IN JANUARY, Tyson Dutton became the face of the Riverina’s growing youth unemployment crisis.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The youngster, originally from Lake Cargelligo, moved to Wagga simply because he felt there was no work available to him in his hometown.
The latest youth unemployment data available shows one in 10 people aged between 15 and 24 in the Riverina are currently without a job.
Six months on from when the Advertiser found Mr Dutton, 18, in the middle of his job hunt at Centrelink, he is well and truly sinking his teeth into a panel beating apprenticeship with Craig Glasson Smash Repairs.
“Work’s good, I don’t mind it,” Mr Dutton told the Advertiser on Tuesday.
“I didn’t have any experience when I moved over here, but I don’t mind it now.”
While he still needs a bit of help from mum and dad to get by, Mr Dutton, who started work in February, said having the apprenticeship, and a steady wage, was “a lot better than being unemployed”.
His employer, Craig Glasson, was searching for a couple of apprentices in February when he came across Mr Dutton, who impressed his prospective new boss with his enthusiasm and presentation.
“He’s very keen and eager and willing to learn, which is good,” Mr Glasson said. “You don’t usually find that in too many apprentices.”
Mr Glasson said the main thing he looked for when taking on new apprentices was “the right attitude”.
“We’ve got so many apprentices who come in and say, ‘I want a job’ – they’ve got no tact, no nothing,” he said.
“They’re not really interested, they just want a job.”
Mr Dutton had a bit of help getting into the workforce from local Wiradjuri man Mark Saddler, who works as a New Careers for Aboriginal People liaison for NSW State Training.
Mr Saddler said moving to Wagga and taking up the apprenticeship presented the “first big move in his life” for Mr Dutton.
“Craig loves him there. Tyson’s kicking a goal – he’s a changed person,” Mr Saddler said.
“He’s made the move forward and be it chance or good luck, he’s come across me and Julie Bell (from Riverina TAFE) and he’s got a job. I’m so proud of him that he’s done that.”
While Mr Dutton had to move to Wagga to get his big break in the workforce, Mr Saddler said there was nothing stopping him moving back to Lake Cargelligo to continue a career in the automotive industry once he had learned a few skills from Mr Glasson.
The Riverina youth unemployment rate, which sat at 10 per cent in June, has come down slightly since the start of the year. The general unemployment rate remains steady at 4 per cent.
