Education & Upskilling
Popular apprenticeship assistance programmes extended By Claire Wright
The Government has touted the expansion of several of its apprenticeship assistance programmes to great success. Both TTAF and Apprenticeship Boost were announced in July and August 2020, respectively, with floods of people looking to retrain and employers more willing to take on more apprenticeships with the added cost benefit. Education Minister Chris Hipkins says, “Across the board, apprenticeships are becoming much more popular, which is great news. “Over 15,000 apprentices commenced in the second half of 2020 compared to nearly 7,000 in the second half of 2019, an increase of 125 percent.” In March, the Government announced it was extending the Apprenticeship Boost initiative by four months to support trades and trading even further. In a statement, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said this decision would keep more people employed while learning valuable vocational skills to accelerate New Zealand’s economic recovery from COVID-19. Apprenticeship Boost works by providing employers up to $1000 a month for first year apprentices and $500 a month for second year apprentices. Since launching in August 2020, more than 10,000 employers have signed up and received almost $97 million in subsidies for more than 21,000 apprentices. Apprenticeship Boost is being taken up by employers across New Zealand, with 26 percent of apprentices in Auckland; 34 percent in Canterbury, Wellington, and Waikato; and the remainder in other regions. Education Minister Chris Hipkins says, “Extending Apprenticeship Boost to run until August 2022 means employers can keep getting the subsidy for apprentices who are in their first two years of training. “It also means employers who have apprentices starting over those extra four months can get some Apprenticeship Boost support as well, which could see more than 5,000 new apprentices able to benefit. “We must ensure we have the workforce to build the houses needed to address our current supply issues. “Extending Apprenticeship Boost will encourage more people into building trades and will assist employers to keep apprentices on, making sure the workforce is at the ready to get building.” Minister for Social Development and Employment Carmel Sepuloni says it’s important apprentices have additional support during COVID-19. “We know Apprenticeship Boost is already working for this group with $80 million being paid out to employers of first year apprentices already. 88 | B&C - Issue #128
Education Minister Chris Hipkins says, “Across the board, apprenticeships are becoming much more popular, which is great news. Over 15,000 apprentices commenced in the second half of 2020 compared to nearly 7,000 in the second half of 2019, an increase of 125 percent.
TTAF targeted areas include: • Primary industries • Construction • Community support • Manufacturing and mechanical engineering and technology
“Extending this initiative shows we are backing our apprentices and their employers to succeed,” Carmel says. “This support ensures apprenticeship training is available across all regions and industries.” Chris Hipkins says the Government has extended Apprenticeship Boost because it works. “We continue to invest to deliver the skills we need to build back better from the COVID-19 pandemic.” All industries with formal apprenticeship training programmes are taking up this support with 32 percent of Apprenticeship Boost apprentices enrolled with BCITO, and 22 percent with the Skills Organisation – which includes building and construction related apprenticeships in plumbing, gasfitting, drainlaying, electrical, roofing and scaffolding.
Benefits for apprentices Beyond the added benefit for the trades sector and employers, both school leavers and workers alike are seeing the value in picking up a trade.
www.buildersandcontractors.co.nz
Since introducing Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (free trades training) in July, 106,600 people have taken advantage of free trades training. This includes over 58,000 apprentices. Running until 31 December 2022, TTAF makes all apprenticeships free, as well a range of qualifications in targeted areas. “We know as a result of COVID-19, many New Zealanders are looking to retrain and gain new skills, and employers in key sectors will need more skilled people,” Chris Hipkins says. “One third of TTAF learners are in the construction sector with the next most popular areas primary industries (18 percent) and community support (17 percent). “Once qualified these workers will help support New Zealand’s efforts to recover from COVID-19 and develop our economy in years to come.” Data collected by the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) reveals behind the most popular three categories are manufacturing and mechanical engineering and technology at 12 percent, electrical engineering at 10 percent, and road transport at less
• Electrical engineering, • Road transport (vehicle operations) • Conservation • Information technology.
than a percent – there have only been 30 apprenticeships in road transport since the start of fees free training. “It’s great to see strong interest from across the community, with 19 percent of TTAF learners identifying as Māori, 9 percent Pacific and 13 percent Asian. Women are also looking at trades as a career with 7,420 female apprentices, about 13 percent of all TTAF apprentices. “TTAF is designed not just for school leavers but for people in a range of circumstances and stages of their lives. People have taken that on board with nearly a quarter aged 40 and over. Overall, about two thirds of those studying using TTAF are 25 years of age and older.” For more information about TTAF, visit www.tec.govt.nz. For more information about Apprenticeship Boost, visit www.workandincome.govt.nz.
