JTJobsBoard Archives | Johnathan Thurston Academy

Torque Heritage talking the talk when it comes to driving Indigenous employment

With an aim to becoming one of the largest employers of Indigenous Australians, Torque Heritage was one of the first companies to come on board as a corporate partner with the JTAcademy a year ago.

A founding partner, their support has been invaluable in helping the Academy to get the word out about what we are doing and assisting more than 4,000 young people transition into jobs in the past nine months.

“We are receiving some fantastic response through the JTJobBoard for opportunities right around the county,” Michael Hall, CEO of Torque Heritage said.

“We are currently working on 140 jobs for projects in Qld, NSW, Vic and WA and we estimate that around 100 of those will be sourced through the JTJobBoard.

“We love working with JTAcademy.”

Hall said the Torque Heritage team is dedicated to becoming a major employer of Indigenous Australians, offering prospects to those in marginalized communities who have not always enjoyed access to these kinds of opportunities.

Torque Heritage is an Aboriginal owned and managed company with a focus on helping connect Indigenous Australians with sustainable employment opportunities throughout Australia.

Since August 2018, Torque Heritage has provided 200+ employment opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander jobseekers, completed over 90,000 Indigenous working hours and expects to be in the Top 20 Indigenous employers in Australia by the end of 2019. A goal, which Hall is very passionate about.

With employers utilizing the JTJobBoard to seek staff for jobs of this scale, we are excited to be providing jobseekers with new pathways to employment and simply could not have been as successful as we have without the support of our partners such as Torque Heritage.

JT gives Summer a kick start

Ibis Mackay manager Scott Grant with Summer Seden who trained through the Johnathan Thurston Academy. Daily Mercury.

A true JTAcademy success story, Summer Seden spoke with the Daily Mercury earlier this year about her journey from nervously starting a traineeship at ibis Mackay hotel to now securing full-time work at the venue.

Summer was connected with the ibis through the JTAcademy and completed a traineeship in hospitality. She impressed management so much; she now has a permanent job.

“A lot of people ask me how I got my job because they are having trouble,” Summer told the paper. “I tell them to go to the JTAcademy because there is no harm in trying.”

JT said the role of the academy is to connect youth with work and training opportunities.

“They just need to be given a go by businesses who believe in them and are happy to take the time to train them,” he said.

To read the full story, visit the Daily Mercury’s website here.

JT Academy Partnerships Making Life-Changing Impacts for Jobseekers

Stable and supportive employment opportunities have provided life-changing impacts for south Queensland Indigenous residents thanks to partnerships between the Johnathan Thurston (JT) Academy and national businesses.

Torque Heritage chief executive officer Michael Hall said they had placed around 100 Indigenous candidates into employment within Queensland solar farm developments and the JT Academy partnership had played a big part in achieving this.

“We are really on board with everything it [the JT Academy] stands for, we want to be part of it well into the future and continue empowering Indigenous and non-indigenous people to achieve sustainable life-changing results for themselves,” he said.

Butchulla man Wayne Tobane said his life just kept getting better after stable local employment through Torque Heritage in a Hervey Bay solar farm enabled him to stay close to his community, pay his mortgage and provide for his four children.

“I’m over the moon and so grateful to be part of the local workforce and look after my boys,” he said.

“I was going to have to relocate but this opportunity came just at the right time and was a real life-saver.

“I’ve really felt supported, learned new skills and had the chance to gain certification that will help my employability into the future, which all has a positive flow-on effect for my family.”

AccorHotels Indigenous programs executive Kedea Atherton said the JT Academy partnership was generating a great response, with many of the recent Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and Brisbane program attendees coming via the JT Academy.

“Through our [Indigenous employment] program, many attendees have been offered positions at AccorHotels,” she said.

“It’s important we provide sustainable and authentic opportunities and through the partnership with the JT Academy we have reached a greater number of applicants and built good relationships.”

The recently retired NRL star Johnathan Thurston, earlier this year embarked on the Brisbane based JT Academy venture, with the intention of empowering people to achieve their life goals.

Thurston said each participant would leave the Academy with a new set of skills to tackle their respective ambitions, whether it is employment, education, health or sport.

Check out the JT Academy Jobs Board here >

Why the Johnathan Thurston Academy needs partners like CQFMS

The work being done by the Johnathan Thurston Academy to ensure youth have the chance to get on-the-job-training would simply not be possible without the support of our corporate partners such as CQField Mining Services (CQFMS).

CQFMS has been a strong and active supporter of JT Academy since it opened in early 2018, regularly posting job ads on the site and taking on trainees and apprentices.

“What we are trying to accomplish here would simply not be possible without the support of companies like CQ Field Mining Services,” Samantha Johnson, General Manager of the JT Academy, said.

“We have the ideas of what we want to achieve but we need active engagement in what we are doing – giving kids a chance by offering the education, training or work – if we are to be successful.

“We know that CQFMS is hoping their example will encourage others to get on board and partner with the JT Academy to make a meaningful difference to lives of our youth.”

CQFMS is a maintenance and construction contractor based in Central Queensland, specialising in Project, Field and Diesel Maintenance servicing the Australian and Pacific region mining and gas industries.

The company was established in 2006 and has a workforce of some 300 staff. Being privately owned, the company prides itself on “looking after its employees”.

“CQFMS values the importance of offering opportunities to those who are new to the industry, everyone needs to start somewhere and when surrounded by the right team it makes for positive results” Jason Holt, Director, said.

“We are a premium sponsor of the JT Academy and support many community events and associations throughout the year.”

Samantha said the Academy thanks CQFMS for their ongoing industry support and it’s vital to help the Academy realise its goals of helping youth into education and training.

“We have been lucky to have the support of a number of corporate partners including CQFMS,” Johnson said. “In keeping with the ethos and principles of the Academy, we only partner with employers of choice who have a proven track record of supporting their staff through the good times and the bad times.

“CQMS is one such company which prides itself on its engagement with its staff and the community and we are very proud to have them on board.”

If you are interested in partnering with the JT Academy, contact Samantha on info@jtacademy.com.au. If you are interested in finding out more about CQFMS, visit their website or email enquiries@cqfms.com.au