Training requirement clause

Whilst you probably run staff training in-house and on-site, sometimes you might require employees to attend training courses run externally or off-site, and these could take place some distance from their normal place of work. Use our clause to cover this eventuality. It spells out the possibility of the employee having to travel outside normal working hours to attend training events which are off-site or run by external providers, and that this may include overnight stays.

Away from the workplace

Where you require staff to attend external training courses as part of their job duties, they could be in the nearest main city or even in another part of the country. That might not only involve extra travel for your employees outside their normal working hours but also possibly an overnight hotel stay, or even longer if the course is more than one day’s duration. Use our Training Requirement Clause here. It provides that the employee will be required to undertake the compulsory training as listed in the clause and this may involve travelling away from their normal place of work in order to attend any external or off-site training. It then dovetails with the Requirement to Travel Clause to provide that there will be no additional pay for travel outside normal working hours and this may include travelling in the early morning, in the evening or at the weekend (including overnight stays). Note that for employees (and workers) starting employment (or their engagement) on or after 6 April 2020, the written statement of employment particulars must include details of any training entitlement you provide, any part of that training entitlement which you require the individual to complete and any other compulsory training which you require them to complete but for which you will not bear the cost.

Discrimination

Even with a clause, you need to ensure you’re not causing problems with an employee’s childcare responsibilities, which is more likely to arise with female staff (or you could be straying into indirect sex discrimination territory). Likewise, you need to ensure any disabled employees aren’t going to be placed at a substantial disadvantage by a requirement to attend somewhere that’s external or some distance away. Our clause provides that, when organising training, you’ll make all reasonable efforts to take account of those with childcare or dependant care responsibilities or those who are disabled. It also asks the employee to speak to their manager if they are going to experience difficulties in this regard. If it’s statutory/compulsory training, they may still have to attend but otherwise, if necessary, consider making alternative training arrangements.

Other provisions

Our clause has a section which covers the position of costs and expenses in relation to the training and we’ve tied this in to the Reimbursement of Expenses Policy. Finally, our clause has a paragraph covering unacceptable behaviour at external training events - making clear that this is still a disciplinary offence. The event may be external but it’s still work-related and they’re representing your business at it, so it can be treated as an extension of the workplace.