Evoenergy looking for bright sparks in apprenticeship drive

Canberra utility Evoenergy is looking to spark interest from women and First Nations people in its annual apprenticeship round underway until the end of the month.

It has apprenticeships available across the organisation as electrical fitters, lineworkers and cable jointers.

Manager of capability standards and assurance at Evoenergy Bronwen Butterfield said it was an opportunity to be part of the transformation of the energy system in the ACT, something that attracted her to the organisation.

An environmental and civil engineer, Bronwen jumped across to the energy sector five years ago when she could see the direction the ACT Government was taking towards achieving net zero emissions.

“The energy industry is a completely different field from other infrastructure and utility areas and I just wanted that extra challenge for my career and to be part of building something across the ACT,” she said.

Bronwen said it was a growing industry and an apprenticeship could turn into a life-long career for someone.

Day-to-day work could be building and maintaining a substation, installing or relocating poles and wires, investigating and repairing faults to restore supply or working with customers to support a new service line.

“There is more than enough work,” she said.

“Even in the next five years, we have significantly increased the amount of capital works that we need to do to build out Canberra so we can electrify and support that net zero target.”

That energy revolution meant that Evoenergy was involved in supporting customers in adopting rooftop solar and running an electric vehicle, as well as projects involved in the Big Canberra Battery program and community batteries.

“That’s all part of creating that diversified network to make sure we have that power to manage the demand that’s coming,” Bronwen said.

She said Evoenergy wanted to broaden its workforce and recruit people for the long haul, and that included more women in what had been a mainly male preserve in the past.

But there was no reason these days why women could not pick up a trade at Evoenergy.

“We’re not asking any worker to do anything outside of their physical capability,” Bronwen said.

The focus was on safety, including PPE, essential training and tools

“If we can’t finish a job due to any physical limitation, we stop to do a risk assessment before carrying on,” Bronwen said. “That applies to both men and women.”

There were already women on staff, including two apprentices who signed on during last year’s recruitment round, so there was female mentorship available to help new women apprentices ease into their roles.

Bronwen agreed that there was now more encouragement for young people to investigate trades rather than automatically aim at university.

“I’ve got children going through senior school now, and the opportunities to investigate and pursue a trade at school are excellent,” she said.

“The wages for skilled labour are much more competitive compared to what it was, say, 20 years ago.

“We have a range of people in Evonergy who sought out and obtained degrees but then chose to come to Evoenergy and do a trade because it was a practical application they were attracted to.”

Bronwen said that as well as a generous salary package (1st-year Apprentice under 21 was $41,445 and $3919.28 allowance; 1st-year Apprentice 21 and above $78,864 and $3919.28 allowance), Evoenergy paid for training, including a Certificate III in each of the disciplines.

The package also includes 16 per cent superannuation, a nine-day fortnight, free gym membership and free onsite physiotherapy.

To learn more, visit Evoenergy.