What is a principal employer organisation?
A principal employer organisation is an entity that employs, or intends to employ, 25 or more apprentices and/or trainees for the purpose of placing them in hosting arrangements. The organisation is responsible for ensuring those apprentices and/or trainees receive suitable training and experience. To achieve this aim, the principal employer organisation will find a suitable 'host' employer for placement of each apprentice or trainee to work on a day-to-day basis.
A host employer is an organisation that hosts, under a written agreement, an apprentice or trainee employed at that time by a principal employer organisation.
An apprentice and trainee employed by a principal employer organisation may spend their entire apprenticeship or traineeship with one host employer who can offer them a well-rounded training experience. Alternatively, the apprentice or trainee may be rotated around a number of employers to ensure that they receive the full range of skills required to complete the apprenticeship or traineeship.
Registration as a principal employer organisation is governed by the Vocational Education, Training and Employment Act 2000.
View the legislation on the forms, reports and resources page.
Under the Act, the Training and Employment Recognition Council can recognise an organisation that meets the requirements as detailed in the principal employer organisations operations manual.