I’ve heard about “on the job training,” but “on the job diplomas”?

In January, the British government announced a plan to allow residents to obtain the equivalent of a high school diploma by completing rigorous on the job training programs offered by commercial companies like fast food company McDonald’s, railroad operator Network Rail, and low-cost airline Flybe.

The three companies are England’s first employers given the right by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority to grant employees recognized vocational equivalents of A-levels and GCSEs. (A-level, or Advanced Level, is a General Certificate of Education qualification often used in the UK as a college entrance requirement. GCSE, or General Certificate of Secondary Education, is a set of qualifications taken by UK students aged 14-16.)

The Associated Press reports that the plan is part of a campaign to improve skills among young workers and people who dropped out of school long ago. (Also see the Financial Times article on the program.)

Before you laugh at the idea – critics call the plan “McQualifications” – consider this: the people who complete such a training program are gaining practical skills that can truly help them prepare for long-term employment or entry into a higher education program. The head of Britain’s Federation of Small Businesses praised the news as an advance for “employer-led qualifications,” contrasting them with existing qualifications designed by academics, which “don’t exactly look at what employers want.”

To be honest, I have to agree with him. Too often I hear employers complain that they can’t find “qualified workers.” What they mean is that they can’t find workers that have the “ready to hit the ground running” qualifications for a particular job. For example, someone with a college degree may not be suited for a job because he or she has no practical hands-on experience in that particular area.

If you think about what the McDonald’s store manager training provides, it does help to create workers with skills that are important for time management, people management, customer service, health and hygiene, brand management, supply chain management, and so on. It’s not just about “flipping burgers.” While these skills may not be right for many employers, they could be well suited to small service-oriented businesses that can’t afford to train their new employees.

Not everyone in the UK is wild about the program. Some see it as a “dumbing down” of the British educational system. Others prefer not to allow commercial businesses to wield the power of the provision of training that is nationally recognized.

What do you think? Can commercial companies provide good enough (i.e., broad enough) training to new employees to allow the workers to earn the equivalent of a high school diploma? Would those workers have the basic education needed to pursue higher education? If you were a hiring manager, would you consider a candidate with this kind of educational background?