Refusal to work

A learner’s refusal to work constitutes a serious breach of obligations and may result in termination of the apprenticeship contract. Unjustified absences may also be considered as refusal to work.

A discussion must be organised between the contracting parties if an apprentice refuses to do a particular job because he/she feels that the work is unrelated to the training in the given occupation or if the work is prohibited by law. If it appears that the conflict cannot be resolved, the matter shall be referred to the competent cantonal authority.

It is usually not permitted to ask a learner to carry out work that is not directly related to the occupation or that may be detrimental to his?/?her training. This includes work that may compromise the apprentice’s health or morality. Learners may only carry out piecework under certain circumstances. As far as cleaning work is concerned, it is not considered to be unrelated to apprenticeship training insofar as apprentices must also do such work.

It is not always easy to decide what work is directly related or unrelated to training. The results obtained for partial or final examinations are often very indicative of the work that may have hindered training.