There is no Substitute for on Site Experience
As National Apprenticeship Week draws to a close and International Womens Day #BalanceForBetter is in full swing we thought this would be the perfect day to release our blog. Mainly because our apprentice electrician is a woman.
To be a woman working in construction is still looked upon as rare with approximately 88% of new starters on apprenticeships being male. There is a stigma around women working in construction as it is seen as a ‘manly’ career and until there are more women in the industry, there always will be. However there are some really great female tradespeople paving the way for the women of the future.
All engineers at The Maintenance Group are apprenticeship trained, including our Operations Director, Darren Thompson “Having completed a 4 year electrical apprenticeship myself and had a number of apprentices gain their qualifications while working alongside me, I believe the only way to gain the experience required to succeed in this career is by completing a recognised apprenticeship. The classroom teaches us the science behind our chosen trade but there is no substitute for on site experience”
Going from a school environment into the world of work straight away is challenging but rewarding. Seeing the personal and professional growth of apprentices is great for employers to see. For the employee, the ability to earn while you learn on an apprenticeship is just one of the benefits. Working within a team environment, improving on communication skills and learning a trade that they will have for life is invaluable.
Molly who is in her first year of training as an Electrician at The Maintenance Group said “Working at The Maintenance Group I don’t even feel like an apprentice, I feel like a member of the team that is treat and valued just the same as any other members. It’s a company that makes working fun as well as educational, alongside attending college. I am really looking forward to the next 3 and a half years of my apprenticeship and hopefully many years after that with The Maintenance Group.”
We believe that our more senior members of staff are there to mould new apprentices, offer assistance and answer their questions as well as to teach them.
Our Electrical Supervisor, Robert Matthews is responsible for apprenticeship training at The Maintenance Group. Having a great track record working with apprentices and coming through apprentice training himself, he said “Training apprentices is such a rewarding this to do, watching people learn new skills and growing into fully qualified trades people. It is nice to see so many still heading into apprenticeships with the path to university being pushed so much more.”
With such a variety of apprenticeships available in so many different areas of construction, we will surely be seeing more and more women enter the industry and hopefully start to tip the balance.