Tafe Queensland Brisbane Future Print programme, l-r: Joshua Iriving and Mitchell Green from Inprint; Dov Hirst, project manager with Future Print; Viki Nati from Horton Media; Aaron Terry from Tennyson Group and John Scott, project advisor with Future Print
Tafe Queensland Brisbane says it is using the Future Print training programme to tackle a skills shortage in the industry, by attracting new apprentices with a comprehensive fast-tracked programme. Brisbane’s Inprint, Tennyson Group and contract newspaper printer Horton Media are among the Queensland printers supporting Future Print apprentices. The government predicts that by 2015 there will be a shortage of 240,000 tradespeople in Australia, not least in the printing industry – without intervention. Print machinists and screen printers are currently on the government’s National Skills Needs List, identified as experiencing an ongoing shortage of qualified workers around the country. Tafe Queensland Brisbane, which was the first training provider to take on the Future Print apprenticeship programme, now has 11 apprentices signed up, adding to the pool of more than 150 trainees now committed to up-skill or get their start in print around the country. Organisers have celebrated the project’s milestones with a luncheon at South Bank, inviting business partners to meet and discuss upcoming key activities. Tafe Queensland says Future Print is still looking for businesses to help lead the project, and workers who are interested in updating their knowledge to keep on top of the changing technologies that influence their jobs. Kerry Emerson, print and signage team leader with Tafe Queensland Brisbane’s South Bank campus, says the programme offers a competency-based accelerated apprenticeship in many areas of print and finishing, and can be completed in 2.5 years rather than four. He says, “Both new apprentices and existing employees are taking the opportunity to up-skill across a range of disciplines from pre-press to print and finishing, and across a variety of industry sectors from digital, web and newspapers to commercial offset, labels and packaging, flexo and screen printing. “This skills acquisition will build upon the apprentice’s thinking skills so they can better problem solve in the workplace.” Apprentices can come straight from school and undertake the programme as part of fee free training for Year 12 school leavers, or already be employed; the 2.5 year time span making it more attractive for people currently working in print. Emerson says, “We are looking forward to continually delivering high quality training so apprentices can develop current critical workplace capabilities.”
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