Skills for Work: Rights and Responsibilities in the Workplace
Rights and Responsibilities in the Workplace is a 20 hour Skills for Work unit, from Entry 1 to Level 2, about employees and employers, employee rights and responsibilities, employment contracts, responsible behaviour, equality and fairness, and where to get advice about problems at work. It is one unit that learners combine with others into a Skills for Life or Skills for Work Award, Certificate or Diploma. Literacy carries the unit: learners use workplace vocabulary, explain why rights matter, read a contract, research advice organisations, discuss consequences and suggest how to raise a complaint. Numeracy is light, limited to reading pay, hours and holidays in a contract.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of literacy work
- Medium
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level (Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3): Four learning outcomes (the difference between an employee and an employer, basic rights and responsibilities of employees, behaving responsibly with other people at work, and where to get support and guidance), with separate assessment criteria at Entry 1, Entry 2 and Entry 3. Evidence goes in a portfolio, internally assessed by the centre and externally quality assured by WJEC. 20 guided learning hours.
- Level 1 and Level 2: Four learning outcomes (employee rights and responsibilities including the employment contract, personal and social responsibility, equality, respect and fairness at work, and seeking advice and guidance), with separate assessment criteria at Level 1 and Level 2. Evidence goes in a portfolio, internally assessed by the centre and externally quality assured by WJEC. 20 guided learning hours.
Skills that use Measurement
-
Reading pay, hours and holidays in a contract
The amplification says an employment contract sets out how many hours you will work, how much you will get paid and the holidays you are entitled to, and the rights examples include fair pay, time off and regular breaks. The criteria only ask learners to state, outline or explain what a contract contains, so no calculation is required and the numeracy here is light.
Numeracy: Strategic competence, Measurement, Conceptual understanding
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils read a weekly rota for a café and work out how many hours one worker is scheduled for across the week.
- Year 8
- Pupils find the hourly rate and weekly hours in a simplified contract and calculate the weekly pay, checking the answer with a calculator.
- Year 9
- Pupils compare two job offers from their contracts, working out weekly pay and holiday days for each, and decide which offer is better and why.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Amplification of Level 1 and 2 learning outcome 1 and Entry Level learning outcome 2, pages 9 and 10
“how many hours you will work”
Progression step 3
I can identify, measure or obtain required information to complete the task.
I can use and interpret calendars, timetables and schedules to plan events and activities, and make calculations as part of the planning journey.
Progression step 4
I can identify, measure or obtain required information to complete the task.
I can interpret answers within the context of the problem and consider whether answers, including calculator, analogue and digital displays, are sensible.
Good to know
- Unit codes run from Entry 1 to Level 2: "S663E1", "S663E2", "S663E3", "S663L1" and "S663L2", with 20 GLH (unit overview, page 3).
- Assessment is not a writing test: "extended written work is not required unless appropriate", and judgements should focus on the standard, not "spelling or presentation unless specifically assessed" (sources of evidence, page 15).
- Spoken evidence counts. The sources of evidence include "teacher observation notes (group discussion, one-to-one discussion, role-play)" and recordings of role-plays or discussions (page 15).
- No special equipment is needed: "Assessment of this unit should not require any specific resources" (page 16).
- AI misuse is malpractice. Examples include "Copying or paraphrasing whole responses of AI-generated content." and "Failing to acknowledge use of AI tools when they have been used as a source of information." (specification section 4.6, page 21).
- Suggested assessment tasks are optional: "These tasks are not mandatory." Teachers may use, adapt or replace them (specification section 4.1, page 18).
- Where a criterion uses a plural without a number, "a plural reference within assessment criterion refers to a minimum of two" (pages 6 and 8).
Links with other qualifications
The pack names Understanding the changing labour market, Working in Wales, Fairness and inclusion in the workplace and Wellbeing and work as closely related Skills Suite units, and the Sustainable economic development pack lists this unit as a link. The Skills for Life units Everyday law and Equality, diversity and inclusion cover rights, equality and where to get help outside work. Among the GCSEs, the work on equality, discrimination and rights links with GCSE Social Studies, the work on employers, employees and contracts gives context for GCSE Business, and explaining and discussing points of view supports GCSE English Language and Literature.
Source: WJEC Rights and responsibilities in the workplace unit delivery and assessment pack, read with the WJEC Entry 1 to Level 2 Skills for Life and Skills for Work specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).