BAE Systems to hire 2,400 apprentices and graduates by 2025

BAE Systems will have a record 6,500 young people in training after recruiting more than 2,400 new apprentices and graduates next year.

Europe’s largest defense company, which helped build the Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier, said the number of people in training will equal 15 percent of its total workforce.

It expects to recruit around 1,300 apprentices, mostly based in the north of England, along with more than 1,100 graduates and undergraduates who will work on projects such as the Global Combat Air Programme.

The FTSE 100 group plans to invest £230 million in education and skills next year, meaning it will have spent at least £1 billion on upskilling people across the UK from 2020.

Such investment has enabled the company to open a shipbuilding facility in Glasgow this year, its third skills academy in addition to sites in Samlesbury, Lancashire and Barrow-in-Furness.

Charles Woodburn, chief executive of BAE Systems, said: “As the UK’s largest defense company, we rely on the skill and ingenuity of those who deliver our programmes, which is why it is so crucial that we continue to invest in our people.” .

“With thousands of positions open to apply for across the country and our exciting high-tech programs, there has never been a better time to embark on a new career with us.”

Global defense spending has increased in recent years, reaching an all-time high of $2.44 trillion in 2023, following the escalation of the Ukraine war and rising tensions between Western countries and China.

BAE Systems has subsequently enjoyed a huge boost in orders, reaching a record order book of £74.1 billion in the first half of 2024.

As of last month, the FTSE 100 business had received around £25bn in orders this year alone, including contracts to produce Bradley fighting vehicles and airborne radio sets for the US military.

For the full year, the company expects its underlying revenue and operating profit to increase between 12 and 14 per cent, as well as free cash flow of £1.5bn.

John Healey, Secretary of State for Defence, said BAE Systems has “a crucial role in keeping the men and women of our Armed Forces equipped on the frontline”.

“Defence offers exciting careers and this investment is a vote of confidence in the UK as a leader in cutting-edge employment, creating highly skilled jobs across the UK.”

BAE Systems Stock They rose 0.4 per cent to 1,232 pence on Monday morning and have risen 121 per cent in the last five years.

The group’s value took a £2bn hit last Friday after Bank of America analysts downgraded BAE from “neutral” to “underperform”, amid concerns that Elon Musk’s plans to make the US government more efficient could result in cuts in military spending.

The United States is BAE’s largest market, accounting for 42 percent of its total sales last year and almost a third of its 100,000 employees.