Matty and Percy have set themselves up for bright futures by training as electricians. They say that the mix of theory and on-the-job learning is both challenging and satisfying. But learning from those experienced in the industry is teaching them valuable tips. The pair are already able to help out their whānau with their new skills.

MPTT helped the two take up trades training

Percy King, Te Arawa, knew he’d need something to fall back on when his professional sporting career came to an end. Being an electrician was the trade that had always appealed most to him. Getting a scholarship through Māori and Pasifika Trades Training helped seal the deal.

“Although an electrician’s apprenticeship is one of the harder ones, it’s worth it for me,” he says.

“I’ll be the first sparky in the family and in the community. So a lot of my family that have homes can call me so they can get stuff done such as power outages.”

Matty also wanted to get into a trade somehow, and he heard about MPTT’s support for Māori and Pasifika learners. A scholarship covered his fees, and when he started studying his pre-trade, he realised electrical work was something he was genuinely interested in.

“It was a one-year pre-trade course at Manukau Institute of Technology: Electrical Engineering Theory Level 3. The benefit is that you do a lot of the theory upfront, so when you get into your apprenticeship you start further ahead.”

Help starting in work

When they completed their study, MPTT helped them get ready to earn. MPTT offers workshops and skills for things like job searches and cover letters. These graduates have both found great apprenticeships to start as soon as they finished their pre-trade course.  Percy is working with JB Electrical and Matty with Laser Electrical.

“MPTT gave me a tools grant, so I had what I needed to get started. It made such a difference right away – especially having my own set of power tools to take to the job,” explains Percy.

Putting theory into practice was powerful

Both Percy and Matty found that taking up the tools allowed them to connect everything they’d learned. But there are plenty of tricks they’re learning from the more experienced tradies.

Percy, who is in his second year with MB Electrical says even things that seemed quite straightforward make so much more sense on the job. “Knowing about testing and fault finding… it’s just so important. And it’s worth perfecting the basics early such as stripping cable and running cable.

He says he’s had good advice from mentors in his apprenticeship.

“I was told, don’t worry about speed at the start; the main thing is getting it right. I’d rather you be slow and right than fast and wrong. Don’t feel pressured to rush.”

Matty agrees. And he’s found that in his apprenticeship with Laser Electrical, you never stop learning.

“When you start, you can think a certain way, but if you’re open-minded, willing to learn and just take stuff on board you can build your skills a lot faster.

“The experienced ones have always got some way to sort things. If there’s any problem, they can show you a technique new technique or trick.”

Once Matty and Percy complete their apprenticeships, they’ll be fully qualified by ETCO and can eventually set up their own businesses. But both are keen to spend the next few years learning and getting experience with different types of work.

“What I’m doing at the moment is new builds, which are quite straightforward. You’re pretty much just making holes in the house frames and then running out cables. When you go to like houses that already built, and you need to start with fault-finding, it’s a different story,” says Matty.

I’m looking to jump to more maintenance work now for a bit of that experience, and then I’d also like to do a commercial project for that experience.

I feel like you need to be able to come across anything and be confident that you can kind of deal with it.”

As well as being excited about their career prospects, these apprentices value the sense of purpose and value. They say MPTT has played a big part in this.

When we started at MIT, Makahn Warren-Chapman, an MPTT navigator introduced herself. There was a waananga where we talked about belonging and how a trade would enable us to give back to our communities and whānau, explains Percy.

The two recommend their profession to others and have some practical advice.

Percy says, “If you’re doing a pre-trade for three days a week, spend your other days looking for work rather than having a four-day weekend. If you’re working while you study, you get to apply what you’re learning immediately and put it into context.

Matty says, “Being like there’s a lot of people in this industry that have a lot of experience; it’s great to learn from them.”

No images of Matty were available at the time of publishing.