Education Minister Chris Hipkins: considering options on expiring scheme. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Education Minister Chris Hipkins: considering options on expiring scheme. Photo / Mark Mitchell
The Government's $390 million Apprenticeship Boost scheme has seen worker trainee numbers rise to record levels but it expires in early August.
As at the end of March 2022, more than 43,000 apprentices have been supported by the Apprenticeship Boost scheme since it was introduced in 2020, withmore than 17,000 employers registered under the scheme.
Apprenticeship Boost, introduced during the Covid-19 era, is due to end on August 4. Employers and industry leaders desperate for staff want to know if the Government will consider extending it.
Education Minister Chris Hipkins won't say precisely what's planned.
The Minister says the future of the Apprenticeship Boost scheme will be signalled "well before August" but doesn't say what that signal will be.
Hipkins said he was well aware the scheme was expiring soon and that decisions about its future were underway.
"We are currently looking at options to continue supporting employers and apprentices. This Government continues to champion the trades as a viable career option and has put significant resource into ensuring that people can get apprenticeships and access trades training."
The Government knew the programme had helped employers to keep apprentices on, particularly during Covid-19, and that those apprentices would help accelerate New Zealand's economic recovery, he said.
Under the scheme the Government pays businesses a $1000 a month subsidy for each apprentice in the first year of training and $500 a month in the second year.
Katrina Sutich, group manager for tertiary policy describes the scheme as "hugely successful," so far paying out $346.5 million in supporting employers to keep apprentices and to take on new ones.
Andrew Bayly, National's building and construction spokesman, said the scheme had worked well.
"We've seen an increase in apprentices and it was welcomed at a time we've been trying to build as many houses as possible. We think it should either be extended or replaced by a similar scheme like a unified funding support programme to help particularly smaller builders to take apprentices."
The advantages of Apprenticeship Boost was that it gave business owners and employers a financial incentive to help with the initial costs of training new staff up to more productive levels, he said.
Building and construction minister Poto Williams announced in December that infrastructure activity was forecast to reach $11.2 billion in 2026. The construction sector is now the fourth biggest employer with more than 280,000 people and residential construction was the largest contributor to national construction activity.
What happens after August 4? That's the question people in the building sector are asking. Photo / NZME
The Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation (BCITO) said The Apprenticeship Boost scheme had played a huge part in growing skills. Jason Hungerford, the organisation's director said apprentice numbers were at record levels.
At the end of March, BCITO had 21,600 apprentices undertaking training across the 15 trades under the organisation's coverage.
"This is up an astonishing 77 per cent from the 12,200 apprentices in March 2020."
BCITO signed up more than 6500 apprentices last year and 65 per cent of active apprentices were enrolled in carpentry, Hungerford said. At the end of March, 9500 employers were training apprentices through the organisation, a 41 per cent increase from the 6700 employers in March 2020.
