18 ON THE LAND
thursday 15 july 2021
burdekinlocal.com.au
Wilmar apprenticeship applications now open
Wilmar Sugar WILMAR Sugar Australia is calling on the next generation of apprentices to get their resumes ready, with applications for 2022 apprenticeships opening
online last Saturday, 10 July. Apprenticeships in diesel fitting, electrical, fitting and turning, and fabricating trades are up for grabs across Wilmar’s eight sugar mills and bioethanol distillery. First-year fitting and
Weekly production figures Burdekin region mills Week 5, ending 10 July 2021 Cane crushed Invicta Pioneer Kalamia Inkerman Burdekin
This week
CCS Invicta Pioneer Kalamia Inkerman Burdekin
150,070 79,484 71,267 71,880 372,701
Season to date
685,796 354,552 332,864 279,512 1,652,724
14.39 14.09 13.88 13.55 14.07
Weekly variety performance for region Variety % CCS Variety Q240 38 14.18 Q232 KQ228 33 13.83 Q208 Q183 14 14.43
13.66 13.68 13.31 13.11 13.50 % 7 5
CCS 14.20 13.61
Throughput for the Burdekin mills in week five was good with just over 370,000 tonnes of cane put through the rollers. This brings the season total to just over 1.65M tonnes. This was a pleasing result given two factories lost time to unplanned stops. Kalamia Mill had unscheduled stops early in the week to replace a pan door, and replace a broken roller in the bagasse system. Inkerman Mill had an extended stop to repair some leaking boiler tubes. All factories crushed very well for the remainder of the week. Average weekly CCS was 14.06. This was again well above budget thanks to the dry cool conditions. The highest CCS sample was 16.9 from a rake of Q240 plant cane in the Invicta Mill area.
For first-year fitting and turning apprentice George Burns, scoring a Wilmar apprenticeship has given him the opportunity to gain skills he has always wanted. “I grew up on a farm and used to pull machinery apart and put it back together, just never correctly, so this field will help me understand how it goes back together,” Mr Burns said. “Most of the work in the
mills is done in-house. You do it and you learn from that hands-on experience.” Wilmar Training Superintendent Daniel Shipard said applications would be open for three weeks, closing on Sunday, 1st August. “We are very proud of our apprenticeship program. We currently employ about 130 apprentices across various trades,” Mr Shipard said.
“The four main trades that we focus on are fabricating, fitting and turning, electrical and diesel fitting. “The application process is fairly simple and is all done online.” CONNECT NOW: For more information about Wilmar’s 2022 apprenticeship program applications, visit wilmarsugar-anz.com/ourpeople/apprenticeships
Farmers applaud State Government’s commitment to tackle Queensland’s labour shortage AgForce
Comments:
John Tait Cane Supply Manager Burdekin Region
turning apprentice Katelyn Smith has been learning her trade at Victoria Mill, located near Ingham, for the past six months. She said she was glad she chose an apprenticeship, having spent six years after high school on a different career path. “I started as a fibre chemist at Victoria Mill. Through that, I spoke to some tradesmen and fitters, and I got to see the type of work they were doing,” Ms Smith said. “I really like Wilmar’s safety values, so knowing you will come home safe every day.”
AGFORCE and the National Farmers’ Federation are supporting a State Government push to boost agricultural labour on Queensland farms. With trial on-farm quarantine arrangements for workers from Pacific Island nations now underway in Queensland, Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Furner said almost 3000 workers have been drafted in to work on farms and related businesses. The announcement comes as the Federal Government exacerbates the farm labour shortage by changing the rules for backpackers seeking to extend their Working Holiday Maker visas to second and third years allowing them to complete their 88 days work not just on farms but now in the tourism and hospitality sectors in northern and remote
Australia as well. The change threatens to put further strain on Queensland’s horticulture sector, which is currently as many as 9,000 workers short. AgForce CEO Michael Guerin acknowledged the State Government’s support for the agriculture industry during tough times, and thanked Minister Furner for his ongoing commitment to ease the farm labour shortage. But he also urged Immigration Minister Alex Hawke to reconsider his decision on visas and support Queensland agriculture. Mr Guerin said: “We would like to thank Minister Furner for his proactivity in sourcing labour for our farmers and encourage a continued and concerted effort to help keep our industry afloat. “There have always been challenges in finding and retaining ag labour in rural and remote areas, and this shortage has been made much worse by the COVID pandemic and travel
restrictions. “Grains, for example, rely heavily on skilled workers come harvest time. Skilled workers are safe workers, and we need to ensure they are readily available. “While the State Government has demonstrated its commitment to this, unfortunately the decision by Minister Hawke puts that at risk. “We are calling on the Minister to review this decision immediately, and would like to see greater transparency moving forward on the basis for making changes to what is a long running visa program, upon which entire workforces have been predicated.” NFF CEO Tony Mahar said it was time for the Federal Government to take its lead from the State Government when it came to supporting agriculture. “The changes to the backpacker visa could lead to an exodus of workers from agriculture into pubs, clubs
and restaurants right when we need them the most,” he said. “The current work shortages impacting our industry need addressing. We applaud the State Government for its ongoing commitment to bolstering our industry with farm workers, despite the COVID pandemic. “However, the same cannot be said federally, and it’s time that changed. “We urge Minister Hawke to start engaging with industry on the Prime Minister’s commitment to an Ag Visa. “The industry is not being brought into the development of the visa to date and Minister Hawke appears to be continuing his style of not talking to industry on matters that impact them significantly. “If this continues he will end up developing up a regime that suits government but is a disaster for industry which would be a terrible outcome.”
