Prime Minister, Scott Morrison visited HVTC’s Skills Centre in Rutherford earlier this week.
HVTC CEO, Sharon Smith said it was a great opportunity for the PM to meet some of this year’s cohort who commenced apprenticeships with the help of the Government’s Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) Wage Subsidy.
“The subsidy was established to support employers to take on a new apprentice or trainee with the goal of creating 100,000 new apprenticeships and traineeships,” Sharon said.
“More than 75,000 new jobs have been created through the Program. The PM got to see firsthand the positive impact the program has had for some of our new starters and their employers.
“Vocational education and training will play a key role in preparing Australians with the skills they need for the jobs of the future.
“We were pleased to showcase our state-of-the-art training facility, which is operated by our Registered Training Organisation the Central Coast Community College (CCCC), where apprentices are learning core hands on skills that will benefit their careers both now and in the future.”
Sharon also spoke with Scott Morrison about the various Government wage incentives that have allowed HVTC to retain the majority of their hosted workforce during the pandemic.
“Through our Group Training Organisation, we employ close to 700 apprentices and trainees across NSW,” she said.
“Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, HVTC have been fortunate to be able to provide financial incentives to our Host Employers & Hosted Employees through the JobKeeper Program and Supporting Apprentices & Trainees Wage Reimbursement Program.
She explained that these programs not only kept apprentices and trainees in skills training and employment, but also allowed their organisation to retain students in their training so they didn’t experience any delay in working towards their qualifications.
“Jobs growth and retention will be key to the ongoing economic recovery of the country,” she said.
“Together with CCCC, we are committed to providing skills training and employment opportunities to school leavers and job seekers across the Hunter, Newcastle and Central Coast.”
HVTC is currently working with CCCC to deliver the Skills Highway PaTH Program across the
Hunter and Central Coast. The Program, which is funded by the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment, aims to improve career and training pathways for young people through employability skills training, industry specific skills training relevant and a trial internship with a potential employer.
“The goal is to ultimately transition participants into an apprenticeship or traineeship or direct employment and a number of participants have successfully secured traineeships through the Program,” she said.
“Unemployment in Australia reached 7.5 per cent in July last year as a result of COVID-19, even more so for young people, so the more we can do to help young people find and retain employment, the better.”
IMAGE | Crystal Jolly – 1st year Electrical Apprentice employed by HVTC and hosted to EnerMech with Prime Minister, Scott Morrison.
