Social science can be used to encourage employers to follow workplace regulations. This post covers how to increase compliance by appealing to social norms, providing practical examples of how to implement new requirements, and by sending timely messages that encourage change.

Summary

• An agency wanted to encourage employers to comply with supervision requirements of apprentices and trainees
• Research shows that simply providing information about rules and penalties is not effective in improving compliance
• Apprentices and trainees suffer because the status quo is to keep things as they are. They are treated as workers rather than as students who need guidance on-the-job
• Regulations about supervision are often hard to understand and difficult to follow
• Giving employers information in plain English, with examples on how to follow the rules, makes it easier to change behaviour
• Showing examples of what good supervision looks like is effective in creating change, such as how to talk about safety with apprentices
• Other practical tips about what to do, when, and how also helps, such as the ‘Happy Sad Happy’ technique for constructive feedback
• Sending employers timely supervision tips at 12pm on Wednesdays has proven effective in retaining students.

Regulation is not enough to change workplace behaviour

The majority of apprentices and trainees who complete their qualifications are satisfied with their employment experience (80%), while only 42% of students who drop out of their qualifications feel the same. Similarly, three-quarters of completers are satisfied with their supervision on the job, in comparison to half of those who quit (53%).

Research finds that, in order to stop students dropping out, ‘New apprentices must be constantly supervised and monitored in the first 100 days’ (my emphasis).

The supervision experience is therefore pivotal to keeping students engaged.

I worked with a vocational education and training agency (‘VET Agency’) seeking to increase compliance with new workplace requirements for supervising apprentices and trainees. Legislation can fine or ban workplaces that provide inadequate supervision of apprentices.

VET Agency was preparing a communication campaign to inform employers about the fines, in an attempt to improve supervision standards.

Social science research shows that information alone is not enough to change behaviour, as people need additional assistance to implement change.

Moreover, penalties are not always effective in changing complex behaviours. Penalties may also make things worse for those who are already disadvantaged.

Co-design

I worked with VET Agency to identify the issues that impact regulatory compliance amongst businesses that employ apprentices and trainees.

We then co-designed a messaging campaign to make it easy to understand and follow the new rules.

Analysis

I conducted a rapid review of social science studies, to examine the barriers and solutions to complying with workplace regulation.

Employers maintain the status quo

One of the behavioural biases impacting business compliance with new legislation is status quo bias (also known as default bias). This term describes how people will resist change and always go with the set option — the status quo — because it is easier to follow what is already in place.

Employers deal with multiple regulatory bodies, and receive new notices regularly. For some, it is hard to keep up with changing requirements, to work out how new rules apply to them, and what changes they need to make to comply.

Many employers do not know what’s required of them as supervisors, from induction to mentorship. They do not always understand that they are legally required to provide a minimum of three paid hours per week for their apprentices and trainees to attend formal training.

When new rules are seen as onerous or confusing, some employers will keep doing what they have always done in the past. Alternatively, when supervision is not seen as a pressing business issue, there is no incentive to change.

‘Toughing it out’ is seen as normal

Many employers started off as apprentices and trainees, a long time ago. Research shows that some employers believe that current-day students are less committed than they were at their age. They leave apprentices and trainees unsupervised, because they think students need to ‘tough it out’ to become stronger workers. This is not necessarily the case.

With this mindset, letting apprentices and trainees to struggle is seen as normal.

Individuals, especially those in power, often discount the adversities they overcame in the past. We tend to see other people’s actions as a result of their character flaws or personality weaknesses, while we see our own faults and failures as the result of external factors beyond our control (fundamental attribution error).

Conversely, we perceive our individual success as the outcome of our personal effort, but our failures are blamed on other forces. We cut ourselves a break, while holding others to a higher standard.

Employers may think that apprentices and trainees don’t succeed because they aren’t good enough, however, they may not have set clear expectations. They may also be forgetting how much they struggled in their first year, and the help they had along the way.

Following regulation is a hassle

People are deterred from getting help or completing a desired outcome if the process is inconvenient, or it requires too much effort (hassle factor). 

