Working at Council gets young people future ready
Published on 23 June 2021
Local young people are gaining the skills and experience they need to have rewarding careers thanks to a Council program addressing youth unemployment.
Frankston City Council has so far invested $214,957 in the Work Ready program which is now in its second year and includes:
- a work experience program for year nine students
- practical student work placements
- apprenticeships and traineeships
- school based apprenticeships
- and a work place learning program facilitated by the Frankston Mornington Peninsula Local Learning and Employment Network
Last year four trainees were given the opportunity to gain experience in Council’s Community Safety, Policy, Planning and Environmental Strategy, Family Health and Support Services and People and Culture departments.
They all completed their traineeships, including Seth Liddell, who trained in the People and Culture Team and now has a fixed-term contract with Council, working in payroll.
Seth said he gained an amazing breadth of knowledge and experience during his traineeship and jumped at the chance to further develop his skills in human resources through working in Council’s payroll team.
“I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to re-engage in employment with Council through the Work Ready program.
“I had expressed my enthusiasm in wanting to return to work for Council at the end of my traineeship last year and was applying for every available opportunity that had arisen.”
Frankston City Mayor, Kris Bolam, congratulated Seth and his peers for completing their traineeships and said he was sure this year’s Work Ready recruits would achieve great outcomes too.
“This program provides terrific opportunities for our young people to broaden their employment horizons, gain invaluable experience and contribute to the important work we do at Council,” Cr Bolam said.
Dianne Parker from Council’s People and Culture team coordinates the Work Ready program.
“As Coordinator of the program, it was a pleasure to see the trainees develop throughout the year and the positive contributions they made to their teams and the organisation. They really are great ambassadors for young people,” Dianne said.
“They embraced their roles with enthusiasm and a thirst for learning and our Councillors have also been really passionate and supportive of this program and are really keen to see it succeed and grow.
“This year we have a trainee in the Family Health Support Services department and our very first apprentice as part of the program, who is working in the Parks and Gardens team. We are partnering with various employment agencies to recruit for three additional trainees to take part in the program.”
For more information and interviews with last year’s trainees, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUnUm-qYrno