Chippie Carl Geerlings

The 23 year old first year apprentice thinks about it on his travels from his home in the Blue Mountains to Sydney’s CBD and back every week day.  If the traffic’s bad, sometimes it can take him two hours just to drive home but Carl isn’t bothered about the travel, he says it’s worth it.

“I feel happy that I’ve accomplished something, one step closer to my goal, one step closer to finishing my apprenticeship.  I’ve always loved building things and actually having the accomplishment of when you finish the product and get to see the end result, the satisfaction of actually seeing that you built that, is great.”

He’s four months into his apprenticeship with Apprenticeship Careers Australia, one of Australia’s largest employers of apprentices and trainees, and is being hosted at Earl Group Industries, for his practical training, a boutique builder that constructs high-end homes.

“I saw ACA on Seek offering a pre-apprenticeship course which I did at Narimba Tafe and from that I got work experience, after that I got offered this job here and I started the following week.

ACA helped me out a lot, especially getting the position.  They do a lot of the paperwork which I don’t need to worry about and I’ve got a mentor, they’re always available if I need any help with anything,” says Carl.
His host employer, Frazer Earl, has been in the construction business for twenty years, he enjoys teaching apprentices and wants them to love their profession and do it well.

“We had Carl as a work experience kid and then straight away we just gave him a pep talk about what we’re after and he just ticked all the boxes from day one.   He’s the first one here and last one to leave every night, five days a week and he’s never been late since,” says Frazer.

Carl comes from a family of tradies and says his parents have been very supportive, “they’re excited that I’m actually progressing and happy that I’m enjoying what I do, and as well they get the luxury of having a son carpenter that can build things for them.”

Apart from learning new skills, Carl enjoys the camaraderie among the tradies, “Hanging out with the boys, we’re a tight knit crew, and the other perk of the job is getting paid.

There are endless opportunities to spend your money, go on trips, put money towards a house, getting a new car, it’s great.”

Anyone interested in getting in an apprenticeship or traineeships is encouraged to contact us on 1300 765 155.