Regulators, including government, often communicate rules in an overly complicated way. They often give important information in legal speak, which is hard to follow.

Research shows that people aren’t able to retain and sort through dense information, leading us to be ‘unable to make a decision or to stay informed on a topic’ (information overload).

Employers lack time and resources

Many people who take on apprentices and trainees are sole traders and small businesses.

They don’t always have the time, resources, and knowledge to follow best practice. They often do not have a human resources department to guide them.

Businesses hire apprentices and trainees to fill in increased work load and labour shortages. In blue-collar settings, employers ‘view students as labour, rather than employees in training,’ leading to an inadequate on-the-job training experience.

There are also discrepancies between the skills employers seek versus the requirements of formal qualifications. In these cases, employers may be less motivated to support their learners to complete their qualifications, as these students are already working for them ‘on the books,’ so they may not see the point in supporting further study. These employers may see little business value in investing additional time on training.

Solution

For businesses that don’t invest in quality supervision, the status quo is to keep things the same. The rules are seen as too hard to follow, the legal information too dense to wade through, and changing supervision techniques is perceived as too much effort.

To change the default, I worked with VET Agency to design three SMS messages that reset norms, simplify compliance, and provide a timely reminder about how to supervise effectively. These messages:

• Focus on the specific steps employers need to take. To reduce the hassle of compliance, the SMS messages clearly show what businesses need to do to follow the rules. Each message communicates a behavioural tip on how to comply with the regulation
• Simplify the information. To reduce information overload, our short messages use plain English to describe the new supervisory requirements (simplification).

VET Agency will test these messages, to see which leads to higher compliance with supervision requirements.

Message 1: Use social norms

Social norms make explicit the expected behaviour that other people follow. For some employers, letting their apprentices and trainees tough it out, and drop out, is the norm. We make it clear that most supervisors spend dedicated time with their apprentices and trainees. The message demonstrates that helping apprentices and trainees is more common than letting them struggle.

‘9 out of 10 supervisors spend at least one hour on the job talking about safety with their apprentices.’

This message tells employers the expected behaviour by their peers (9 out of 10 supervisors), what to do (spend one hour on supervision), and how to do it (talk about safety).

Message 2: Simplify compliance

Following the rules is hard, especially when the regulation seems convoluted. Quality supervision is not automatic; it is a skill that requires guidance and practice. To encourage compliance with supervision guidelines, it’s best to break down the requirements into smaller steps. Providing practical tips makes it easier to change behaviour.

“Effective supervision means working side by side with your apprentice during the day, and providing positive and constructive feedback. Use the three-step ‘Happy Sad Happy’ Technique at least once a week to improve your apprentice’s performance. Give them praise for what they’re doing right, followed by corrective feedback on how they can improve, and finish with more praise.”

This message tells employers what they need to do (work side by side with their apprentice), how (Happy-Sad-Happy technique), and when (once a week).

Message 3: Send a timely reminder

By sending simple and practical tips, businesses change behaviour over time, rather than presuming new laws and penalties will undo years’ worth of ingrained habits.

The timeliness of messages is pivotal to behaviour change. My previous research shows that messages are most effective at 12 pm, on Wednesdays.

The next best times to send messages are at 11 am and at 3 pm.

The following message provides one action that employers can complete on the spot as soon as they receive a message. It is designed to build a new weekly routine. The message reminds employers about a pre-exiting supervisory resource: the Training Plan. This is a document that already includes goals the apprentice has previously set. It should be progressively actioned, but is sometimes neglected.

You cannot assume your trainee knows exactly how you would like them to behave. Set a new goal today and then review their progress at the same time each week. You can use their Training Plan as a guide.

The message gives a time-bound action (set a new goal today), how to execute it (review progress), and when (weekly). It is quick and easy reminder about the Training Plan.

How social science helps

Theory: Co-designed messages that address cognitive biases, including status quo bias, social norms, hassle factor, information overload, and timeliness.

Method: Identified barriers and solutions using pre-existing studies (rapid literature review)