Woolhandling trainees are delighted with the perfection of a wool throw by a fellow trainee. Photo / Supplied
Woolhandling trainees are delighted with the perfection of a wool throw by a fellow trainee. Photo / Supplied
The parties involved in a transtasman Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the shearing industry, hope it is a big step forward in addressing the global shortage of skilled woolshed labour.
New Zealand wool harvesting trainer Elite Wool Industry Training has signed an MOU with woolgrower-owned Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) and Australia's largest shearing and wool handling training organisation, Shearing Contractors Association of Australia Shearer Wool Handler Training (SCAA SWTI).
The MOU is in response to the global shortage of shearers and skilled woolhandlers, which New Zealand wool and sheep meat producers have endured for the past two years, resulting in the costs of shearing increasing by at least 15-20 per cent.
But the problem is not confined to New Zealand, which competes with Australia and Northern hemisphere farmers and contractors for the same pool of shearing and woolhandling staff.
Elite chief executive Tom Wilson is a New Zealand-based Scotsman and former world champion shearer.
He said working with Australia would, in the first instance, allow coordination and management of staff across the two countries, better promote the industry as a career, and improve both the supply and quality of staff.
Elite New Zealand trainers include both world and Kiwi champions, such as Wilson and fellow shearers Dion Morrell and Paerata Abraham and woolhandlers Joel Henare and Pagan Rimene.
The team will expose youngsters to the woolshed equivalent of training and working as if they were young rugby hopefuls with their All Blacks heroes.
Elite Wool Industry training trainees get the lowdown on how to keep fit for a career in the woolshed. Photo / Supplied
SCAA SWTI chief executive officer Glenn Haynes said the agreement is not a silver bullet for the issue of skills shortages, "but it will provide a platform that can align the approach to solving or at least mitigating some of the training issues that both nations are experiencing now."
The agreement would allow for the organisations to work together on shearing and wool handler training consistencies across the Tasman, he said.
"For example, it will help ensure that when young kiwis come to Australia to shear, their shearing pattern and technique will be consistent and align with what the Australian market requires.
"It will also ensure that young Australians travelling to New Zealand will have a better understanding of the New Zealand crossbred shearing techniques, as will the woolhandlers."
The transient nature of the workforce is seeing ever-increasing numbers of shearers and woolhandlers travelling across both sides of the ditch for work experience.
"With the level and experience of the trainers involved in the combined organisations, the knowledge that can be shared from both sides can only be beneficial for the industry," Haynes said.
Wilson said he was delighted with the opportunity to align and coordinate training with his Australian colleagues.
Shearing trainees take instruction on how to prepare their gear. Photo / Supplied
"In the past, New Zealand and Australia have worked closely to manage a trained workforce on both sides of the Tasman," he said.
"It is great to have the opportunity to provide a strong, coordinated level of support to the industry again.
"We expect this to grow opportunities for young people to get into this great industry both here in New Zealand and in Australia."
Shearing contractor, former champion shearer and world record holder Dion Morrell (left) tutoring budding shearers and woolhandlers. Photo / Supplied
Haynes said all three entities had quality and animal welfare at the forefront of their training ethos, "so it makes sense to combine our efforts".
AWI head of Shearer Training Craig French supported the initiative from the start.
"The shearer and woolhandler shortage is an international problem and therefore we need to take a broader approach to addressing it," he said.
Over the next three years, Australian wool growers will invest more than $10 million into shearer and woolhandler training.
French said it was best to have an agreement with transtasman counterparts to ensure the investment "is not one-sided and is in sync with what is happening in New Zealand".
Australian Shearing Contractors Association secretary Jason Letchford also approved of the initiative.
"I'm excited about the additional benefit of being able to facilitate the transition of learner shearers and woolhandlers between the countries," he said.
"This will help to accommodate the seasonal cycles and better ensure consistency of work for new entrants to the industry, an issue that has been the Achilles heel for learner shearers in the past."
