When the Norwegian Parliament adopted legislation on further and continuing education reform on 19 January 1999, it also provided for an individual right to leave of absence for educational purposes. Parliament has emphasised the value of acquired knowledge/skills and the need to set up a documented system for them.
The government's white paper on reforming further and continuing education and training was adopted by Parliament on 19 January 1999, and hence the first elements of the planned reform were enacted. However, no final decisions have been made regarding a number of elements - notably, how the reform is to be financed and how the set of rules that are to govern the reform and the different educational/training schemes are to be defined.
Parliament adopted the principle that all employees shall have an individual right to leave of absence for educational purposes, and asked the Government to present a bill to this effect. The government has already had this question under review, and the appropriate bodies are now considering the recommendations from a public committee (NO9812103F).
Parliament also decided that adults shall have an individual right to elementary and lower secondary schooling, if they missed out as children, and that the costs incurred shall be refunded to the municipalities by the state. A parallel right for adults who have not completed upper secondary school was not passed (NO9812199F).
A majority in Parliament supported the so-called "Section 20 scheme", which allows adults to use their own work experience when qualifying for a certificate of completed apprenticeship. Employers and trade unions have emphasised the need to retain this scheme and, in connection with the 1998 pay settlement, the Prime Minister promised that the government would ensure that it was maintained (NO9804161F).
Parliament emphasises the value of acquired skills/knowledge and has asked the government to establish a system that will provide adults with a right to have them documented. Adults may also request that their acquired skills/knowledge be evaluated in relation to the entrance requirements defined by higher education institutions. The higher education institutions have to develop their own entrance requirement systems whereby acquired skills/knowledge are integrated into the system.
Parliament debated the question of how the reform is to be financed only to a limited extent. The majority, however, wants the authorities to support measures that will improve employee's qualifications in small and medium-sized companies.
The overall responsibility for further and continuing education will continue to lie with the Ministry of Education, Research and Church Affairs (Kirke-, utdannings- og forskningsdepartementet, KUF). Those who would like to see this responsibility transferred to bodies outside the Ministry were unsuccessful in arguing their case.