Got a Trade Week, starting today for a workday week, highlights to school leavers, parents and teachers that the automotive industry in particular will require 11,200 workers in four years’ time amid demand from the other 139 trades and services in New Zealand.
Accommodation will require 11,800 workers by 2020; aged care/support 17,500; building and construction 64,000; civil 19,600; electrotechnology 11,300; hairdressing 2,700; mechanical engineering 5,400; manufacturing 40,000; plumbing, gasfitting and drainlaying 7,800; resource recovery 2,800; retail supply chain 107,000; and roofing and scaffolding 6,800.
Stuff points to mechanical engineering apprentice Ben Norton at Compac Sorting Equipment in Auckland.
Norton explains that the trend is to go to university after school and that trade apprenticeship is not widely considered. He wised up to the opportunity at hand via a teacher informing him of the “mechanical engineering opportunity”.
This enabled him to gain experience with money in the bank and no student debt. This makes him one of the fortunate 72% of school leavers who don’t go to university but make the most of available apprenticeship opportunities.
Got a Trade Week from August 22 to 26 will showcase the talents and achievements of Kiwi apprentices like Ben Norton making headway in their vocation as well as anticipated future demand for skilled workers across all trades and services.
According to statistics more than 75,000 Kiwis aged 15 to 24 are not working, studying or training, making up 41% of the country’s unemployed, and according to 2015 Immigration New Zealand, one third of the occupations on the long-term skills shortage list are trades and services.
“Trades and services typically refer to jobs that require practical skills and on-the-job training. This includes everything from construction, engineering and transport, to hairdressing, hospitality, aged care workers and retail,” concludes Got a Trade chair Andrew Robertson.
For further information visit gotatrade.co.nz.
