Apprentice Kickstart begins today
The second stage of the Rudd Government’s highly successful Apprentice Kickstart campaign begins today, with almost $80 million in the Budget to employ 22,500 more teenage apprentices across the nation.
Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard and Minister for Employment Participation, Mark Arbib today urged small businesses to take advantage of the bonus which more than triples the commencement bonus for young apprentices from $1,500 to $4,850.
Ms Gillard said Kickstart was part of the Government’s Skills for Sustainable Growth package, which invests over $660 million in training, apprenticeships and adult numeracy and literacy to ensure Australia has the skills it needs to support a growing economy.
Apprentice Kickstart made a down payment on skills and this extension will further grow the skills we need to build the capacity of the economy.
Not only will this measure help small businesses to take on an apprentice, but it will also make it easier for young people to get a start in the trades.
The initial Kickstart initiative exceeded expectations, with about 24,400 young people given an apprenticeship in the traditional trades over summer.
Senator Arbib said the Government’s apprenticeship drive had recovered the 25 per cent drop in apprentices which occurred during the global recession.
“What we saw during the 1990s recession was apprenticeship commencements in key traditional trades, like metal, automotive and construction fall 34 per cent. It then took 13 years to recruit the same number, creating severe skill shortages in so many areas,” Senator Arbib said.
“The previous government neglected the skills needs of Australia. That’s why we ended up with such a skills shortage.
“The Rudd Government was determined not to let that happen again – which is why we acted decisively, by introducing Apprentice Kickstart to boost traditional trade apprenticeship numbers back to pre-global recession levels in just one year,” he said.
“Now we want to go even further and build capacity in the economy.
“For those young people who are unemployed, this gives them an opportunity not just to get a job, but for a career in the trades. We are going to need these plumbers, electricians, welders and boiler-makers to meet the challenge of a growing economy.”
Ms Gillard said it was encouraging to see so many businesses hiring young people.
This initiative is helping to develop a highly-skilled workforce and is a great foundation to support the recovery of the Australian economy.
On top of the Kickstart initiative, the Government’s four-year skills package will deliver:
* up to 39,000 additional training places in sectors facing high skills demands through a $200 million investment in a new Critical Skills Investment fund,
* an offer to the States and Territories to provide a guaranteed entitlement to a training place for all Australians under the age of 25 years to ensure young people have every opportunity gain a qualification,
* Numeracy, literacy and language courses for up to 140,000 Australians to improve their quality of life, career prospects and productivity, and
* Better training for the 1.7 million Australians studying in the vocational training system.
