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Photo of the QTM team and trainee Michael (2^nd from the right).

Quality Traffic Management (QTM) is highly experienced in the fields of traffic management design and installation; and traffic signal, street lighting and ITS installation, upgrading and modification.

They came to Nudge with a very unique opportunity for a young person to take up a 6 year Roadworks Traffic Manager Traineeship position. This was an entry level role where the young person would be skilled into becoming a Traffic Management Planner then eventually progress into a Main Roads WA accredited Roadworks Traffic Manager. There are less than 20 people specialised in this field in WA, so we had our work cut out for us but we knew that the Nudge model would work and that we would be able to find QTM the right fit for their team.

We talked to Associate Director, Todd Bendall about working with the Nudge team.

• How did you hear about Nudge?

Our Managing Director was provided with information from the Civil Contractors Federation about a provider who helps find trainees in our niche environment.

• What were you looking for when you came to Nudge for assistance?

A partner to help us source suitable, young, enthusiastic candidates which may be of a diverse background, but most importantly is a good fit for our team in a traineeship type role.

• What steps had you already taken in trying to find a young person yourselves?

We had approached schools, TAFE’s and colleges about careers for potential students but struggled to garner interest. We had placed adverts on job placement sites including those aimed at Indigenous employment.

• How was the Nudge way of sourcing the right people through community engagement and then preparing them for the opportunity different to what you had experienced before?

We have only ever hired through our internal HR processes which are basic at best. At least with Nudge, the onboarding process ensures that candidates are fully aware of what they are applying for, are committed, and the job readiness program ensures that they bring the right skills to the job prior to even having a formal job interview with us.

• What was the end result for QTM?

We employed what we see as being a perfect candidate. Someone who has the personality we had asked for, an eagerness to learn and the work ethic of someone well beyond his years. We are extremely pleased with Michael and the team enjoy having him in the workplace. The support through the process gave us confidence that even before his first day, we were going to get the right person.

• Final thoughts?

The process undertaken by Nudge is not like any other that we have seen on the market. We could have gone to a recruitment agency as an option however none offer the ongoing support and focus on the young and disadvantaged that Nudge do. The vetting of candidates and the process undertaken gives us confidence to use Nudge again.

‘Generation Y’ and ‘Millennials’ seem to constantly be a topic of conversation (and accusation) within the 24 hour media cycle of today’s society. The current favourite topics are the lack of hard work and effort from these generations, their expectations and sense of entitlement, or their view to shake the establishment and ruin the structures that have been built over previous decades (by the hard-working generations).

In particular, the main topic in relation to our younger generations relates to housing affordability (note: this is a much larger societal issue not just related to youth – but young first home buyers are central to these discussions, commentary and policies).

But what if we are having the wrong conversation? Have we been focused on the wrong part of this big complex picture?

Before outlining the impact and changes needed to assist housing affordability (especially for first home buyers), we need to assess the step before that – employment. It is the core element of all social, economic and community advancement in this country and can have the greatest impact.  The current environment for youth employment in Australia suggests that this is the key issue of focus and concern for these generations, rather than how many bathrooms they’ll have, where to protest on the weekend or what is trending on social media.

Recently the *Brotherhood of St Lawrence commissioned and released a report detailing the employment situation for Australia’s youth in 2017 (Youth is defined as 15-24 years old).

The report outlined that:

• Youth unemployment is 13.5% (February 2017)
• Youth underemployment is 18% – the highest rate in 40 years (Feb 2017)
• Australian unemployment rate 5.9% (Feb 2017)
• Youth represent over half of those Australians unemployed

An overview of the report identifies that today’s youth are currently being stalled in their work and career development with record numbers of young people seeking work or more work but unable to find it. The numbers in casual and part time work are also at record levels, creating a generation of insecurity in the workforce.

So what? What does it mean, what can we do?

Well, whilst we are always hearing about issues with younger generations, we are also acknowledging that Australia has a rapidly ageing population, and the fact is these people aren’t going to work forever. The transfer of knowledge and skills in the workforce is fundamental to the advancement of Australian ingenuity and the development of the next generation of nation builders.  Engaging youth in the workplace whilst we still have this knowledge to learn from is vital – the two generations can not only work together but thrive together.

Nudge will continue to advocate and promote the importance of youth employment as well as utilising training as an effective employment method for learning and development. The Nudge service model is designed specifically to provide employers with the support and structure to engage and retain new (often youth) employees and trainees/apprentices.  With a current retention rate of 94% it demonstrates that effective, structured and active support will allow youth to thrive in the modern workplace.

Nudge welcomes the announcement from the incoming WA State Government regarding a stronger focus on local jobs, employment and increased training capacity, to provide effective avenues for the younger generations to source real employment opportunities and begin their career journey – the impact of which will be felt for generations to come.

