One of the most extraordinary programmes to facilitate and manage young school leavers into trade apprenticeships has been quietly gaining momentum in South Auckland over the past three years. Editor Glenn Baker talks to Trades At School founder and CEO John Kotoisuva.
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that there has long been a problem getting young school leavers to focus on trades careers after high school, or to recognise a tangible purpose for their high school education.
Thankfully, there is a scheme up and running, albeit still in its infancy, that has the potential to make a real difference – to give young people that real sense of purpose and help solve New Zealand’s ongoing skills shortage in the trades.
It all began when John Kotoisuva, during his time as a modern apprentice assessor and tutor with Apprentice Training New Zealand (ATNZ), saw the disconnect between the education sector and industry. “Young people coming into industry after training did not quite meet the requirements of the employers. They lacked understanding of the culture and the language of industry, and were coming into jobs quite ill-prepared,” he explains. “It was evident to me that the preparation of young people for industry wasn’t good enough – and so the concept for Trades At School began to form in my mind.
“At ATNZ we were having a high termination rate of apprenticeships,” recalls Kotoisuva. “I also sit on the advisory board of Competenz, representing the steel industry. At our last meeting it was revealed that 60 percent of new apprenticeship sign-ups terminate in the first 18 months. I believe this is largely due to industry not really being truly represented in the education sector.”
Signing contracts was often a case of ‘trial and error’ for apprentices, he says. “They would ask ‘is this for me or not?’ Trying to cope, especially in the initial stages of the apprenticeship, was a tough, lonely process for many.”
Meanwhile, says Kotoisuva, students are sitting at secondary school, Year 11 through Year 13, not knowing why they are there. “They cannot relate the subjects they are doing to life after secondary school. They can’t personalise NCEA or be motivated by it.”
So industry ends up getting young people simply with NCEA credits from all manner of subjects,
he says.

Building a bridge
“Trades At School is about building a solid bridge between industry and the education sector and bringing industry into the classroom for what it really is – presenting it in its truest form.
Trades At School, with initial five-year seed funding from the ASB Community Trust and Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs, has already put runs on the board. Working with 11 secondary schools in South Auckland and the Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT), the three-year programme has already had its first intake graduates. 14 achieved the National Certificate in Mechanical Engineering Level 2 (NCME L2) – a tertiary qualification additional to their NCEA Level 2 and the equivalent of a one year apprenticeship for ten different trades. Furthermore, seven students have already found trades employment – even those that haven’t were still motivated and confident enough to go on to pursue other careers. There are no negatives in this scheme – only positives!
The benefits to all parties are plain and obvious. Students become focused, motivated and, most importantly in this age of high youth unemployment, they have far greater earning potential at a young age. The schools benefit by having more engaged, high-achieving students with positive attitudes and behaviour – they can see a purpose in their studies.
Employers gain groomed, more productive workers with the right skill sets and the right attitude. There’re reduced training costs for them too because Year One apprenticeship unit standards are completed with the trainees attending MIT one day a week (three terms a year for two years). The trainee already has a two year track record (commitment) from secondary school and work experience in industry during the school holidays.

And let’s not forget the macro socioeconomic benefits – less welfare dependency, minimised teenage joblessness and negative social behaviour, less need to bring in overseas trained workers, the list goes on.
It’s no wonder John Kotoisuva wants the scheme to roll out from its current focus on mechanical engineering (fabrication/welding, precision engineering and maintenance) to other sectors – such as building and construction, rigging and scaffolding, manufacturing and infrastructure. “The simplicity of the programme makes it so easy to duplicate.”
It’s also understandable that he wants additional support beyond the current five year timeframe – more buy-in from business leaders, employers and funding agencies.
“With support from employers especially, Trades At School simply couldn’t function,” he says. “This is a home-grown human resource – your vehicle for the next generation of skilled workers.
We’re still losing far too many skilled workers to Australia. We must generate the numbers of new graduates and keep up the quality – and work at keeping these workers here with their extended families.”
Kotoisuva is excited about the potential of the programme long-term. Trades At School deserves consistent funding in years to come, he says, if it is to successfully respond to the needs of industry.
No more ambulance at the bottom of the cliff, he says. “This is not about throwing lifejackets to save young people – it’s a prevention programme. “It’s about empowering young people and walking beside them – helping them to cross that bridge between secondary school and employment, apprenticeship and traineeship.
“Trades At School helps young people make the transition with pastoral care and mentoring, education and exposure to industry, into productive jobs in an industry of their choice.”
Kotoisuva has an experienced board backing him, and a ton of positive testimonials from students and employers already to prove that this scheme deserves greater recognition.
To become an industry partner or a school partner in the programme phone 09 270 4071, email john.kotoisuva@c-me.org.nz or visit www.tradesatschool.org.nz