YEARS OF SEARCHING FOR THE RIGHT SCHOOL LEAVER END

AFTER YEARS of searching for a new recruit for their business, Auckland engineering firm Stainless Machinings turned to the free Competenz job matching service to find an ideal candidate. In the space of a few short months, school leaver Stuart Martin joined the company.

“We’d been trying to recruit a young person for a couple of years,” says Stainless Machinings owner Brian Lawry. “We’d been in touch with local high schools to arrange work experience at our precision component business and liaised with many career advisors and even advertised at Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT), but with no success.

“We then contacted industry training organisation Competenz, who advertised the position on their website jobs board. Shortly after that, we were advised that two potential people had been found and Competenz started the process of talking to them to assess their suitability and then arranged interviews with us. From there, we chose Stuart, who we’ve since offered an apprenticeship with us.”

In January 2021 Martin, who was 17 at the time, started with the company and has now enrolled in a Mechanical Engineering, Fitting and Machining apprenticeship.

“I studied Level 1 engineering at school and decided to work in the industry because I like making things and solving problems,” he says. “It was while I was at MIT doing a school course that Competenz sent me job opportunities that were tailored to what I wanted to do. I felt like this was a great step. It should only take me three or four years until I’m fully qualified.”

Lawry says Martin has an excellent attitude, is keen to learn and has fitted seamlessly into the business. “His family also has engineering experience, so he has a natural interest in it.”

Competenz Recruitment Executive Brenda James says the job matching service takes away a lot of work for both employers and learners, and ensures the right fit. And once in place, a training advisor will work with the employer and employee to find the most suitable apprenticeship or training programme for them. In this case, it’s a win-win: Lawry gets his new employee to train, and Martin gets a bright start in his engineering career.