Teachers’ Workchoice Day to become annual event

29 August 2013

Media Release

Teachers’ Workchoice Day to become annual event for employers + educators

This year’s inaugural Teachers’ Workchoice Day events were successful in uniting education and industry in a bid to avert a looming youth employment crisis in New Zealand.

Hosted by The Workchoice Trust in association with The Skills Organisation, in Auckland and Christchurch, Teachers’ Workchoice Day saw industry spokespeople and employers sharing their insights and concerns with over 200 secondary educators.

Insightful and inspirational, attendees from both sectors took away fresh approaches and new industry knowledge to ensure our youth are work-ready.

Amanda Wheeler, CEO of Workchoice Trust says, “We’re thrilled with the feedback from all involved and are committed to bringing Teachers’ Workchoice Day to more parts of New Zealand each and every year.

“With over 200 educators now in touch with potential employers for students in their area, this event can and already has achieved real tangible outcomes. We think it should be a key date on all secondary educators’ calendars for 2014.”

Key messages from this year’s Teachers’ Workchoice Day events included that among other ‘essentials’, a job candidate’s should take care their personal brand was represented appropriately on the internet.

Teachers were also advised the use of social media as a recruitment tool was gaining popularity and that the ability to demonstrate a candidate’s compatibility with a company culture was increasingly important.

Both unpaid and paid work experience is also a great indicator to employers of reliability, responsibility and ‘willingness to work’ – and makes a difference even if the work experience is unrelated to the role sought after.

A clear insight from both the Auckland and Christchurch events was the demand for tradespeople. Youth entering the workforce will be relied upon to assist with solutions to the Auckland housing shortage and Christchurch rebuild – with specific trades such as diesel mechanics, engineers and carpenters highly sought after.

Speakers from a variety of industries, backgrounds and occupations shared their insights and reflected on their own paths into the workforce, before a panel of industry employers shared their specific recruitment opportunities and concerns. Question time from the audience raised some interesting revelations including the closing gap between ‘blue collar’ and ‘white collar’ pay scales along with the idea that the main ‘client’ of the education system is actually employers.

Attending educators were later given the opportunity to gain ‘real-life’ insights into industry by visiting various industries and workplaces throughout the afternoon.

Garry Fissenden, CEO of The Skills Organisation says, "Teachers' Workchoice Day provides a perfect opportunity to allow industry to spell out their needs very clearly to educators. It's an extremely important initiative."

“With youth accounting for more than one-third of New Zealand’s total unemployment rate, it is critical that this event continues to ensure employers and educators are on the same page."

To register for the 2014 events or to find out more about Teachers’ Workchoice Day go to www.workchoice.co.nz

ENDS

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