[RobSun]

Our policy was the same but because of their qualifications Plessey paid them as much or more than a young apprentice trained Toolmaker with an ONC or T4 qualification who was ambitious and wanting to move up into the design office or production engineering. They improved rapidly they knew what they were about and understood more. The graduates on the same or mostly more were trainees, didn't understand things but thought they knew it all. I had to spend more time with them holding their hands sorting out mistakes where the lower qualified performed better. I can tell you these apprentice trained lads mostly ran rings round them and did knock the cockiness out of some of them.

In the end it enabled me to argue for higher pay so they all started at the same level and then got promotion on merit. Plessey were very good at encouraging people. I was a fast tracker and came from a technical apprentice start but by the time I was 24 had my own team of design and detail draftsmen but that didn't prejudice me. I wanted them all to succeed and do a good job. Less hassle for me.

I was sent one graduate who had a History Degree. Why he was employed as an engineer only HR would know. He couldn't get into his head why a metal could cut another metal or the theory of a cam. Even when I asked why did a knife cut butter, it's harder he says the concept of metal cutting metal was beyond him. I managed to persuade those above to move him so he went to production engineering. Lasted a week and they had had enough. So he went to work for my Dad who said he was the best management trainee he had ever had. The last I heard of him we were both short listed to go out to Brazil to manage a factory out there. He got the job because of his management expertise. He became a round peg in a round hole, which was great. I had another nothing like as bad but 90% of his work had to be corrected. Two engineering degrees and every year he went on more night classes. Just couldn't put it all into practice and after I moved to GEC who did I come across but Allan. First thing he said on meeting was can we do lunch, and at lunch apologised for being so bad at his job and giving me so much grief. Now he was working in production control and found his vocation. I had so many with that piece of paper that gave them a confidence way above their ability..

In the end my eexperience saw 80% of the apprentice trained lads go further than the graduates.