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In this Issue
2021 Annual Employer Survey
Handover of Kaiāwhina Workforce Plan
Fresh Desk cleaners upskilled and rewarded
Reminder about changes to Careerforce Library

Welcome to Careerforce's October update
Tēnā koutou

Welcome to the October edition of Skills for Good.

Our thoughts go out to all our employers and their staff in the Northern lockdown areas, and we hope that you will soon be able to enjoy the relative freedoms that the rest of the country have been enjoying. We are all however very aware that things can change quickly in these Covid times.

In this edition, we outline that invitations for our fifth annual employer survey will be sent out at the start of November. Your satisfaction is something we never take for granted and we are aware that your needs are ever evolving. The survey is a well-received channel for you to provide additional feedback to us. As employers, I am pleased that you have been so forthcoming in sharing your feedback. It is these responses that have informed improvements right across our organisation which I believe have contributed to our overall satisfaction score improving each year since the survey launched back in 2017. I encourage you to take the time to complete our 2021 survey so we can continue on this pathway of continuous improvement.

Ngā mihi nui

Jane Wenman
Careerforce Chief Executive

2021 Annual Employer Survey
Early next week, we will be sending out invites to participate in our annual employer satisfaction survey, now into its fifth year. Each year to date, we have pleasingly seen increasing levels of both engagement with the survey, and of overall satisfaction. Your continued satisfaction however is something we never take for granted.
The top-line results from our 2020 employer survey, together with the actions we subsequently committed to, can be found here.

In last year’s survey, we asked for your specific feedback around our employer reports, and the feedback you provided was crucial in shaping our new and improved employer reports that we hope to launch soon.

 
In this year's survey, we are asking specific questions around ‘modes of [training] delivery’ that will best support our learners to succeed. As an ‘employer led’ model of vocational education, you know what will work best.

The feedback you provide via this survey is instrumental in informing our planning and continuous improvement, and so we again encourage you to take the time to complete the 2021 survey, and which closes at the end of November.

As with recent years, each 20th completed survey will receive a $50 Prezzy Card.

Kaiāwhina Workforce Plan handed over to Toitū te Waiora
Toitū te Waiora, the Workforce Development Council (WDC) for Community, Health, Education and Social Services is taking on the role as new partner with the Ministry of Health in overseeing the Kaiāwhina Workforce Plan.

Jane Wenman, Careerforce CE and exiting co-sponsor of the Kaiāwhina Workforce Plan and co-chair of the Taskforce, says:

“Kaiāwhina are crucial to the successful and positive outcomes for all people supported by the health and disability workforces.

“Careerforce can be really proud of its work in increasing the visibility, and promoting the value of kaiāwhina through our role as co-sponsors of the Kaiāwhina Workforce Plan over the last 8 years.  Careerforce has been a tireless champion in the development of qualification pathways, apprenticeships and leadership programmes for kaiāwhina along with providing resource support to the implementation of the Plan resulting in significant progress for the workforce and those they support.


“It has been a privilege to have been part of the Kaiāwhina Workforce Plan’s story and we know that in handing this mahi to Toitū te Waiora, we can be very confident that the organisation has as much of a heart for kaiāwhina as we do.”

Careerforce also hands over a fresh new look for the Kaiāwhina Plan including a new logo and website. You can visit the new website here: www.kaiawhinaplan.org.nz.

To find out about the continued progress of this work, we encourage you to subscribe to the Kaiāwhina Plan newsletter.

Life Changing Careers campaign continues to build momentum
The Life Changing Careers campaign launched in May off the back of funding from the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) Covid Response Fund. This allowed for the development of the campaign, and for promotional activity through to October. We are now progressing funding proposals to keep the campaign alive into 2022 and beyond.

