The Modern Apprenticeships Strategy aims to promote the inclusion of women in a high profile training pathway for young New Zealanders. 

 

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Promoting women’s inclusion in the Modern Apprenticeship scheme fits with New Zealand international obligations and domestic responsibilities.

 

The principal international convention that promotes equality for women, the Convention on the  Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) Article 11(1)(c) refers to the right to receive vocational training and retraining, including apprenticeships.

 

The Fourth World Conference on Women which adopted the Platform for Action and the Beijing Declaration in 1995 included: Strategic Objective B3, Action 82(e). Actions to be taken by Governments, in co-operation with employers, workers and trade unions, international and non-governmental organisations including women’s and youth organisations and educational institutions; diversify vocational and technical training and improve access for girls and women in science, maths, engineering, technology.

In recent years New Zealand Country reports to the UN have expressed concern about the lack of women in the Modern Apprenticeship Scheme and the apparent reinforcement of stereotypical gender roles in employment. 

 

Since 2001 the New Zealand Government has heavily subsidised (in excess of $100 million) industry training through the Modern Apprenticeships Scheme for young people aged 16-21 years. In the May 2005 Budget a $6 million expansion of the Modern Apprenticeships by an additional 500 places bringing the total number of Modern Apprenticeships to 9,000 by December 2006. In the 2005 election the Labour Party promised an increase of 5000 more Modern Apprentices. There is strong Government commitment, employer, trade union and public support for the Modern Apprenticeship scheme which is seen as renewing New Zealand’s industrial and occupational apprenticeship structures. For example, Prime Minister Helen Clark has said they play a critical role in creating the workforce New Zealand need to become ” a dynamic, knowledge-based society, able to compete on a global stage. Not only are Modern Apprenticeships proving a winner for business but they are also providing a high value, prestigious education pathway which is a practical response to an identified need in the community and a gap in our current education and training pathways.” The Human Rights Commission has consistently supported the Modern Apprenticeship Scheme while at the same time urging greater diversity in participation.

 

The statistics for the scheme by gender and ethnicity participation looked like this as at 31 December 2005. 

 

Gender

MA Statistics by gender

Male	7,704	92%
Female	684	8%
Total	8,388	100%

 

Ethnicity

MA statistics by ethnicity

European/Pakeha	6,619	78.9%
Māori	1,198	14.3%
Pacific Peoples	213	2.5%
Other	214	2.6%
Not Stated	144	1.7%
Total	8,388	100%

                                                                                                    

Ethnicity by Gender

 

MA Statistics ethnicity by gender

	Male	Female	Total
European/Pakeha	6157	462	6,619
Māori	1073	125	1,198
Pacific Peoples	176	37	213
Other	203	11	214
Not Stated	95	49	144
Total	7,704	684	8,388

 

 

 

 

Click here to download and view a PDF table of Modern Apprenticeships by gender and ethnicity, broken down by industry, as at 31 March 2006.   

 

 The 8% of women as Modern Apprenticeships in March 2006 compares with 7% from a total of 5,739 in June 2003 and the 6% in December 2002 indicating that improving female participation is a grindingly slow process.

 

In terms of equity the gendered nature of the scheme constitutes a double whammy for women. In general more young women are choosing education pathways while more young men choose industrial training or apprenticeship pathways. Those who graduate from Modern Apprenticeships in occupations such as construction, engineering and motor mechanics (the overwhelming majority of whom are male), are “work ready”, able to immediately earn good wages on completion and do not necessarily carry high debt from student loan schemes into the start of their careers. However, females who favour university-tertiary study in disciplines such as teaching and nursing, end up taking twice as long to repay student loans, through accrued interest repayments and lower incomes, than their male contemporaries. (Pacific women will take 41 years to repay for a Master’s degree compared with 16 years for a European male and 22 years for a Pacific male). The ILO states that while supply-side measures of education and training are important, they need to be supported by other more active equality-enhancing measures in the labour market.

 

The Time for Equality at Work report states:

 

 

In November 2005 the Human Rights Commission facilitated a meeting of interested women to discuss how to progress the issue of increased female representation in the Modern Apprenticeship Scheme. The meeting was attended by CTU and trade union representatives, by women directly involved in the Modern Apprenticeship scheme and by trained builders who were either working currently in education or in building standards. The issues and barriers were discussed and then possible strategies were discussed. At a second meeting in December there was commitment to establishment of a Modern Apprenticeship reference group and the development of a draft strategy for action to be undertaken by the EEO Commissioner. At this meeting members of the CTU Women’s Council reported back that the CTU’s focus on women and Modern Apprenticeships has two strands- increasing women’s participation in current Modern Apprenticeship industries that are male-dominated and extending Modern Apprenticeships into female-dominated industries. It was agreed that the reference group focus initially on current Modern Apprenticeship sectors and the CTU takes leadership on the second stream of work. 

 

 

The proposed strategy is based on practical, solutions-focused activity to promote equality at work for women. It acknowledges that no one method to promote understanding and change policy necessarily works on its own and that the involvement of women themselves in a new campaign will be essential.

 

Aim: To increase female participation in the Modern Apprenticeship Scheme.

 

Indicator: Women’s participation in the Modern Apprenticeship Scheme increases to 15% by December 2007 across all sectors.