Essential Energy has been recognised as a national leader for its apprenticeship program which won at the Australian Training Awards in Canberra on 6 December.

Essential Energy's achievement was in the Australian Apprenticeships Employer category which recognises employers who have made innovative improvements in training that benefit their apprentices or trainees and their local community.

Judging included a whole-day virtual site visit and interviews with Essential Energy employees and previous apprentices.

The energy distributor’s apprenticeship program was commended for its innovation, cutting-edge training program, higher education partnerships, and focus on Future Skills. The judges took particular interest in female participation rates, attraction strategies and wellbeing support, especially after emergency events.

(L-R): People Learning and Capability team members Matt Hornby, Matt Skulander, Clint Duffy, Lara Rich, Allan Whelan, Trent Rands, Dave Sargent with the Australian Apprenticeships Employer award at the Australian Training Awards.

Essential Energy Chief People Officer, Amalie Smith says the organisation takes great pride in its training program, apprentices, and mentors.

“Our programs are designed to equip our employees with the skills needed for this evolving industry, ensuring they remain at the forefront of technological advancements,” Amalie says.

“We have a high completion rate of 93 per cent for our training programs which is significantly above the national average of 63 per cent. Additionally, more than 90 per cent of our apprentices stay with Essential Energy after completing their training, with many advancing to higher-level technical and supervisory roles.”

Essential Energy has trained more than 1,350 apprentice electrical technicians, cable jointers and powerline workers since 2001, which creates genuine career opportunities across regional, rural and remote NSW.

“We recruit and train locally, and this is the key to the success of our apprenticeship program,” Amalie explains. “By recruiting and training apprentices from across our network footprint of 95 per cent of NSW and parts of southern Queensland, our apprentices are more likely to stay and work within their regions after completing their apprenticeship programs.”

Essential Energy previously won the award in 2019.

Read more about the Essential Energy apprenticeship program