Recent figures released for Dubbo are in line with NSW, and show commencements of apprenticeships and traineeships down about 21 per cent on the previous year, marginally better than the state average of 26 per cent. 

Verto chief executive Ron Maxwell believes there are several factors that have led to this downturn. 

“Mining is declining which impacts on the need for skilled workers,” he said. 

“Dubbo is very much underpinned by agriculture and there has been a significant pull back in that sector from the ongoing drought. 

“The recent drought that went for about 10 years in parts of Western NSW takes a long time for towns and the area to recover from.”

It is not just starting a trade or a profession that has seen a fall in enrolments, with about 50 per cent of people at Dubbo who start an apprenticeship not completing it and becoming qualified. 

That figure is slightly better off than the state average at 54 per cent. 

“One of the main things is the wages that first, second, third and fourth-year apprentices get,” Mr Maxwell said. 

“When you have a low income and are trying to build a life it is difficult. You have friends in full-time employment who have considerably higher incomes and you get attracted to that, you don’t think about the long-term picture and what your income could be years and years down the track.” 

“A lot of apprentices are working for a small business, and if they are doing it tough or have a drop off in work, unfortunately they are often the first to go.”

Mr Maxwell revealed Verto has started several initiatives to try and reverse the trend. 

“Getting completions up is the first thing, and we are offering mentoring services and trying to get resolutions between employer and apprentices if there are any issues between them,” he said. 

“We are helping people in choosing careers in an industry that suits them, so we don’t have the drop offs. 

“We are trying to fix that problem from the front end.”

In Dubbo, the construction, air-conditioning and refrigeration and meat processing industries are doing well, while carpentry and automotive are struggling.