Tony Smith (Casey, Liberal Party, Deputy Chairman , Coalition Policy Development Committee) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to speak about the 2012 Casey Apprentice/Trainee of the Year Awards. In 2009 I initiated the Casey Apprentice/Trainee of the Year Awards to recognise, reward and encourage careers in local trades and local small business. As we know, the apprentices and trainees of today will help form the backbone of our future small businesses and local economies in our electorates. I have long believed we should be doing all we can to encourage and value excellence in our apprentices and trainees.

On Wednesday, 18 April 2012 I was very pleased to host the award ceremony for all of those who were chosen for their excellence in a variety of trades. This is the third successive year these awards have been held. Earlier in the year an independent panel of local business owners and managers kindly volunteered their time to sift through the many nominations and select those they thought the most deserving. I want to pay tribute to those who work so hard on the panel. Mr Phil Munday of Phil Munday's Panel Works chaired the independent judging panel. He was joined by Sue O'Brien from Chateau Yering, Nick Fraraccio from Stevens Glass and Clive Larkman from Larkman Nurseries. From the many applications received, the panel narrowed down to 10 finalists, who they decided were all worthy of an award. The industries represented included cabinet-making, carpentry, electrical, fitting and turning, horticulture, hospitality, spray painting, retail and business administration.

The overall winner was Aaron Liebelt, aged 20, from Kilsyth, who is an apprentice cabinet-maker at Yarra Valley Cabinet Makers in Kilsyth South. Madam Deputy Speaker, you will not be surprised that it was not just the 17-year-old school leavers embarking on a career in a trade. In fact, there were many mature age people represented and nominated, who are swapping the daily grind of the corporate world for the prospect of learning a trade. For that very reason the panel decided to break the 10 finalists into two distinct categories—young apprentice/trainees and mature aged.

The winner in the young apprentice category was Dexter Bills, aged 20, from Chirnside Park, an apprentice spray painter at Slammed Creations in Lilydale. The runner-up was Paige Marsh, aged 18, undertaking a certificate in business administration at Yarra Ranges Shire Council. Encouragement awards were also awarded to Sean McCarthy, 21, from Lilydale, an apprentice electrician at Laser Electrical in Lilydale, and to Kate Butt, aged 21, from the Patch, undertaking a certificate in hospitality at Friends on the Hill in Monbulk.

In the mature age category the winner was Claude Zappia, 37, from Silvan, now an apprentice fitter and turner at OzPack in Scoresby. The runner-up was Lee Crippen, also 37, from Mooroolbark, an apprentice chef at Stones of the Yarra Valley in Coldstream. Encouragement awards went to Adam Edwards, aged 46, from Mt Evelyn, an apprentice horticulturalist at Specialty Trees in Narre Warren East; Stewart Morris, aged 28, from Healesville, an apprentice carpenter at Fineline Building Products in Boronia; and, finally, Sue Williams, aged 49, from Lilydale, undertaking a training and assessment certificate and diploma of management at Wendy's in Chirnside Park. As I mentioned earlier, the overall winner was Aaron Liebelt, aged 20, from Kilsyth, an apprentice cabinet-maker.

I wanted to take the opportunity tonight in the House to congratulate all 10 finalists, their employers who came along to make the night the success it was and, again, the judging panel, who did all of the hard work in choosing the 10 finalists, the winners and the overall winner.