What do we want?
We want the introduction of a Licence to Practice and Licence to Trade for Electricians.
We want a single licensing organisation run by an independent, Not For Profit, organisation.
We want legislation to enable the licensing to be enforceable.
Existing licensing systems are being used to great effect in many countries around the world, for example, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
Why?
To improve the safety of electrical installation work.
To raise the profile of Professional Electricians in the UK.
To increase standards within the profession.
To remove the cowboys from the market.
To encourage more high achievers to enter the profession.
Professional electricians in the UK were once respected as skilled craftsmen & engineers.
Electricians were highly respected professionals.
In many parts of the world they still are!
It is not possible to become a competent electrician just by attending a short course and passing a few exams. It takes years of training and experience to become a Professional Electrician. There are always new skills to learn, new qualifications to obtain, new technologies to embrace. Electricians never stop learning.
Most countries around the world recognise this fact and have in place a national licensing scheme to ensure standards are maintained. Without the appropriate licence in those countries you cannot trade or practise as an electrician.
Here in the UK, we have ill conceived, profit driven schemes.
Pay your money, do a short course, possibly a 4 week course and you are let loose to do any electrical work in a domestic property. All condoned by the numerous assessment bodies that are entrusted with maintaining standards.
The excuses they come up with to justify their policies just don’t hold water.
The result has been a gradual lowering of standards and most importantly safety.
Year on year the standards of training and qualifications have been lowered.
The new QCF qualifications, soon to replace NVQs will have the effect of pushing standards of training lower.
The latest version of AM2 has also been watered down.
We cannot blame the system, we have ourselves within the trade to blame.
Our silence and reluctance to engage with bodies like Summit Skills has allowed an influential minority to effect training and qualification standards.
A minority with a vested interest in producing low cost, semi-skilled workers, disguised as qualified competent electricians.
Who currently regulates the industry?
The unfortunate truth is no one does effectively.
The UK’s biggest electrical trade approval body continually fails its members in the ever increasing drive for profits.
Sadly it often appears that they put profits before standards.
Those of us within the industry, see on a daily basis the poor standard of work that they allow to be carried out by some of their members.
Customer Confusion
Unfortunately in recent years, there has been a proliferation of approvals bodies, resulting in market confusion. Customers don’t know what the different approval logos mean, not helped by some that appear very similar. With so many approval badges, how can anyone be expected to know if the electrician they are using is approved to carry out work at the highest level, or is restricted to working only on specific parts of a domestic installation.
The Challenge
The trade bodies do a lot of good work and have a significant and important role to play in the industry, but they have proven themselves ineffective at adequately policing that industry. If they truly believe they work for the good of the industry and most importantly their members / registered contractors, they should welcome and support this campaign.
A Route Forward
Electricians are Skilled Professionals and should be respected as such.
The only way to raise the perception of the electrical profession is to introduce a UK wide Electricians Licensing Scheme.
A single simple licensing scheme that will remove the current confusion.
The licensing scheme would set levels of competency (knowledge & experience) required to obtain the appropriate level of licence.
The licence will allow the holder to practise and or trade at that level.
It would stop the cowboys and raise standards, through the incentive to achieve higher levels of competency and related remuneration.
Apprentices would have a clear career path, leading to a career as a highly skilled and respected professional.
To ensure the scheme is run in the best interests of the profession & the clients,
It must be:
Transparent.
Fair.
Effective.
Run on a not for profit basis.
Have the support of government.
Have the power to enforce.
Most importantly
It must be truly effective.
We need everyone to get involved, from consumers, specifiers, designers, electrical contractors, employed & self employed electricians, apprentices, electrical improvers, what ever you do, you can help our campaign.
Together we can change the Electrical Contracting Profession for the good.
If you agree with our campaign to introduce an Electricians Licensing Scheme, please click on the button below and register your support.
Then please e-mail this link to everyone you know.
www.l-e-c.org.uk
