Training Talk - November 2004 - Issue 14

Prime Minister John Howard announced his government’s new ministry on 22 October 2004, with some changes affecting the Department of Education, Science and Training. 

The Hon Dr Brendan Nelson MP has been reappointed Minister for Education, Science and Training. He will take responsibility for science matters within the portfolio which will now also be responsible for the income support programmes available to students, apprentices and young people.

The Hon Gary Hardgrave MP has been appointed to the new position of Minister for Vocational and Technical Education to oversight the implementation of the Government’s election commitments in the area of skills training including the establishment of 24 new technical colleges. He will work directly with the Government’s industry partners, private and public training providers, and the States and Territories in funding and delivery of vocational education.

The Hon Gary Hardgrave MP has also be reappointed Minister assisting the Prime Minister. The Hon Pat Farmer MP has been appointed to the education portfolio as Parliamentary Secretary and will have special responsibility for Western Sydney.

The Prime Minister’s media release   is available online.   

A 21-year-old mechanical engineer with a passion for training has won the New Apprenticeships Apprentice of the Year Award at the 2004 Australian Training Awards.

Brad Donaldson from the Adelaide suburb of Strathalbyn, received the national award at a ceremony held at the Crown Entertainment Complex in Melbourne last Thursday night. 

Brad completed his apprenticeship through the Engineering Employers Association South Australia’s Group Training Scheme at host employer, Clipsal, receiving a Certificate III in Engineering (Mechanical) from the Regency Institute of TAFE.

 A passionate advocate for training as a pathway to success in career and life, Brad uses his skills to solve problems in his work. He considers training to be the “only way to go” in his industry.

“Training has given me every opportunity in my career so far, because once you get a trade, you will always have work,” he said.

Brad’s long term goals include working and studying overseas and starting his own business. He is completing an Advanced Diploma of Mechanical Engineering and spends any free time customising his home workshop. He’s also planning another apprenticeship in electrical engineering and ultimately, a degree in mechanical engineering.

Another of Brad’s many achievements this year is winning the Holden national Apprentice of the Year.

According to ANTA chairman, David Hind, a highly skilled Australian workforce is key to growing the national economy and to ensuring Australia remains competitive internationally.

“Students like Brad are proof positive that vocational education and training is the pathway to a great career,” Mr Hind said.

Runner up in the New Apprenticeships Apprentice of the Year category was David Ringswandle, a 21-year-old auto-technician from Pipers River (near Launceston, Tasmania) who completed a Certificate III in Automotive (Mechanical Light Vehicle) at the Institute of TAFE Tasmania.  

Other South Australians to share the winner’s dais with Brad were River Murray Training from Berri, named the Small Training Provider of the Year, and Adelaide’s ACI Glass Packaging, the 2004 Employer of the Year.

Further information on all winners and runners up is available from the ANTA website    

A young local with a passion for helping her community has won the New Apprenticeships Trainee of the Year Award at the 2004 Australian Training Awards.

Samantha Johnson from Madora received the national award at a ceremony held last Thursday night at the Crown Entertainment Complex in Melbourne.

Samantha completed her traineeship at Mandurah Youth Commitment, a not-for-profit organisation aiming to improve the education, training and employment outcomes for disadvantaged young people. She has a Certificate III in Business Administration from Challenger TAFE.

She says the traineeship turned her life around, improving her self-confidence and giving her the business skills to undertake project work with disadvantaged young people. 

“A traineeship is a stepping stone to where you want to go,” said Samantha.

 “Training opened the doors for my future career path and offered me a different learning environment in which to excel,” she says.

“I am really excited about the future because my main ambition in life is to actually help these kids and share my skills with the community.”

Despite being an early school leaver and encountering many personal obstacles, Samantha achieved her success through an extraordinary level of determination to excel.  

Her long term goal is to work in community services, using her administration skills and life experiences to assist other young people overcome personal difficulties and barriers.

According to ANTA chairman, David Hind, a highly skilled Australian workforce is key to supporting local communities and the diversity of individuals within them.

“Students, like Samantha, are proof positive that vocational education and training is the pathway to a rewarding career,” said Mr Hind.

