Tranzqual and Work and Income partner up to boost skilled worker numbers
Tranzqual Industry Training Organisation is to ramp up its support of the Government's aim to assist unemployed people getting skilled jobs within the road transport industry.
Tranzqual and Work and Income have recently signed a relationship agreement to ensure that anyone receiving a benefit will have access to high quality training.
Tranzqual, which is responsible for road transport, passenger service and logistics industry, will monitor road transport courses funded by Work and Income to ensure more people are able to upgrade their skills to work in the road transport industry.
Tranzqual Group Manager Customer and Business Solutions, Tony Lansdown, said the agreement signified that Tranzqual and Work and Income would work more closely together to draw on each others’ expertise. The main outcome was a win-win situation, he said.
“Work and Income will be getting more people into quality training while at the same time addressing a main industry issue; the shortage of skilled workers.”
Before now, Work and Income and Tranzqual had been working together on a more ad-hoc basis, often through third parties such as training providers and individual companies.
“Tranzqual will now work more directly with Work and Income. For example, we’ll provide expert advice to Work and Income when it is tendering for new industry courses. Through the relationship we’ll be more formally involved in the setting up and monitoring of quality training.”
A success story of taking people off benefits and into the transport industry was demonstrated last year when a Bay of Plenty double amputee was named as the friendliest bus driver in the country. Stephen Heke from Bayline Coaches in Tauranga competed in the 2008 Tranzqual Australasian Bus Roadeo in October and was awarded the Commercial Road Skills Award for Excellence in Customer Service. Just 12 months prior, mister Heke was on the Sickness Benefit after losing his feet to a disease. A relationship between Work and Income and the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic resulted in Mr Heke training as a bus driver and gaining work with Bayline.
From left to right; Tranzqual CEO Wayne Smith;Tranzqual Group Manager Customer and Business Solutions Tony Lansdown; Waaka Watene Key Account Manager Corporate for Work and Income;and the Ministry of Social Development’s General Manager Employer Services, Stephen Cunningham.
For more information on the relationship between Tranzqual and Work and Income, contact Tracey Lewis at Tranzqual on: 04 894 2012 or 027 217 0012 or email tracey.lewis@tranzqual.org.nz
About Tranzqual:
Tranzqual is the Industry Training Organisation (ITO) responsible for setting the training standards for the road transport, warehousing, freight forwarding, passenger services, ports and stevedoring industries. We ensure people in these industries have the best opportunities to learn, by developing training resources and supporting companies and trainees to achieve their training outcomes. We work with employers to help plan industry training and we actively promote career opportunities within these industries. www.tranzqual.org.nz