Upskilling aimed at helping hospo

MINISTER for Employment and Western Victoria upper house MP Jaala Pulford last week announced a new State Government initiative that will see jobseekers receive hospitality training and recruitment.

With Mitchell Harris Wines as a backdrop, Ms Pulford said 500 openings were available across the state and the program will provide “dozens” of entry-level jobs to fill staff shortages for Ballarat businesses.

“Around a quarter of them will go to regional Victoria, and obviously Ballarat’s the second largest city in regional Victoria,” she said.

“It’s so important for people to have a foothold in work, and it’s also important for a business to have the people they need to give customers a fabulous experience.

“This is a really novel approach, a really new and different way of bringing these two problems together into a solution.”

The initiative would see $6.8 million allocated to Jobs Victoria as part of the State Government’s $200 million Business Stimulus Package.

Other partners in the effort include the Apprenticeship Employment Network and Group Training Organisations members, who will coordinate the endeavour.

John Harris, owner of Mitchell Harris Wines, said the program will be “very helpful” in allowing them to continue recovering from the pandemic.

“To have that extra pool of staff that we can tap into that do have some experience will be really beneficial,” he said.

“When you’ve got eager customers wanting to come into your venue, to find skilled and experienced staff to look after them has been our biggest challenge over the last couple of years.”

The program will run until September, and jobseekers will be paid for five days of basic training, including food-handling and barista courses, and the responsible service of alcohol.