Group Training vs Individual Training: Which Suits Your Business?

Key Takeaways

• In apprenticeships, group training usually means employing the apprentice through a group training organisation (GTO) and placing them with a host business. Individual training usually means you employ and train the apprentice directly.
• With group training, the GTO is the employer and handles payroll and training administration. With direct hiring, you carry those jobs yourself.
• Direct hiring can suit a business with a stable workload, HR capacity and a supervisor ready to manage the paperwork.
• Group training can suit a business that wants to host an apprentice without becoming the legal employer.
• Whichever route you take, an apprentice needs a good supervisor and a clear training plan.

Introduction

The phrase group training vs individual training can mean two things. In a classroom, it describes teaching many people at once, or one person alone. In the apprenticeship world, it describes two ways to take on an apprentice: through a group training organisation, or by employing them directly.

This post focuses on the second meaning, because it is the choice host employers face. For a wider view of how group training schemes help small businesses, read how group training schemes help small businesses. Future1st is a Melbourne group training organisation that employs apprentices and trainees and places them with Victorian businesses.

What Group Training Means for Apprentices

Under the group training model, a GTO employs the apprentice and places them with a host business. The host provides the daily work and supervision.

• The GTO recruits and employs the apprentice.
• The GTO handles payroll and training administration.
• The host business directs the work and supervises on site.
• Field officers visit workplaces and training institutes to monitor progress. This is how Future1st works.

If you want the step-by-step version, see how group training works.

What Individual Training Means for Apprentices

Here, your business signs up the apprentice itself. You are the employer.

• You advertise, select and employ the apprentice.
• You run payroll, leave, super and workers' compensation.
• You deal with the training provider and the paperwork for the training contract.
• You are responsible for supervision and for meeting the terms of the contract.

Businesses with strong administration and a clear long-term need for a tradesperson sometimes prefer this approach.

Where the Two Differ in Practice

Administration

• Direct hiring: you manage it, or pay someone to.
• Group training: the GTO handles payroll and training administration.

Employment relationship

• Direct hiring: the apprentice is your employee.
• Group training: the apprentice is employed by the GTO and placed with you.

Support

• Direct hiring: you rely on your own knowledge and your training provider.
• Group training: field officers visit and help resolve issues.

Flexibility

• Check each arrangement for what happens if your workload changes. Ask a GTO how it handles this and what your agreement would say.

Costs differ between providers and over time. Ask for details in writing and check official sources such as employer financial support and the Fair Work pay page.

Questions to Ask Yourself

• How much time can we give to administration each week?
• Do we have a qualified supervisor who can teach?
• Is our workload steady enough to commit to a training contract?
• Would we prefer to share employment duties with a specialist?
• Who can we call if there is a problem?

Your answers will usually point towards one model or the other.

The Training Side Still Needs Planning

Whichever way you employ, the apprentice's training should be structured. The classroom meaning of group and individual learning still applies here.

• Some training happens in groups at a training institute, where apprentices learn together and share experience.
• Much of the learning on the job is one to one, with a supervisor showing and correcting.
• Both matter. Plan time for each.

Our guide on creating a structured training program for trainees covers this in more detail.

Benefits to the Apprentice

Apprentices in a group training arrangement may find the support structure helpful, especially in their first year.

• They have a contact at the GTO as well as a supervisor on site.
• The GTO is responsible for pay and entitlements.
• Our post on how group training benefits employees in career development explains more.

Related Resources

• How Does Group Training Work? A Step-by-Step Guide
• How Group Training Benefits Employees in Career Development
• The Future of Group Training: How Technology is Shaping the Industry
• How to Create a Structured Training Program for Your Trainees
• Hire an apprentice with Future1st
• Apprenticeships Victoria: getting started

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is the employer in group training?

The GTO is the legal employer. The host business provides daily work and supervision.

Do I still supervise the apprentice with group training?

Yes. You direct the work and teach on site, and the GTO supports you.

Can I employ an apprentice directly?

Yes, if you are prepared to be the employer and handle the paperwork and obligations.

Is group training always cheaper?

Not necessarily. Costs vary, so ask for details in writing and check official sources.

What does Future1st do?

Future1st recruits, employs and places apprentices and trainees with Victorian businesses and handles payroll and training administration.

Choose the Model That Fits Your Business

If you would like someone else to carry the payroll and training paperwork while you teach the trade, hire an apprentice with Future1st or call (03) 9656 9797 to talk it through.