TWELVE apprentice technicians are more than halfway through their first year at an innovative training academy established by two Melbourne Isuzu truck dealerships.

The dealerships, Westar and Patterson Cheney, started the academy to boost skills retention and to reduce the alarming rate of apprenticeship dropouts.

The training coordinator of the Westar and Patterson Cheney Apprentice Academy, Peter Sherry, said more than 30 applications were received to fill the 12 available positions when the academy was first publicised.

The apprentices combine paid work and training and attend TAFE together every two months.

Mr Sherry said the aim was to build a strong camaraderie among the participants to help them feel more committed to finishing their apprenticeships.

He said that for a range of reasons, many Australian trades are currently experiencing high levels of apprentices not completing their training.

The National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER)’s “Completion and Attrition Rates for Apprentices and Trainees 2021” report found that one third of all first-year apprentices and trainees do not go on to complete their trade certificate.

Further, it said that less than half of the apprenticeships started in Australia in 2017 had been completed.

Mr Sherry said the combined dealership initiative decided “to take the bull by the horns” to encourage young people to consider a career as a truck mechanic.

The group works with training and government organisations to reach out to young people who might be interested.

“We actually put some of them into our dealership one or two days a week so they can see whether they like it before they commit,” he said.

Through the academy, an apprentice can become a qualified heavy commercial vehicle technician or an auto electrician, with training in all areas of the service and pre-delivery areas.

During the four-year program, the apprentices will complete a Certificate III in Heavy Commercial Vehicle Mechanical Technology (AUR31120) or Certificate III in Automotive Electrical Technology (AUR30320) through the Kangan Institute at the Automotive Centre of Excellence in Melbourne’s Docklands.

The apprentices also have the opportunity to obtain a forklift licence, first aid qualifications, a truck licence, Certificate II Automotive Air-Conditioning and Arctic AC refrigerant handling licence.

To sweeten the deal, everyone accepted into the Patterson Cheney Apprenticeship Academy is also given a starter toolkit worth $4000.

“We place the apprentices in our three dealerships,” said Mr Sherry.

“We have five participants in Dandenong, six at Westar in Derrimut and two in Campbellfield, which is now expanding and doubling its workshop size.”

The first intake in the Patterson Cheney Apprenticeship Academy range in age from 16 to late-20s and include a mix of male and female apprentices.

As part of their training this year, the group visited the Isuzu Australia Limited (IAL) head office to watch the final of the Isuzu National Technical Skills Training Competition to get an idea of the training opportunities for Australian truck mechanics.

“The opportunity came for them to observe the competition, to see what goes and obviously we hope they’d be involved with it one day,” said Mr Sherry.

“It’s also important for them to see the level of professionalism of the IAL guys so they can replicate that in the dealerships.

“It’s not just bringing dirty old trucks into workshops and getting oil changed and getting themselves dirty as well. There’s quite a lot of nous that goes into diagnosing. Hopefully they can take some hints back to the workshop.”

Academy participants include Kristen Da Silva and Madeleine Sutton, both first-year apprentices at the Patterson Cheney dealership in Dandenong.

Ms Da Silva said that “as a kid I was always fiddling with things and putting them together.
Eventually I decided I wanted to be a truck mechanic.”

She encourages other young women to consider a trade as a career, saying that “if anyone says don’t do it, it’s a man’s job, don’t listen to them.”

Ms Sutton was previously a restaurant manager and was looking for a career change when she found the Patterson Cheney Apprenticeship Academy advertised on Seek.com.au.

“I did want to be a truck driver when I was little, so I’ve reverted back to the truck aspect,” she said.

She had some automotive experience from working on her own car.

“It turns out it’s a bit cheaper to be able to work on it yourself,” she said.

Patterson Cheney is planning another intake of 12 to its academy next year, and possibly even a mid-year intake.

“It’s a way of helping the service managers pick the right candidates for technician positions,” said Mr Sherry.

“Trucking is one of the most stable industries for people to start their careers. As was really hammered home during the last few years of COVID, trucks are vital to the transport and service industries and to the Australian economy.”

By Neil Dowling