BAE Systems says they are moving forward with the recruitment of a record number of apprentices, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. More than 9,000 people across the UK applied for the 800 apprenticeship roles during February. BAE Systems says they have put in place measures, including virtual interviews, which have enabled them to restart their recruitment drive with almost 2,000 shortlisted candidates.
“Getting people back to work and creating new jobs, especially for younger people, is a national priority and we’re pleased to play our part in supporting the UK’s economic recovery. The contribution apprentices make to our business is vital in maintaining our ability to continue to deliver cutting edge technologies which protect national security,” says Charles Woodburn, chief executive, BAE Systems. “We’ve worked hard to adapt our application and training processes to allow education to continue, whilst protecting the health and wellbeing of our employees and new recruits.”
Recent research from the Resolution Foundation found that those born in the late 1990s are expected to be hardest hit by the current crisis. Over the last few weeks, our early careers teams have developed new ways to enable candidates – most of whom are between 16 and 19 years old – to be interviewed safely and remotely.
The successful applicants will begin their careers in one of 25 apprenticeship
training programs in their Air, Maritime and Electronic Systems divisions, with the majority joining between September to January 2021.