TCAA Compliance Officer Dan McArdle joined a national conversation and enjoyed some excellent climbing.
I’d never been to a tree-climbing competition, so to attend The Australian Tree Climbing Championships (ATCC) as part of the Arb Australia 2025 Conference in Canberra in March was a great experience.
From my perspective, tree climbing or arbor work – whatever you like to call it – has always been hard work with few pleasures. I don’t have, and never have had, any passion for just climbing a tree for the sake of it. It’s always been just work – and hard work at that.
I attended all events and saw some marvellous climbers in action, both male and female, and the speed and the visual display were second to none.
I take my hat off to all competitors. My congratulations to everyone who took part.
Modern kit
One thing that did strike me was the amount of jingle-jangles attached to the competitors’ climbing harnesses. This amazed me, even more so when I related it to the leanly equipped harness I wear. For the past 40 years a second prussic and figure-eight has always been adequate for me – however, we’re not talking Single Rope Technique (SRT).
To be truthful, I do have a Zig Zag and several other late-model jingle-jangles and ascenders, but I know my days are now limited to EWPs or felling trees, so those fittings gather dust in the kit.
I am so grateful for the welcome I was given by the organisers and I look forward to attending another event at some point in the future.
Career pathways
While I was in Canberra there was an opportunity to meet with counterparts from all Australia’s arboricultural associations, representatives from other arboriculture businesses – including owners and managers – and councils and utility managers.
The networking was invaluable, as was the discussion on trends within the industry and typical Industry association-related matters.
We know the industry is going to continue to gain strength. That goes without saying. But one question was raised several times: ‘Where are the young school leavers who will be taking up the trade?’
A lot of the questions and talk were around the recognition of an apprenticeship as opposed to a traineeship. WA offers an apprenticeship, but the eastern states don’t. Is that the cause of low take up in school pathways to arboricultural traineeships? This was discussed on many different levels.
The Tree Contractors Association (TCAA) has, on many occasions, assisted with the pathways’ stream of Certificate II Showcases at school vocational days to entice interest in a traineeship in Cert 2 Arboriculture. However, the greater uptake is with Certificate 3 Arboriculture, which also has the bigger acceptance among mature students, and a high non-completion rate.
Significant numbers of school students are not using this option as a training pathway from school leavers into Certificate 2 and on to full qualification Cert 3. We know the employer’s costs of training can be expensive, and the risk of losing staff after training is also well known. These factors are limiting the opportunities offered by employers.
These conversations with interstate bodies were invaluable and timely. Recently I’ve been in discussions with ITAB NSW following a request for a supporting letter from the TCAA in regard to this very hot topic.
I’m happy to invite all members to contact me with thoughts on a possible transition from traineeship to an apprenticeship.
Guiding change
Another concern is the status of all existing Certificate 3 qualifications, and, down the track, the implications and prospective contractual requirements under the Trade Apprenticeship outcome.
The last thing I would want is to change the AQF 3 outcome of the traineeship currently on offer if it was converted to an apprenticeship with all units of competency totally transferable. There is also the allocated time frame to complete the training. Currently the traineeship is competency-based training, and, as most students are usually from within the trade and mature, early completions on this competency-based system must remain.
When I left school, I was indentured into a toolmaking apprenticeship with a defined timeframe of four years in total. Formal training was typically one full day at TAFE over three years and one additional year for the boss.
Open to discussion
These questions, and I’m sure others, need to be clarified by industry. The TCAA will continue to see the outcome will not produce any further grief and have the existing Certificate 3 arborist left behind.
All TCAA members and industry stakeholders are invited to contact me on 0418 165 650 with any questions or thoughts on the matter.
