Demand grows for repair apprentices
Apprenticeship Central has revealed that more than half of its current technical vacancies are for repair technician apprentices.
The company is an apprenticeship specialist for automotive employers wanting to outsource recruitment and retention, with delivery through three main services, Recruit, Nurture and Ensure.
It said that of its current vacancies, 55% are for repair technician (multi-skill) apprentices, 25% are for panel apprentices, 15% for paint and five per cent for MET apprentices.
Jake Watson, who leads the company’s Recruit programme, said: “This year has seen a significant rise in our clients wanting to recruit young people across a whole range of apprenticeships. By far the most popular vacancies are for the known single-skill and multi-skill technical programmes but we are seeing increased interest in the VDA programme and we are also attracting candidates for parts and customer service apprenticeship/trainee roles too.”
He continued: “The key benefit of our Recruit programme is to give every candidate a personal experience, primarily though our online Pre Employment Programme (PEP). Because we are communicating with young people and because we are using a unique digital platform, we are creating a much bigger candidate pool than traditional methods and our candidates are fully engaged with the process.”
Company founder Bob Linwood said: “It’s absolutely clear though that there is a high level of interest from young people and as the statistics show they are not all school leavers. It just goes to prove that the vehicle repair industry is a viable career path when many employers have traditionally believed it’s difficult to attract young people to the sector.”