* The Brotherhood of St Laurence is a community organisation that works to prevent and alleviate poverty across Australia. https://www.bsl.org.au/advocacy/youth-employment/youth-unemployment-monitor/

Sharni was discovered through the Nudge community engagement and recruitment process in October last year when Main Roads Bunbury asked us to assist them in finding a young person from the local area to take on a Clerical Traineeship. Nudge have been supporting Sharni, her supervisor and her mentor for the past 5 months and she has proven to be a wonderful employee and trainee and has really taken this opportunity and made the most of it.

We look forward to seeing Sharni complete her Certificate IV Business Administration traineeship successfully and be a role model for other young people looking towards a sustainable future.

We asked Sharni a few questions about her time with Main Roads so far and a few questions to get to know her a little better.

• Can you tell us a little bit about yourself

I’m 19 years old, born in Bunbury and grew up here. I have lots of family down here. I went to Bunbury Senior High School in year 8 then moved to Port Hedland with my aunty and uncle. I did until year 10 up there at Hedland Senior High School and decided it was time to move back home. I moved back to Bunbury and lived with my nan and pop where I completed year 11 and 12 at Manea Senior College.

• What made you apply for this traineeship?
  

I had just completed a Certificate III Business Administration. I was handing out my resume everywhere however most jobs wanted 1 to 5 years’ experience which I had none of. I then came across the advertisement from Nudge about a traineeship at Main Roads in Bunbury. I thought it would be perfect to get my experience up and such a perfect career opportunity. I applied for it and lucky enough I was successful. During my time here it has been everything I thought and more. I can’t wait to see what the future at Main Roads has to bring.

•  What’s the best thing you have worked on or been involved with during your traineeship so far?

I haven’t yet worked on one main thing as it is a very broad job, but I’ve been  lucky enough to go and see a few places that we had built such as bridges and roads, as well as going to a blasting on the new Margaret River Perimeter Road. It was such a great experience and was so good to go out and experience the behind the scenes part of what Main Roads do.

• What would you say to other employers who are thinking about bringing more young people into their business- what will this traineeship do for your career/life?

I would say to other employees thinking about bringing young people into their business to do it. This traineeship has helped me further my knowledge and skills immensely and in the future it will help me get a secure job to start a secure life.

•  What is your favourite family tradition?

My favourite family tradition is getting everyone together over a long weekend and going camping out on a damn. It is so much fun and there are so many laughs and stories that go around the camp fire.

•  If you could travel to any place with no budget restrictions, where would you go and why?

I would go all around Australia. There is so much to see and do here.

•  If you could splurge on 1 must-have item, what would it be?

A dream home.

• If Do you have a favourite season and why?

I love summer because it is so much easier to get out of bed and I love going to the beach.

In WA lately this has been quite literal but for the Nudge team figuratively speaking, we have never been busier!

2017 has really started with a bang for us. By the end of February we will have run 8 Work-Readiness Training programmes and assisted 15 young people into apprenticeships and trainees all over WA with Nudge continuing their ongoing support to those young people for the next 12-24 months of their traineeship/apprenticeship.

Shire of Broome Programme

From civil works to customer service, accounts administration, parks and gardens, community development, natural areas, business administration, traffic managers and many more it has been an exciting time placing so many worthy people into employment. These are all amazing opportunities for our young people of WA to gain a nationally recognised qualification in their chosen field, giving them the foundation and on the job experience to kick start a sustainable career.

Local Government have really embraced the youth development concept, recognising the need to bring in and train up local youth who can learn from some very experienced people within their teams. They are training the next generation of Supervisors, Team Leaders, Works Managers and the list goes on.

The young people we work with have given some great feedback on the Work-Readiness Training we conducted to prepare them for these opportunities.

QTM Programme

‘The strategies for communicating and the interview preparation has made me feel more confident about working in an office environment’.

‘We really got a lot out of it and got a real feel for what it would be like to work in this environment. Hearing from past trainees was inspiring because we could see how the opportunity could play out long term’.

Whilst the employers also have been happy with the process:

‘We are so impressed with our trainee. Nudge have really done an amazing job to find her, we are very happy!’

We hope that industry continue to embrace the concept of traineeships and apprenticeships as a legitimate way to increase their youth and Aboriginal engagement and provide real employment and training opportunities.

The Nudge team look forward to keeping the momentum going throughout the rest of 2017.

Some of the candidates working on their interview preparation

Over the last few months we have been working closely with Lendlease in the Goldfields Region and Main Roads WA in the Kimberley region to put our ‘powering business through community employment’ mission into action by placing three young, local Aboriginal people into a Certificate III Road Construction and Maintenance traineeship.