Campaign results to date have been outstanding:

  • 15.4m digital ad impressions
  • Over 4m complete views of our hero story videos
  • 76,037 visitors to the campaign website (56% aged 44 and under, and 37% males)
  • 142,913 page views, including 24,581 ‘Job Opportunities’ page views

This is not a Careerforce campaign; we are merely its custodians, for and on behalf of the sectors we work with. If successful, you as employers are the key beneficiaries as you will receive much greater interest in your advertised vacancies, and from a much more diverse pool of job seekers than you may have in the past. Over time, this will lead to the much sought after diversity that we need to build into the wider workforce, and that will address the significant workforce resilience risk that Covid-19 so cruelly exposed.

So, this is your campaign, and we need you to own it and champion it.
  • We have previously shared links to the campaign materials, and we absolutely encourage you to access and share these via your networks. Your current staff are our real-life stories and passionate advocates for what they do – encourage them to stand proud for what they do, and to share the campaign via their own networks. Got ideas? Need help? Just drop us a line.
  • We need you to share stories with us of your new recruits. While we know that the campaign has performed exceedingly well, we need stories and anecdotes that this is flowing through to actual applications and appointments. This is critical in securing future campaign funding. Please share these stories with us.
Te Pukenga Engaging on its Operating Model
Earlier this month, we shared information with you around an extensive engagement that Te Pūkenga was commencing, as it seeks feedback on its draft Operating Model. Te Pūkenga Chair, Murray Strong says the Operating Model provides a high-level view of the functions and services needed to meet the needs of learners, their whānau and employers – what we will do, and how we will create that future experience.
Further information on the Operating Model engagement can be found here, plus read what the Operating Model means for employers.

This engagement runs until 8 November, and employers are encouraged to submit their feedback, either by visiting www.yourvoice.tepukenga.ac.nz or emailing yourvoice@tepukenga.ac.nz
 
Fresh Desk is striving to make cleaners respected, upskilled and rewarded
 
The Team at Fresh Desk
Workers in the cleaning industry often speak about being invisible, and being the lowest of the low. They are often undervalued, seen as unqualified, and are traditionally poorly paid.
Wellington and Auckland based professional cleaning business, Fresh Desk, has a social purpose and is helping to change all this.

According to Fresh Desk Operations Manager, Nicole Oxenbridge, “Our ethos is about dignity and respect.  We want to make cleaning a valued and respected profession by paying staff a living wage, giving them wraparound support, and seeking out opportunities for learning and development."

Fresh Desk is currently the only fully accredited living wage cleaning company in New Zealand, and has been paying the living wage to its cleaners since it was established in 2014.

When it comes to learning and development, Fresh Desk partners with Careerforce. With the support of Careerforce, Fresh Desk helps its staff members gain NZQA qualifications for professional development.  It also helps to improve language skills for those who have English as a second language.
Reminder about upcoming changes to the Careerforce Library
 
The Careerforce resource Library contains paper-based learning resources which are currently free to view and downloadable by all visitors to the Library, via the Careerforce website.
Last month we advised that from 1 December 2021 access to the Library will only be via a secure login on the Careerforce iportal site.  Learning resources are being transitioned from the Careerforce Library to Careerforce's iportal. The Library will look and feel the same and contain the same resources, but simply transitioned to iportal.

On Monday 1 November we‘ll be contacting all our trainees, to explain how they can continue to access our library of resources using their new iportal login.

As employers, for those of you who don't currently have an iportal login, simply go to the iportal homepage here and click on 'Register a new account'.  You can download a helpful user guide to see some detailed instructions enabling you to access learning resources.
 
iportal changes will give trainees greater empowerment and self-responsibility
From Monday 1 November, trainees will be able to access our online iportal, which until now has been restricted to assessors and employers.

Trainee access to iportal will allow them to view and download their own training progress reports at any time. They’ll be able to see which unit standards they have completed, and which are yet to be completed.  Until now, trainees have not been able to personally track their own training progress, and we believe this will give trainees a greater sense of empowerment and self-responsibility through their training journey.

iportal outage
To help us carry out these system changes, iportal will be unavailable on Monday 1 November from 8.00am to 11.00am.  We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Industry training graduations – an update
Each year, the Mayoral Taskforce for Jobs runs industry training graduations to recognise the achievements of recent graduates and provide an opportunity for trainees and apprentices to celebrate with their families, friends and employers.
 
