10 ASSOCIATIONS
The new face of apprenticeships
By
IOPSA
The plumbing sector leads a new approach to apprenticeships – increasing youth employment , setting young people up for success , and enhancing the sector .
When a sector organises itself into an engine of inclusive growth , it can focus on the mutual interests of all stakeholders , including industry bodies , employers , and educators . Working together enables them to identify sector needs , create jobs , and fill those jobs with young people who would otherwise be locked out of the economy .
Setting these young people up for success with transformative training enables them to play a vital role in enhancing the sector and the economy . The plumbing sector is the first in the artisan space to collaborate in the way it sources and trains its apprentices .
Brendan Reynolds , Executive Director of IOPSA ( Institute of Plumbing South Africa ), says the realisation that construction and plumbing companies had stopped taking on apprentices was a wake-up call .
“ Plumbing offers great opportunities . It features on the 2020 National List of Occupations in High Demand and is part of the government ’ s target to have 30 000 trained artisans in place annually to fulfil strategic infrastructure projects and Covid recovery plans ,” he says . “ If we can change employers ’ perceptions of apprentices , we will see significant growth in apprenticeships and new employment opportunities to meet the government ’ s target .”
According to Reynolds , many young people arbitrarily choose trade jobs because they offer a faster route to earning a stipend . However , if a young person is not suited to the work , they will not succeed , regardless of how desperate they are to earn a living .
“ A poor match between a young person and their chosen vocation is one of the reasons that our TVET colleges show low ( 50 %) pass rates and aren ’ t producing the candidates our industry wants .”
Through collaboration , the plumbing sector has identified its challenges in appropriately sourcing and skilling young people as artisans ready to tackle their apprenticeships with willing and supportive employers . In response it has now introduced two gamechanging education models for plumbing .
BluLever Education – an apprenticeship that takes itself seriously . BluLever Education , an organisation that develops artisans through holistic vocational education and skills training , offers a Red Seal plumbing qualification after a 3-year practical apprenticeship .
The company has designed a unique approach to apprenticeships that features three months on campus and nine months of job shadowing and on-the-job training in the workplace every year . However , it starts with an intense 8-week induction leadership camp to equip candidates with the attitudes they need to succeed .
BluLever Education
The Plumbing Hand skills programme has created a new entrylevel pathway for young people into the plumbing industry .
Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator sources candidates for the programme based on the attitudes and aptitudes most valued in successful plumbers . They are interviewed in one-on-one sessions with the team and attend a class-based session where problemsolving , teachability and hand skills are assessed before they are invited to the leadership camp .
www . plumbingafrica . co . za @ plumbingonline @ plumbingonline @ PlumbingAfricaOnline August 2021 Volume 27 I Number 6