Any industry needs a constant influx of young people with new ideas if it's going to succeed. However, one of the risks facing the electricity industry has been a shortage of young people coming in as graduates or apprentices.

During the year we kicked off two programmes which we believe are very important for our future - an engineering graduate scheme and an electrical apprenticeship scheme. Both are good not only for us, but also for the long-term future of the industry.

Engineering graduate programme

In January 2007 we took on our first four engineering graduates – two electrical engineers, one mechanical engineer and one process and chemical engineer – all areas of expertise that our engineering staff identified as important for the Company.

The graduates are moving through a three year rotation, starting with a tailored induction programme which allows them to visit all of our generation assets. Every six months they are assigned to a different role to gain experience and try out different parts of our business.

Part of the attraction for graduates is the opportunity to work on some of New Zealand's largest and most important assets – they get to play with some very big pieces of kit!

The programme is working well, with clear benefits both for the graduate recruits and for Meridian.

What opportunites has Meridian's engineering programme led to?
Jason Fincher talks about his experience on the Meridian engineering programme.

Electrical apprenticeship scheme

Our apprenticeship scheme started in November 2006 when we took on 42 staff, including apprentices, who were previously employed by Transfield, a Meridian contractor. As at June 2007 we had four apprentices and we're looking to take on more.

We are working with the Electricity Supply Industry Training Organisation (ESITO) to establish a formalised apprenticeship programme. The apprenticeship programme typically lasts for three years, with a mixture of On the Job Training, block courses and self-directed learning through the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology.

We also 'exchange' our apprentices with other companies for a period to give them a wider range of experience (e.g. in domestic electrical work). These exchanges also help us extend our relationships with our suppliers and local companies.