Graduations are attended by the local mayor, councillors, Careerforce and other industry training organisations.

At the start of October, several councils sent invitations to graduates who had completed their qualifications within the last one to two years. Most of these graduations were set for November. However, with the uncertainty around Covid-19 alert levels, many of these councils are postponing their graduation ceremonies or sending out certificates instead.

If you have staff who have completed their qualifications recently, they may have received email communication from one of the participating councils.

Industry Training Graduation Ceremony, (Mayors Taskforce for Jobs Programme). Niki Waitai receives her New Zealand Certificate in Health & Wellbeing (Level 3) Read about Niki
 
Councils with graduates from July 2020 – 1 August 2021 who completed at Level 2 and above:
  • Rangitikei
  • Whakatane, Opotiki and Kawerau
  • Ashburton
  • Thames Coromandel and Hauraki District Council
  • Marlborough
  • Masterton, South Wairarapa and Carterton
  • Stratford
  • Timaru and Waimate
  • Gisborne
  • Buller
  • Clutha
  • Waitaki
  • Otorohanga and Waitomo
 
Councils with graduates from November 2019 – 1 August 2021 at Level 2 and above:
  • Central Hawke’s Bay

Councils with graduates from 1 September 2020 – 31 August 2021 who completed at Level 3 and above:
  • Christchurch City, Waimakariri, Selwyn and Hurunui

To find out more about industry training graduations, see the Mayoral Taskforce for Jobs website.

Aka Toi – release of new modules
On Thursday 28 October, we are releasing 24 new modules used across Health and Wellbeing (Level 3) and the Diversional Therapy programme.

All the modules are for the latest version of the unit standard/s and have functionality introduced in 2020 that requires trainees to confirm when they are ready to start an assessment in Aka Toi. This then ‘locks in’ the latest assessment issue active at that time.

More information on this functionality is available for assessors on Aka Toi.

Health and Wellbeing (Level 3) modules
Diversional Therapy (Level 4) modules

The learning resources and assessments have been updated to reflect a change in language used within the sector.

Please note that Issue 1.0 of these modules is due to expire at the end of this year. We will be transitioning apprentices, who have not yet completed Issue 1.0, to these new modules. More information about this will be sent to apprentices and assessors affected in the coming weeks.
 
Qualifications and certificates
As we approach the end of the year, we wanted to share some useful dates:

  • The last day to submit trainee results to ensure they are exported to NZQA on the last run of 2021 is 12 December.
  • The last trainee certificate run for 2021 will be 13 December. Final results for a completing trainee will need to be submitted by 5 December.
  • The last apprenticeship programme certificate run will be 25 November. Final results will need to be submitted by 21 November.
  • We will aim to enrol new trainees this calendar year, where Training Agreements are received by 13 December.
  • The last Welcome Pack run for new trainees this year will be 9 December and packs normally arrive within 2 weeks of this date.  The first run in the New Year will be 13 January.
 
Jobs for Good – list your vacancies now
The Workforce Diversity Campaign has been running for six months and is continuing to drive people looking for care and support work to our Jobs for Good site.  We encourage you to ensure you have your vacancies listed on this website, and leverage the eyeballs that the campaign is creating.

We have now listed nearly 800 jobs on the site to date and are driving people to the site via google advertising. If you have a vacancy, make sure you don't miss out.

Remember, Jobs for Good is free, it’s easy to list vacancies, and it’s super-targeted.

Popular links
Find out more about:
  • Careerforce Qualification Programmes >> More
  • Gateway and Vocational Pathways >>More
  • How to contact your local Careerforce Workplace Advisor >>More
 
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