Students up for a challenge

Young women dug deep while taking their knowledge to new heights in Pukekohe recently.

Hosted by Counties Energy, the Girls with Hi-Vis (GWHV) initiative introduced local high school students to a range of career options.

The aim of the programme is simply to encourage more women to take on professions in the typically male-dominated infrastructure trades, as Kaarin Gaukrodger from training provider, Connexis, explains.

“Women still represent a largely untapped employment market for a lot of our
infrastructure industries, many of which are facing skills shortages. One of the
most effective ways of changing that is simply awareness,” she says.

“So many of the students attending a Connexis Girls with Hi-Vis event come away
with their eyes open to new opportunities that have never been presented to them before.

On top of that, they are making key connections with employers in their local area.”

Students from Wesley College, Onewhero Area School and Pukekohe High School took part in the Pukekohe event, one of many held nationwide.

From working on an elevated working platform to operating diggers, skills that could take the students down a new career path were showcased.

Although the event was hosted by Counties Energy, the programme also involves
civil construction, telecommunications and water treatment organisations.

First run in 2015, GWHV began with three electricity supply industry companies hosting events and 50 students; this year, it’s included more than 30 events and almost 1000 students in attendance nationwide.

While the programme has grown, so have the results.

“In 2015, Connexis had eight per cent of trainees in trade and technical roles
[who] were female, today that figure is 16 per cent,” Gaukrodger adds.

“Girls with Hi-Vis events are now hosted by female apprentices who were introduced to their employer at a Girls with Hi-Vis event.”

More information about GWHV is accessible online via connexis.org.nz.