It’s one of the biggest downsides of being a tradie.
And a deserved justification of why many of us get paid the big bucks.
The physical toll of a career in the trades eventually catches up to the majority of us.
From the aching joints, dodgy backs, lost hearing and vision difficulties – most tradies are all too familiar with how being on the tools can take a wrecking ball to your long-term health.
While the warning signs of those everyday aches are painfully obvious, many say they can’t see an alternate career path that will guide them towards a more pain-free future.
After all, for most of us, the tools are all we’ve ever known.
But thanks to a pioneering program by TAFE NSW that has begun to change, with tired tradies given the chance to earn teaching qualifications and transition their careers into teaching the next generation of skilled workers.
And the best part is, they can do so without losing a day’s wages in the process.
The “Paid to Learn” initiative seeks out experienced tradies to teach areas under massive skills shortage.
More than 13,000 former tradies have already enrolled in the program teaching construction micro certification units in the fields of electro-technology, plumbing, fire protection, carpentry, bricklaying, stone masonry and more.
TAFE NSW Institute of Applied Technology senior manager of operations Carly Cosmo told Build-it the initiative was perfect for those coming to the latter stages of their career looking to transition into a less physically demanding role.
“It’s fantastic because, with anyone making career changes, one of the problems is that you have to stop what you’re doing to learn a new skill,” she said.
“People don’t want to do that as they have mortgages and bills to pay.”
“(But here) they get paid to come and learn how to teach, and then they go on to be paid to teach, and they’re supported the whole way.”
The program pays skilled professionals from high-demand construction sectors the same wage as qualified teachers to study the qualification, which takes a total of 14 weeks.
Upon completion, participants receive a Certificate IV in Training Assessment and Evaluation and are, in most cases, offered full-time employment.
Ms Cosmo says the program will play a crucial role in helping the industry address the 230,000 tradie shortfall, needed to help fix the housing crisis and help build numerous major infrastructure projects nationwide.
“A really important piece (to the puzzle) when it comes to attracting apprentices is that we need educators,” she explained to Build-it.
“We’re coming together to build the training the industry is requiring and looking for SMEs and new educators to come and work with us in order to fill the sector gaps those industry is experiencing.”
