THE search for the 2013 Apprentice of the Year has been officially launched.
Speaking at the launch of the awards Employment and Learning Minister, Dr Stephen Farry said: “Apprenticeships offer young people the opportunity to build knowledge and skills, gain qualifications and earn money all at the same time. With well over 11,000 apprentices in Northern Ireland, in a diverse range of sectors, apprenticeships are a popular route to a successful career.
“These awards are our opportunity to applaud the apprentices advancing their careers through training, as well as recognising employers who are investing in the skills of their workforce by supporting apprenticeships.”
The 2013 award categories are: Apprentice of the Year Award, Most Promising First Year Award, Recognition Award, and Innovation in Partnership Award (for Employers and Training Suppliers).
Nominations are open now for the four categories. These much coveted awards are designed to recognise people involved in apprenticeship training in Northern Ireland, including: employers, training suppliers and the Apprentices themselves.
The Minister continued: “Last week I launched the ApprenticeshipsNI advertising campaign highlighting the message to employers that apprenticeships can help businesses across all sectors by offering a route to harness new talent or indeed train an existing employee.
“I would encourage all apprentices, employers and training partners to gain the recognition you deserve by entering the competition, which I hope will have a record number of applications. The quantity and standard of entries to this competition year on year demonstrates the important role of employers, training suppliers and the apprentice in the training process.”