Runner up in the Trainee of the Year category was Claire Wallace, a 21-year-old dairy farmer from Narrewarre in Victoria’s south-west.

Other winners from the West included an innovative training program designed for prisoners by WA’s AusWest Specialist Education and Training Services, which picked up the award in the prestigious Australian Training Initiative category. Grain marketer Co-operative Bulk Handling (CBH) Group won the Agri-Food Industry Award.

Further information on all winners and runners up is available from the ANTA website  .

The VET Priority Places Programme (VETPPP) is in full swing around the country with most brokers now having contracted their Registered Training Organisations to arrange courses and provide training.  So far there are over 400 courses including Business, Information Technology, Retail Operations, Aged Care, Home and Community Care, Disability Care, Workplace Assessment, Library Information, Transport & Distribution and many more.

There has been an overwhelming response to the programme from potential participants and the brokers are confident that the programme will be a great success.  To date, over 2,000 participants have participated in VETPPP, and over 300 participants have successfully completed training.  A number of these participants have now gained employment or have gone on to undertake further study.

DEST National Office staff, in conjunction with State Office colleagues, undertook monitoring visits to brokers and some providers in late October. Feedback from both brokers and providers has indicated that the visits were a great success and have assisted in creating collaborative working partnerships between the organisations.

The VET Priority Places Programme website   can provide further information.

More than 1,900 vocational education and training (VET) professionals registered to take part in NET*Working 2004, making it one of the largest online education and training conferences ever held in Australia.

NET*Working 2004 ran from 8 – 19 November and was supported by over 200 local events held in all States and Territories, providing a unique ‘face-to-face’ element.   

Leading edge virtual classroom technology allowed NET*Working 2004 participants to communicate with presenters and other delegates using the latest voice, visual and text software.

The NET*Working 2004 conference site will continue to provide a rich resource for registered delegates, with the entire 10-day conference program, including audio and video transcripts, remaining on the site at: http://flexiblelearning.net.au/nw2004/   until 30 December 2004.

From January 2005 conference sessions will be freely accessible so that everyone can benefit from NET*Working 2004 learning outcomes. Stay tuned to http://www.flexiblelearning.net.au/   for information about when this will be available.

http://flexiblelearning.net.au/newsandevents/index.htm   (currently it's the first story).

The Disability Coordination Officer (DCO) and Regional Disability Liaison Officer (RDLO) programmes aim to assist people with a disability move between school, vocational education and training (VET) and higher education, to succeed in their chosen studies and move to suitable employment. 

The 20 DCOs and 11 RDLOs form a comprehensive national network to provide information, coordination and referral services for people with a disability interested in or enrolled in post-school education and training.  DCOs and RDLOs can assist by:

• Providing information about post-school options, supports and services. 

• Helping with transitional arrangements between school and post-secondary education and training and post-secondary education and training and employment.

• Improving coordination of services across a region.  

In the first 18 months of the Programme, DCOs directly assisted with advice or referrals more than 1400 people with a disability, made about 1400 visits to (or had contact with) schools or related institutions, attended or facilitated over 400 training sessions, workshops or career expos, distributed more than 33,000 brochures, and had more than 21,000 hits on their web sites.

The DCO/RDLO network’s brochure and postcard is being distributed to all New Apprenticeship Centres, Centrelink offices, Job Network offices and CRS Australia offices across Australia to assist the coordination of referral services between RDLOs/DCOs and these other services.

For further information, including the contact details for the DCO or RDLO in your region, please view the network’s web site www.adcet.edu.au/rdco    

‘A Safe Site’ helps builders and subcontractors improve their safety…and literacy

It’s not easy at times to provide training for builders and subcontractors – their office is more often than not ‘the building site’, prone to all sorts of weather, and workers are often on the go moving from site to site. Classrooms for training are pretty scarce too. So how do you help builders and subcontractors learn about something like Occupational Health and Safety?

You give them a copy of ‘A Safe Site’ – an exciting new DVD resource that allows workers to learn at their own pace, at home, on a lap top, or anywhere where they can plug in a computer.

