Ellery gets a hands-on look

Education and Training Minister Sue Ellery visited an engineering workshop in Waroona last Monday to meet apprentices and trainees.

Schlam Engineering works in collaboration with Group Training South West offering an apprenticeship program that sees the employment and training of youth.

“We are committed to working with local businesses such as Schlam Engineering by providing financial assistance to help with the cost of employing apprentices and trainees and reducing the cost of training in areas where jobs are available,” Ms Ellery said.

Waroona resident Zachary Faulkner is one of five apprentices doing a Certificate III in Engineering Fabrication at Schlam.

Following in his father’s footsteps, who is also a boiler maker and welder, Mr Faulkner was an Apprentice of the Year finalist in the 2018 Apprenticeship and Traineeship Company Awards.

“I enjoy working here, there are a lot of mentors here who have the skills and knowledge to guide me through my apprenticeship,” Mr Faulkner said.

Schlam group general manager Glenn Brearey said the five apprentices and three trainees all lived within a 20km radius of the 2000sq m plant.

“To date, nearly 30 apprentices have been through Schlam engineering,” Mr Brearey said.

“Our apprenticeships program has been a great success for many years and has resulted in adding many tradespeople to the workforce, several of whom still work for the company.”

The Certificate III in Engineering and Fabrication is one of the 34 courses that will undergo a decrease in fees as of January 1.

The half price cap was implemented by the State government earlier this year as part of their ‘Lower fees, local skills’ initiative.