Mrs BRAHAM - 2006-08-31
I know how keen you are to increase the skilled workforce. I had a concern raised by a parent who has three of his children doing apprenticeships, which is great. However, one of his children is an electrical apprentice who must come to Darwin to do his trade school as it is not offered in Alice Springs. He receives $1100 to cover his air travel and accommodation; he provides his own meals. CDU has increased the cost of accommodation for apprentices so that his bill for his four weeks training is $810 out of that $1100, and he has to find airfares as well.
This apprentice gets approximately $8 an hour, and does not have much in his bank savings. His parents are going to have to help him. The apprentice wants to know how he is expected to cover costs with that sort of an allowance when he must go to CDU in Darwin? Can you perhaps give him some comfort that you will increase the allowance to cover those costs for coming to Darwin, or will you give him some comfort that CDU will at least charge for accommodation at a price he can afford?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Braitling for her question. I salute this father of three trainees in the workforce, three of around 3300 in the Northern Territory. Good on him, he has obviously brought these kids up very well that they are prepared to undertake training and, in order to do so, make the sacrifice the member for Braitling was talking about with very low hourly rates in those first few years of an apprenticeship.
DEET, along with the registered training organisation, will always try to train in the home town. That is not always possible, as you have explained in the situation here. This Alice Springs lad has to come to Darwin. Where you cannot train in the normal place of residence, the department pays an Apprentice and Trainee Travel and Accommodation Grants Scheme, which gives assistance to the apprentices and trainees to travel to attend the off the job component. This also includes a travel grant to cover the cost of travel, either by air or bus to the place of training. They are given a subsidy to assist with accommodation of $143 per full week, and then $20.45 for each extra day after that first full week.
When we look at the level of assistance provided by the Northern Territory government compared with other states, they range from $8.50 per day to about $20 per day. We are well in the mix, although those figures are a bit dated.
We also have the Workwear/Workgear Bonus for those in the traditional trades areas of $1000 after they have completed their three months probation. We have $300 for the traineeship apprentices, and they receive wages from their employers while they are undertaking that block release. In some cases, not all, employers do assist with those costs of living away from home during that time. They do have the option if it is possible, for them to reside with family or friends if they have that opportunity, and Charles Darwin University does provide residential accommodation. There is $140 per week for six weeks and over, or $30 per day for shorter periods as at 1 July 2006.
There are two points I want to make in relation to all of that: DEET does stand by for any apprentice or trainee who requires emergency assistance during their time on the off the job training. That is great support from the department that they are prepared to step in and see that young person through a difficult time.
However, it is quite some time since these rates were adjusted. Having said all of that, I say to the member for Braitling I will asking the department to review the current rates against average costs. We will look at a few cases to see the average costs for the trainees and apprentices when they are away on their block release. Let us have a look at it interstate. It will go with a positive recommendation from me and the office that we want to understand the implications and how much it costs, but we ought be looking at some measured increase to that.
That is the message for the member for Braitling to pass on to this trainee. She can take credit for raising this question, and the department will be undertaking a review.
This apprentice gets approximately $8 an hour, and does not have much in his bank savings. His parents are going to have to help him. The apprentice wants to know how he is expected to cover costs with that sort of an allowance when he must go to CDU in Darwin? Can you perhaps give him some comfort that you will increase the allowance to cover those costs for coming to Darwin, or will you give him some comfort that CDU will at least charge for accommodation at a price he can afford?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Braitling for her question. I salute this father of three trainees in the workforce, three of around 3300 in the Northern Territory. Good on him, he has obviously brought these kids up very well that they are prepared to undertake training and, in order to do so, make the sacrifice the member for Braitling was talking about with very low hourly rates in those first few years of an apprenticeship.
DEET, along with the registered training organisation, will always try to train in the home town. That is not always possible, as you have explained in the situation here. This Alice Springs lad has to come to Darwin. Where you cannot train in the normal place of residence, the department pays an Apprentice and Trainee Travel and Accommodation Grants Scheme, which gives assistance to the apprentices and trainees to travel to attend the off the job component. This also includes a travel grant to cover the cost of travel, either by air or bus to the place of training. They are given a subsidy to assist with accommodation of $143 per full week, and then $20.45 for each extra day after that first full week.
When we look at the level of assistance provided by the Northern Territory government compared with other states, they range from $8.50 per day to about $20 per day. We are well in the mix, although those figures are a bit dated.
We also have the Workwear/Workgear Bonus for those in the traditional trades areas of $1000 after they have completed their three months probation. We have $300 for the traineeship apprentices, and they receive wages from their employers while they are undertaking that block release. In some cases, not all, employers do assist with those costs of living away from home during that time. They do have the option if it is possible, for them to reside with family or friends if they have that opportunity, and Charles Darwin University does provide residential accommodation. There is $140 per week for six weeks and over, or $30 per day for shorter periods as at 1 July 2006.
There are two points I want to make in relation to all of that: DEET does stand by for any apprentice or trainee who requires emergency assistance during their time on the off the job training. That is great support from the department that they are prepared to step in and see that young person through a difficult time.
However, it is quite some time since these rates were adjusted. Having said all of that, I say to the member for Braitling I will asking the department to review the current rates against average costs. We will look at a few cases to see the average costs for the trainees and apprentices when they are away on their block release. Let us have a look at it interstate. It will go with a positive recommendation from me and the office that we want to understand the implications and how much it costs, but we ought be looking at some measured increase to that.
That is the message for the member for Braitling to pass on to this trainee. She can take credit for raising this question, and the department will be undertaking a review.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016