Apprentices compare workplaces on more than the weekly wage, so the extras you offer can decide whether they apply and whether they stay. Here is how to choose benefits that suit your business and describe them honestly.
Offering competitive benefits to attract apprentices starts with understanding what a young person is weighing up when they choose a first employer. Pay matters, but apprentice pay is set within fixed rules, so many employers end up offering similar wages. The differences people notice are in the rest of the package.
This post covers which benefits apprentices tend to value, how to build a package without overspending, and how to describe it so it is believed. Pay rates and government incentives change, so check the official pages listed below before you quote either.
Apprentices are usually early in their working lives. They are often learning how to budget, getting to work on their own and balancing paid work with study.
Things that make that easier are noticed. A supervisor who explains tasks, tools that are provided and a roster that works around study days all send the same message: the business has thought about the person, not just the job.
That is a reason to apply, and it is also a reason to stay.
Here are options to consider. Pick the ones your business can actually sustain.
None of these need a big budget. Most need attention and consistency.
Talk to your current apprentices and recently qualified staff. Ask what helped them and what they wish had been different. Their answers are more reliable than guesses.
A benefit that is hard to use will not be valued. A transport allowance is no use if everyone drives. A flexible start is no use if the job cannot bend.
Apprentices want to see where the job leads. Show them the skills they will build and who they will learn from. Our post on the benefits of hiring an apprentice and keeping them covers what happens after they qualify.
If you host an apprentice through Future1st, we are the employer. We recruit and employ the apprentice, handle payroll and training administration, and place them with your business. Your role is the day-to-day work and supervision.
That split affects how you talk about benefits. Wages and employment terms are handled by the employer, so check with Future1st before promising anything about pay or leave. What you control as a host is the quality of the workplace: supervision, tools, roster and respect.
For current pay rules, use the Fair Work Ombudsman page on apprentice and trainee pay rates. For employer support payments, see the government's financial support for employers. These details change, so we do not list them here.
Do not leave your benefits for the interview. Put them where candidates look.
Our post on employer branding when hiring an apprentice goes further on how your reputation affects who applies.
No. Pay matters, but many apprentices also weigh up supervision, study support and how they will be treated. Those things are often within a small business's control.
A named mentor who has time for the apprentice. It costs attention rather than money, and apprentices tend to notice it.
Speak to Future1st first, because we are the employer and set employment terms. Practical workplace support, such as tools and study time, is something you can discuss with us.
Use the Fair Work Ombudsman page linked above, as rates change. Do not rely on figures from older articles.
Good benefits are specific, affordable and honestly described. To talk about hosting an apprentice and what to offer, see how to hire an apprentice with Future1st or call (03) 9656 9797.
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