International Women’s Day is a very important day for many reasons in all aspects of life. The third International Women’s day event was held by HunterNet Co-Operative, and a part of this event included an amazing panel of some past and present apprentices and trainees from HunterNet Career Connections. The theme of our event for 2024 was “Inspire Inclusion” and we heard some terrific stories from the panelists. Listening to their stories of how they originally decided on their chosen qualification was jaw dropping. Anything from being inspired from their fathers, their partners and through grit and determination to chase their dreams was unbelievable. All of the panelists had setbacks and challenges however they never lost sight of their goals to be successful.
Inspire inclusion was a perfect topic this year as we had some panelists from previous years who have become mentors to new females within their industries. They had taken on this role as trailblazers, all wanting the workplace to be the best it could be across the HunterNet Career Connections GTO network. These amazing leaders in the network of host employers are inspiring the next generation of an increasing number of female apprentices and trainees. Our host employers are driving inclusion into the workforce and currently females represent 29% of HunterNet apprentices and trainees and 65% of these are employed in trades.
It is these partnerships between the host employers, employees and HunterNet as the GTO that are inspiring inclusion and participation and we can’t wait to see where our exceptional apprentices and trainees will take their careers and the change their stories can achieve in inspiring the next generation of skilled workers in our region.
