Female apprentices on the rise with Sheen

Sheen has been very busy the last month with back-to-back expos promoting our Automotive refinishing and Automotive Body Repair apprenticeships!

A few weeks ago we were exhibitors at the Victorian Governments Trade and Tech fit Expo that was targeted at encouraging young women into trades and industry where they are currently underrepresented.

Over the course of the expo, we were fortunate enough to host several of our female employees to speak to students about what it is they do, and the benefit of working at business like Sheen. We had apprentices, qualified tradespeople, bookkeepers, and shop managers join us to educate and promote young women on collision repairs and the vast opportunities that exist within the industry.

Currently, female apprentices make up 20% of all apprentices employed at Sheen, an all time high for us. Apprentice manager Tony commented “It’s great to see, we have more women on the shop floor than ever before, and we are hoping that number only climbs.” Qualified Automotive Refinisher Isabella from our Kensington location joined us for one of the days to speak to young women about her apprenticeship with Sheen and the collision industry as a whole.

She commented that she would love to take on a female apprentice of her own “I was apprehensive when I started my apprenticeship, I knew I was outnumbered - but my team and my mentor made me feel welcome immediately. I would like the opportunity to be that for someone else. Especially another woman that might be feeling unsure.”

Currently women make up just 2% of both Automotive refinishers and Automotive body repairers across Australia. With the current skill shortage across the industry we as a collective need to be more proactive in seeking apprentices regardless of gender to ensure the future of the Australian collision industry. “Every store that has had a female apprentice qualify across the Sheen group has requested another female apprentice to fill their previous position” Tony Todaro commented. “When we speak with apprentices, we are looking for the right attitude – we can teach everything else!”

If you are interested in learning more about our apprenticeships head to apprenticeships page.

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