One of the big advantages of a vocational education is that you earn money while you learn. As soon as you have a training contract with a company, you receive apprentice pay — not state education grant. Here we look at how pay is structured, what a collective agreement means, and what conditions come with holding your journeyman's certificate.
§Student wages vs. SU.
As an apprentice you receive wages from the day your training agreement comes into force. It is your employer who pays it. A consistent principle in vocational apprenticeships is that apprentice wages increase in steps through the course: the further you are in your training the more you can do and the greater value you create in the company — therefore the rate typically increases for each new training year.
- 01You get paid from your first day in your training agreement.
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- 04During training in the business you are not dependent on SU.
§If you cannot find an apprenticeship position
If you don't get a training agreement with a company right away, you can in many cases continue in school training at the education place itself. Here you get a school training allowance instead of trainee wages until you find a regular apprenticeship. This ensures you can move forward in your education even if the apprenticeship has not yet fallen into place.
§What is a collective agreement?
A collective agreement is an agreement between employers and employees about salary and working conditions. It describes among other things wage scales working hours allowances pension and other rights and it gives you a known framework to lean on instead of having everything negotiated individually. In a trade like cosmetician many work in smaller privately owned clinics so it's a good idea to clarify what agreement or what conditions apply at exactly your workplace.
§Terms as skilled
When you are fully trained and have your journeyman certificate you go from apprentice wages to skilled wages. As skilled you have a recognized competence that typically provides better wages and conditions than unskilled work in the same area. Some beauticians also become self-employed with their own clinic at some point – then it is you who set prices control finances and negotiate your terms.
§Adult students
If you take the training as an adult, special principles apply. Here the employer must typically pay a wage that at least corresponds to the minimum wage for an unskilled employee in the area. This helps make the adult route realistic if you have a daily life and finances that need to work together.
“Becoming a skilled tradesperson is not just a certificate — it is a key to better pay and more secure conditions for the rest of your working life.”