Regional businesses are in a great position to bridge the gap between industry and community needs through employment outcomes, utilising the local talent and supporting them via entry level positions into the industry.

Both Lendlease and Main Roads WA have a strong commitment to providing real employment and training opportunities to young, disadvantaged and Aboriginal people in WA.

Nudge worked with the local community in Kalgoorlie, Derby and Kununurra to source the right people, interested in a career in Civil Construction who were then placed into an intensive work readiness training program where the candidates were able to gain skills assisting them to be job ready.

This was also a great opportunity for the Lendlease and Main Roads WA local teams to meet with candidates, take them out to see their projects, be involved in a toolbox talk and meet some of the crew they would be working with if they were the successful trainee.

‘Standard’ recruitment practices are not the norm when we are looking at the end goal of retention in the workforce. The level of resources and time Nudge puts in to make this work are intensive and complex but as an employer support agency, we make the process of training, employment and community engagement as simple as possible for the employer.

Lendlease and Main Roads are providing an amazing opportunity for these young people to not only gain a recognised qualification but gain confidence in their ability to work in their own community, acting as a positive role model for other young Aboriginal people. The flow on affect from these trainees being employed in full-time roles for themselves, their family and community  is immeasurable.

Held at the Gulkula site on Arnhem Land and hosted by traditional land owners the Yolngu people, Garma was a once off experience of a mini immersion, to meet the local people that live on country along with meeting like-minded people and businesses from around Australia working in the space of Aboriginal rights, employment, health and education. Held over 4 days, guests have a chance to attend key forums based on education, land rights, economic development, health and youth. Each forum offered great examples of how their organisation, school or local community group are having successes in these areas and the learnings that they have made along the way. There are also exhibitions of traditional dance and song, jewellery making, basket weaving, art and cinema, along with poetry readings, astronomy tours and campfire yarning.  Learning from the locals about hunting and gathering, song and dance, it is a safe place to explore the culture of Yolngu people and be involved in some of their traditional practices such as dance and song. With English sometimes being their 2^nd or 3^rd language, it was also a great way to build my confidence in conversing with Traditional groups and working to understand each other without relying purely on language.

One of the key forums that stood out for me was the youth forum. This was a separate dedicated forum to the main forums of Garma and was where students from schools all over Australia participated in getting together and talking about their experiences, build on their confidence, learn about culture and work together on their ideas of a reconciliation journey. At the end of the 4 days, the group then presented to the main cohort of Garma, to talk about their experience. This was such a positive presentation from a panel of Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal youth from all over Australia and the world, where they talked about their support systems, peers, education around Aboriginal history that they now study and their futures and how excited they are. Diversity is celebrated within our youth and will push the reconciliation journey, whilst learning from each other and exploring the land that we have grown up on. This was such an excellent outcome from the experience and so energising to hear how passionate these youth are, the goals and ambitions that they have and how inclusive and forward thinking the next generation is. Given that this is the main demographic that Nudge works with- Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal youth, it was refreshing to hear their voices, opinions and positive stories of their journey so far and the journey they are looking to go on. Usually I work with Elders in community which can be tough as they may have had previous negative experiences with people working on country and minimal to no local employment outcomes. This history is carried to the conversation for new projects, and can make the discussion difficult to progress as the trust is not there. The presentation and enthusiasm from the Youth at Garma showed me how positive and exciting the future is and that positive change is underfoot in the Aboriginal employment space.

‘Culture is a two way business, not a one way business, as that is where the learnings fail’

Some further key messages I took from the celebration were that not one size fits all
and we need to always remember this and keep it in focus. From the different presentations from different groups all over Australia, what works in one community will not work in another as they are their own community, they have their own needs and we need to make sure that this is something that is worked with, rather than against. I believe that our community engagement is strong in this area, as it is all about consultation with the Traditional land owners and the community, what works with education and employment in the south will not work the same way in the north of WA. There are many factors that will always contribute to making a trainee/apprentice or employee be successful in their role and it is only through the support as a community and an organisation that we can make it work.

Garma was an amazing experience.  I got to meet some energising people working in this space, plus got to connect with country and make some wonderful Yolngu friends who were so welcoming and inclusive of us visitors. It is a unique experience that only a few every year get to be a part of and I am thankful that I was one of those for 2016.

Photo credit to the official Garma Facebook page

The 10th of August was the end of one era and the beginning of an exciting new one.  Joined by some of our supporters in government, industry and community The ROADS Foundation officially re-launched with the new identity Nudge.

The big change comes, not only in our name and brand, but in who we will now work with and alongside.  We are spreading our wings across a broader range of industries, building on the successes we’ve had in the civil industry to connect and engage within new industries such as Construction, Lands, Resources, Infrastructure, Agriculture and others.

Thanks to everyone who attended and everyone who has provided positive feedback for our new direction in the month since.