Try a Trade gives job seekers a glimpse of the future

Burrandies Aboriginal Corporation is giving Indigenous job seekers in Mount Gambier, South Australia, a chance to test out a future career path with its new Try a Trade program.

It is part of Burrandies’ delivery of the Australian Government’s Indigenous Employment Program, which aims to get more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people active in the workforce.

Trainer Mark Walters said participants would be able to try out three different trades, welding, carpentry and automotive, to gain basic skills and see what employment possibilities were out there.

“Hopefully we’ll get a few fellas out here, get them motivated and show them that there’s a big world out there that they can participate in,” Mark said.

“The guys probably haven’t had much exposure since they left school, which could have been quite limited depending on where they went to school.

 “It might give them a bit of a pathway, or let them hone some skills that they had already picked up but forgotten about.”

Burrandies Indigenous employment consultant, Roxanne Wallis, said that while Try a Trade doesn’t provide participants with accredited qualifications, it was an important first step in getting people to think more seriously about pursuing employment.

She said the program aimed to give unemployed people a sense of routine and purpose by doing something they enjoy, “which will hopefully lead into a pathway for them”.

Roxanne said the program had positive health benefits as well by boosting self-esteem and providing a sense of achievement.

“We plan to work on small projects within the program so the participants can see something from start to finish, something they’ve created, something they’ve put their effort into, which will be an achievement for them.”