New tool to match employers and apprentices for better completion rates

Group Training Australia in conjunction with Ithaca Group has developed a new tool to improve the matching of apprentices to employers in order to bring about better apprentice completion rates. This initiative has been funded by the Australian Government Department of Education and Training.

The tool has been developed around the findings of research conducted by Ithaca Group in 2011 for the former NSW Board of Vocational Education and Training and encapsulated in their report A Fair Deal. The research found that the mismatch between prospective apprentices and their employers was one of the major reasons for high attrition rates amongst apprentices. The key message is that the more effort put into the selection of suitable candidates for apprenticeships and matching them to employers who are equipped to provide them with a supportive learning environment, the more likely an apprentice will see that they are getting a fair deal and persevere with their training until they have completed their qualification.

The tool is web-based and targeted at intermediaries whose role is to assist in the selection and recruitment process. This would include the staff of group training organisations (GTOs), recruitment agencies such as the new Commonwealth-funded Jobactive providers as well as the Commonwealth-funded Australian Apprenticeship Support Network providers. It is also expected that this tool would be useful to school careers advisors and others who assist school students considering school-based apprenticeships or other types of VET in schools programs.

The tool can be accessed at www.employingapprentices.com.au and a promotional brochure is attached in this link here. The website has been optimised for various mobile devices.