortunately, this only scratches the surface of the issues experienced by staff and apprentices. The overall environment is one that many would describe as disheartening rather than developmental.

Great flexibility with working hours/days and remote working.

Pay is very much on the lower side. People management is very odd, the “people managers” can’t hold conversations. No proper structure, nobody knows if they’re coming or going or if there’s any work in the pipelines. No opportunities for further learning.