Questions and answers about learners' rights

Your rights as a Targeted Training programme learner

Q: How much money will I get while I’m on my Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) Youth Training or Training Opportunities programme?

A: Youth Training and Training Opportunities

If you are 18 years old or over, you may be able to get a benefit from Work and Income. How much you get depends on your age and whether you’re married or have children. If you’re under 18, income assistance is not generally available, but you may be eligible for help if you have special living circumstances. Check with your training provider or Work and Income to find out what you are entitled to.

Q: Can I get assistance with travel costs?

A: You can get help with the costs of travelling to and from your programme. This varies, depending on which programme you’re on, how far you have to travel and where you live.

Check with your training provider to find out what you are entitled to.

Q: What can I do if I think there are dangerous conditions where I train?

A: You have the right to be in a safe environment, whether you’re at a training centre or a work placement. If you think that the place you are training in, or the things you are doing are dangerous, talk to your tutor or training provider about it first. If you are working in a dangerous place or with dangerous goods, your tutor or training provider should provide you with safety equipment (eg. goggles for welding). You can
also contact the TEC to discuss this.

Q: Who can I talk to about any problems or concerns I have about my programme?
A: The first person to talk to is your tutor or training provider. They will have a complaints procedure you can use. If this doesn’t work, the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) has a complaints kit you can request. You can also contact the TEC to discuss any problems you are having with your training.

Q: Are there any requirements I should know about?

A: Your training provider should display a list of rules, such as attendance requirements, at the place where the programme is held.

Q: What can I do if I’m having problems with sexual harassment on the programme?

A: Sexual harassment means unwanted sexual comments, jokes, touching and so on. It can include having ‘girlie’ pin-ups in the place you are training, or sexual remarks that offend you. If someone is making you feel uncomfortable, you don’t have to put up with it. Let that person know that you don’t like what they are doing.

If they don’t stop, ask your tutor or training provider what the process is for dealing with sexual harassment on your programme. Take a friend for support if you want. Your tutor or training provider should take action to stop the harassment.

You can also contact the TEC to find out what you can do about it, and make a formal complaint if you want to.

Q: What can I do about discrimination?

A: You have the right to be treated with fairness and respect, whether you are male or female; are Māori, Pacific, Pākehā or from any other culture; are married or single; are gay, lesbian or straight; have a disability; and whatever your religion or beliefs.

You don’t have to put up with discrimination. If you are getting a hard time, you should talk to your tutor or training provider first. They should make sure the discrimination stops.

For more help and support, or if you want to make a formal complaint, contact the TEC. You can also contact the Human Rights Commission for advice or help.

The Privacy Act

The Privacy Act makes rules about how information about you is collected and used. Training providers and the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) need to know some information about you so they can do their jobs. Information is collected on the enrolment form and a record of your progress is kept during training.

Q: Who uses this information?

A: The information may be shared with training providers, Work and Income, NZQA, the Ministry of Education, the Inland Revenue Department, the NZ Immigration Service, Workbridge and employers. The training provider and the TEC may also get information
about you from those agencies.

They use this information to:

check if you meet the entry rules for a programme
check your participation on previous training programmes
check your progress on training programmes
check if you are eligible for income support
check the credits you may have earned on the national qualifications framework
put together national education statistics.

Seeing the information
Information about you is held by the training provider and the TEC. You have the right to see this information, and ask for it to be changed.

When information about you can be easily retrieved, you have a right to: