Electricians wanted down under!
Electricians from Northern Ireland are being offered the chance to start a new life in Australia. Representatives from the country’s leading trade organisation and training college recently visited ETT’s training facilities in Ballymena to outline their plans to attract qualifi ed electricians from the province to help combat a shortage of sparks Down Under. Ray Harris, general manager of the National Electricians and Communications Association (NECA) and Carl Copeland, campus manager of training provider College Electrical Training (CET), met with industry representatives including Alfi e Watterson, ECA regional manager for Northern Ireland, and Derek Thompson, chief executive of ETT. ‘Our economy is buoyant at the moment and we have a real need for qualifi ed electricians,’
Ray explained. ‘The training that Northern Ireland’s electricians reach is very similar to Australian standards, so the transition is not very diffi cult at all and is the reason why we have specifi cally targeted your electricians. There will be a little bit of training involved but the process is relatively straightforward to allow electricians from Northern Ireland to be able to work legally in Australia.’
Australia’s positive economy is behind the recruitment drive, with economists predicting it will continue to grow for the next 10 to 14 years. ‘We don’t want to plunder the Northern Ireland workforce but, at the same time, we realise that the industry is facing a lot of diffi culties at the moment, and that many qualifi ed and experienced electricians simply can’t fi nd work at the moment – and these are the type of people we are looking for,’ said Ray. ‘Anyone who comes to Australia will have to work hard, but the benefi ts are huge and whether you want to come for a short period of time or permanently, there is employment ready and waiting for you.’
North East one-day conference success
The North East region recently held an informative one-day conference in Wetherby, West Yorkshire, which was well attended by more than 70 ECA members. Paul Jackson, commercial adviser for ECA Commercial, Contracts and Legal Department, provided details on the New Construction Act; JIB chief executive offi cer Steve Brawley discussed the progress being made with the modernisation of the industry; Sneha Doshi, ECA employee relations adviser, went over key employment issues; and BASEC’s Dr Jeremy Hodge addressed counterfeit cables, how to procure cables and standards and specifi cations for cables. ECA president Alun Pearson and ECA group chief executive offi cer Steve Bratt were also there to update attendees about what the association is doing.
EICR updates for Greater London
The Greater London region has just completed a round of branch presentations on the newly introduced BS 7671:2008 Amendment 1 Electrical Installation Condition Reports (EICR) that are replacing Periodic Inspection Reports (PIR). The presentations were given by ECA area technical manager Connor Flynn. He said: ‘The main reason for the new EICR being introduced is to improve the overall standard of PIR reports within the industry, and one of the main changes is the new name – Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)’ He continued: ‘This indicates to the client that what they are “getting is what it says on the tin,” with a new schedule of inspections with new codes. The aim is to confi rm the safety of the installation, whether the installation is in a satisfactory condition for continued use and report any defects in a clear concise manner.’
These branch presentations had an excellent member turnout. Both the presentation and its question and answer session were well received by members and their guests.
SHUTTERSTOCK /
OKSANA.PERKINS
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