Real struggle for regions
Ex-apprentice describes challenge for rural trainees
DARCY Cavanough is not surprised to hear about rising rates of apprentices in regional Queensland dropping out – after all, he was one of them.
The Toowoomba teenager, who grew up in south-west Queensland, said young people in regional centres trying to break into trades faced unique challenges compared to their city counterparts.
Working for four years in a certificate III in mechanical engineering at a firm in Roma, Mr Cavanough said he watched the majority of his friends fail to finish their respective courses.
“I’ve spoken to a fair few of my friends – most of the people in my grade dropped out of their apprenticeships – I’d say about 70 per cent, which is a significant number,” he said.
Drop-out rates for apprentices and trainees in regional areas like Toowoomba increased by five per cent in the 18 months to December last year, according to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research.
In comparison, Brisbane drop-out rates decreased by five per cent.
Mr Cavanough, who is now happily working at an engineering supply store in Toowoomba, said there were plenty of reasons why an apprentice would drop out.
“Money was a big problem (for many people), and also another one is they felt they were not getting the experience they felt they should,” he said.
“Bullying still exists – it didn’t happen in my case, but it definitely still exists.
“(For me), work was slowing down. There wasn’t a work guarantee (and)
Most of the people in my grade dropped out of their apprenticeships. — Darcy Cavanough
there were internal things that were happening.”
He said apprentices were often trained on outdated equipment by their registered training organisation, and he received little support.
“You’re probably looking at good equipment in Brisbane as opposed to Roma, because there are only three in Roma who might use it, as opposed to 300 in Brisbane,” he said.
“RTOs and businesses need to make sure that people are getting a fair go.”