Awards honour the accomplishments of apprentices in the building industry

BY DEAN WEBSTER

Although the building industry has been under an immense amount of pressure through the impacts of COVID, and now supply chain and labour shortages, the industry continues to press on and get the job done with apprentices a highly valued part of the team.

To recognise the accomplishments that apprentices make to the industry, Master Builders Victoria have announced the apprentices of the year for 2023.

Three south-west Victorian apprentices were honoured for the quality of their work at Master Builders Victoria’s Regional Apprentice of the Year Awards.

Austin Cloete from Penshurst was awarded the South-West Chairperson’s Award at a celebration at GMHBA Stadium recently which was attended by more than 250 guests.

Nominated by his training provider, South West TAFE and employed by HUF Builders, the award judges commented that even though Austin had become a carer for a family member during his apprenticeship, he had persevered with his work despite having to juggle responsibilities.

“Austin loves to utilise his problem-solving skills every day while continuing to develop and refine his carpentry skills and techniques.

“It’s clear he loves his work and is excited to continue progressing his career,” the judges said.

Apprentices nominated for the awards were judged on their preparation and presentation, work experience, knowledge and career plans, attitude on and about the job and industry representation, by a panel of industry judges.

Todd Robinson from Hamilton took home the South-West Apprentice of the Year – Future Builder Award.

Nominated by his training provider, South West TAFE and employed by AA & KA Jones, Todd took on his apprenticeship after deciding he was in a rut with his previous job in insurance.

“Todd is extremely driven in his career, and we were impressed by his forward-thinking and goals to become a registered builder with his own company and then longer term he wants to create an organisation that focuses on preserving the carpentry skill set,” the judges said.

“It’s clear that Todd is determined to achieve his ambitions and is ready to put in the hard work.”

The final award of the night, the South-West Apprentice of the Year – Developing Leader Award, was won by Dylan Little from Armstrong Creek.

Dylan is employed by Axon Plastering and he was nominated for the award by his training provider, Sunraysia Institute of TAFE.

The judges described Dylan as an advanced and clever student, who is quick to grasp intricate technical projects.

“After occasionally working for his brother to earn some extra money, Dylan developed a natural passion for plastering and committed himself to an apprenticeship, where he continues to develop his growing skills,” they said.

“He wants to push the boundaries of what can be achieved with plastering and has a future vision of becoming a trade school teacher to support the next generation of plasterers.”

MBV interim chief executive officer Michaela Lihou congratulated Austin, Todd and Dylan on their awards, noting the strength of this year’s nominations.

“It’s a great accolade for the building and construction industry that we continue to see such talented apprentices building their futures with us,” she said.

The south-west regional winners will go on to the overall Victorian State Apprentice of the Year Awards being held at Marvel Stadium on May 11.