29/10/2017 by VHNZ
Recently, Vertical Horizonz New Zealand (VHNZ) had the opportunity to work with both the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) and Scaffolding, Access & Rigging New Zealand (SARNZ) on a project purposefully training individuals to transition from the unemployment benefit to employment within the New Zealand Scaffolding industry.
The 12-day VHNZ course covered workplace health and safety, manual handling, first aid, permit receiver, advanced working at heights, low level scaffolding, elevated work platforms and forklift, all selected to make an individual attractive to employers on completion.
The trainees were supported throughout the 12 days by MSD, SARNZ and VHNZ. Potential employers were invited to the training events to witness what skills were being taught and to assess how well the trainees were adapting to the training and mock work environments.
The project provided a practical approach to recruiting into the worker-short scaffolding industry.
At the end of the training almost half of the trainees had successfully transitioned into full time employment within scaffolding. The trainees yet to secure work now have 20 unit standards across a range of industry specialties to present to future employers.
VHNZ will continue to look at similar projects where upskilling New Zealanders also helps to fill skill short industries within New Zealand.