Welding bonds breaking down barriers
On Friday the 4th of June, 2021 GISP_AM School, St Brendan’s College, Yeppoon presented the Women Who Weld one-day program thanks to Queensland Manufacturing Industries (QMI) and Cummins.
The College (an all boys college) invited year 10 and 11 students from sister school St Ursula's Yeppoon to participate in this exciting opportunity, to not only support local students and industry, but to also increase female participation in trades considering they don’t have welding bays at their school.
Nationally, just over 12% of the engineering labour workforce is female. The manufacturing workforce in Queensland is 72% male and ageing with more than half aged 40 or older. QMI’s Women Who Weld Program encourages female high school students as young as 14 to learn the skills of industrial welding to increase gender diversity and participation in manufacturing careers, while addressing Australia’s skills shortage in jobs traditionally reserved for men.
QMI created the program to broaden the horizons of women in the Manufacturing and Engineering Industry, provide them with new and rewarding job opportunities, strengthen their self-esteem, and help them to build closer industry relationships with their local communities. The results speak for themselves; the Women Who Weld program has sparked a 20% rise in female interest in trade pathways since its inception.
As a GISP AM Gateway School, St Brendan’s is equipped to facilitate the workshop and saw it as a great way to support one of the College’s Touchstones—Inclusive Community.
Delivered by two St Brendan’s engineering trainers Warren Campbell and Robert Green, the program saw the students try the practical skill of welding in a safe and familiar environment.
The group of 12 year 10 and 11 St Ursula’s students said they enjoyed the experience and the St Brendan’s College Industrial Technology and Design staff were thoroughly impressed with their skills.
“[Thanks to the WWW] I have developed a great curiosity to becoming an apprentice. I would love to learn more about the opportunities and how I can become part of the industry” said St Ursula College student, Summer Tysoe.
The Women Who Weld Program is being held across several schools across Queensland in June 2021, including GISP AM Gateway School St Patricks College, Shorncliffe who hosted the event for sister school St John Fisher College, Bracken Ridge on the 4th of June.
GISP AM Program Manager Jules McMurtrie, whose data shows a 20% increase in female participation in trade pathways as a result of the Women Who Weld program, says businesses are crying out for school leavers keen on jobs like welding.
“Ninety-eight per cent of the businesses I deal with say they would pay for a young person’s higher education in engineering or similar technical degree, if that person committed to a trade pathway in the first instance,” Ms McMurtrie said.
“Employers are really after job-ready people with the right attitude and having a trade background often leads to better quality engineers, designers, salespeople or quality controllers because the recruit has a better understanding of how things are actually produced.”
“We have to encourage more students into the trade space because the manufacturing jobs growth in industries like industrial design, biomedical, aerospace, defense, marine and even into the 4th industrial revolution (industry 4.0) where cyber physical systems like robotics and automation will be populated by more women in the future,” she said.
It has never been so important for companies to operate in an ethical and sustainable way, managing environmental and social impacts. For Cummins it was an opportunity to be a part of fostering and supporting the long-term development of a highly-skilled workforce in Queensland.
By partnering with QMI and Queensland schools, Cummins has supported local students and industry, and increased female participation in trades. If you’re a local company looking to invest in a Corporate Social Responsible program with proven results, the Women Who Weld program offers a great opportunity to make a real difference in your local community.