Developed by the Master Builders Association of Victoria (MBAV), and funded through the Workplace English Language and Literacy (WELL) Programme, the DVD resource ‘A Safe Site’, was designed to assist people in the domestic building trade better understand their OH&S responsibilities. It covers topics from manual handling, personal protective equipment, and signage, to the need for a Job Safety Analysis and site traffic plans. It contains a range of ‘easy to relate to’ case studies highlighting how to help workers identify potential hazards and control risks.

But the benefits don’t stop there – because it’s a WELL funded resource, it’s designed to help workers improve their literacy skills too. So the resource contains complex information communicated in a way that is easy to understand for everyone working in the field – from supervisors to workers new to the industry.  There are also activities included to help workers understand some of the forms and documentation they may encounter, and real life video footage of examples of OH&S in the workplace.

‘A Safe Site’ has been a real success story for workers in the building game and recently won an Australasian Video Award in the category of Professional and Technical Education and Training – Skills Specific.

For more information on how to purchase ‘A Safe Site’, contact Mary Gates from MBAV on (03) 94114579, or if you wish to borrow a copy, contact ARIS   at (03) 961 22621. For more information about opportunities for WELL funding, call the WELL Hotline on (02) 6240 7333

By integrating WELL training into its broader training program, Orrcon Pty Ltd is not only managing change, but providing opportunities for its employees to reach new career heights 

Orrcon is the third largest manufacturer and distributor of steel tubing in Australia. Like many companies today, it is continually faced with change. It has recently undergone a substantial amalgamation, and is constantly challenged by the need to produce new products and services to expanding overseas markets.  Such changes have placed a huge demand on Orrcon to ensure its employees are learning new skills to keep the company competitive.

Faced with such challenges, Orrcon enlisted the Adelaide Institute of TAFE to provide an overview of training needs - and what resulted is ‘North Bound Train’. North Bound Train is a holistic training program that combines both technical training with training in a range of  business areas.

An important part of this program is the Workplace English Language and Literacy (WELL) Programme. Funded through WELL, Adelaide Institute of TAFE provided training to improve the workplace communication and literacy skills of employees. As a result, many workers have progressed into higher level jobs and are confidently performing tasks they previously didn’t think they could do.

One such worker is Sam. Sam had worked at Orrcon for 15 years in a range of jobs. However when he started the communication courses available on the job, his confidence grew tremendously. Through the training, Sam learnt skills in workplace assessing and has since moved from his job as a forklift driver, to area coordinator to Production Coordinator, in a short space of time. If it wasn’t for the WELL training conducted by Adelaide Institute of TAFE, Orrcon may not have realized Sam’s potential.

WELL Training has also played a direct role in increasing productivity within Orrcon. As part of the communication training offered, workers in the steel slitting area  have learnt skills such as ‘Brainstorming’ and how to communicate effectively with others in a group. As a result, and through the efforts of all in the group, the Steel slitting area resolved a number of technical problems to substantially improve output.

The North Bound Train program has proven to be a huge success in Orrcon, and the workplace communication training provided through the WELL program has played a huge role by helping individual workers to realize their potential, and to work together. Just like a North Bound Train, training at Orrcon is headed in the right direction, and that is up!

This service assists NAC and RTO field officers market New Apprenticeships to employers.  The website http://www.natinfo.com.au/   provides Training Package overviews and specific ‘Sample Training Programs’ that tie in occupational outcomes to Training Package qualifications.  The service also provides a 1800 338 022 support line.

Peter Stewart is a Business Consultant at MAS National in Victoria.  He was a long time user of the service’s previous NAC Information Service website but has found that the new site offers more information and the chance to print out marketing materials. 

“I was recently talking with an employer in the hospitality area who had not previously considered New Apprenticeships.  I was able to print out an overview of the Hospitality Training Package and use that to introduce the possibilities that were open to them through New Apprenticeships,” Peter explained.  “But all Training Packages are covered, which is very helpful as I deal with employers across a variety of industries. 

Peter said in summary, “I know that I can quickly get information on Training Package qualifications that are linked to job titles, including a job-specific ‘Sample Training Program’.  This is a really handy resource for any NAC.”

For more information visit http://www.natinfo.com.au/  , email contacts@natinfo.com.au or call the NAT Information Service on 1800 338 022.