18 May 2007

Trades training vital to New Zealand’s productivity

Agriculture Minister Jim Anderton today noted New Zealand’s need for more skilled workers, saying “Trades are important to our economy and apprenticeships support strong career options.”

Speaking at the Canterbury Apprentice and Industry Training Graduation Awards in Christchurch, he said “The trades are focused on areas of the economy that need more skilled workers. We need our builders and carpenters, mechanics, engineers, toolmakers, fitters and turners, and electricians. We need people trained for our tourism industry, for the care industry and for careers in agriculture and horticulture. In other words, we need people who learn a trade skill through apprenticeships.

“Industry training is vital to increasing our productivity and transforming New Zealand into a high wage, high-skill economy. That's why the government has made an enormous investment in trade training: through the Modern Apprenticeship Programme; Industry training through the ITOs; And through Gateway programmes to help young people transition from school to work.

“Some people call these programmes 'government spending'. I call them 'investment programmes'. Investment in the future, “Jim Anderton said.

“We've gone from having mass youth unemployment at the dawn of the twenty-first century to a job market where numbers on the dole have fallen by 92 percent. There are 28 Work and Income Centres in New Zealand where there are no young people on the dole at all. And after yesterday's Budget, I would add, you'll go out into a workplace where you can expect over your working life to accumulate very substantial savings.“

Congratulating the graduates on their achievements, he urged them to consider an old Chinese proverb. “Teachers open the door. You enter by yourself."

ENDS

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