Summarizing the matter, the machine contractor Bjelland believes that mobile phone use among apprentices can affect both safety and finances. The Norwegian Directorate of Education has come up with stricter recommendations on mobile phone use in upper secondary education, which Bjelland is happy about, even though the recommendations do not apply to apprentices in apprenticeships. Ove Johan Aklestad, general manager of the Vocational Training Office in Rogaland (OFIR), does not see mobile use as a major problem as many people use mobile phones as a tool in the workplace. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – When the apprentices come to work, it’s hard against hard. Then it’s not even a topic: The phone has to go away. That’s what Joakim Hetland says. He is the general manager of the machine contractor Bjelland. He takes on eight to ten apprentices a year and notices that the phone, and its many apps, are used frequently. – At the start, we have to make sure that they get rid of habits. Snapchat and TikTok have nothing to do at work. Joakim Hetland is pleased that the recommendations for mobile phone use in school are being tightened. Photo: Odd Rune Kyllingstad / news Stricter recommendations There have now been stricter recommendations from the Norwegian Directorate of Education (Udir) regarding mobile phone use in upper secondary education. Pupils can no longer have mobile phones in the classroom. Cathrine Børnes is divisional director in the Directorate of Education. The new recommendations on mobile phone use do not concern apprentices, she says. They are not students at school while they are learning. The Directorate of Education’s recommendations for mobile phone use in VGS Udir recommends strictly regulating the use of private mobile phones and smart watches during teaching hours in upper secondary schools. “In our view, a strict intervention in free time and breaks will not be proportionate, due to the maturity and age of the pupils. Considerations for a strengthened learning and school environment may nevertheless justify certain restrictions also during free time. Secondary school is a complex type of school, with several different educational programmes. A regulation must take into account that the teacher considers that pupils may need access to private mobile phones or smart watches during the training, and this should be included in the assessment when establishing regulation through the local order regulations, as long as it is in line with the free principle”. Source: Directorate of Education (Udir) Although the recommendations do not apply to apprentices, Hetland is happy that pupils are now getting used to not using their mobile phones in class. In this way, the mobile phone rules do not come as a shock during the apprenticeship. – The fact that they start with this at school is absolutely great. He points out that notifications from the phone shift the focus from where it should be. Namely the work. – We do not accept that the phone is used for anything other than work, and we feel that the apprentices respect what we say, says Hetland. – Great risk The strict mobile rules are based on considerations of security and finances. – If the focus is on the phone, it is a big risk for us. Then we strike down hard and say that we can’t have it like that. – Safety comes first. We have 160 men who have to get home every day. At the same time, we do not pay wages for attendance, but production. Therefore, there must be full focus on the work, says Hetland. Apprentice Tobias Reime and the boss Joakim Hetland at the machine contractor Bjelland. Reime understands well that the boss does not want him to check TikTok during working hours. Photo: Johan Mihle Laugaland / news Tobias Reime (17) has been an apprentice with Bjelland for six months. He understands well that the boss wants him to concentrate only on his work tasks: – He loses money if we have to be on the mobile all day. They have no use for it. – The mobile phone is useful for its purpose, and should be used as a tool, says Reime, referring to the apps he uses in a work context. The pandemic played a role Vocational training manager in Rogaland county municipality, Catrine Utne Pettersen, says that they do not have statistics on apprentices’ mobile phone use. She noticed an increased tendency for some apprentices not to understand their role as an employee after the pandemic. Vocational training manager in Rogaland county municipality, Catrine Utne Pettersen. Photo: Marte Skodje / news – This may probably be related to the fact that the students did not get as much practice during the pandemic. At the same time, she points out that the majority of the 6,000 apprentices in the county functioned, and function, well in the apprenticeship situation. – We get less feedback on this now, says Pettersen. The explanation is probably that the cohorts who start their apprenticeships today have had a more normal time at upper secondary school, she believes. Kjetil Pettersen, general manager of the Training Office for Sales and Service in Rogaland, believes that the vast majority of people are good at handling a mobile-free working day. – I even think that some people see it as a liberation to release the pressure from the mobile phone. For others, having the phone in hand is part of the basic equipment. Then there will be a big transition, he says. He says that every apprenticeship starts with a conversation with the apprentice and manager in the company. There they review expectations, rules and guidelines in the working relationship. – It is clear that the mobile phone is a topic there. They have to comply with the rules and guidelines that the company has for the use of mobile phones, he says. A tool – For us, mobile use is not a big problem, says Ove Johan Aklestad. He is the general manager of the Training Office for Industrial Studies in Rogaland. Ove Johan Aklestad is the general manager of the Training Office for Industrial Studies in Rogaland. Photo: Kristoffer Apall Few companies report problems with mobile use, he says. – Many people use the mobile phone as a tool. Where they can communicate, submit deviations, reports and things like that. Removing the mobile phone completely from the workplace would therefore be counter to its purpose, says Aklestad.
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The machine contractor enforces strict mobile phone use among apprentices – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
