AN170120 – Metal and Engineering Industry Award

7. TRAINEE - ENGINEERING ASSOCIATE

(a) Operation

The provision of this subclause shall apply to Trainee - Engineering Associate engaged under this award.

(b) Definition

A Trainee Engineering Associate shall mean an employee of less than 21 years of age who is undergoing, and proves to the satisfaction of the trainee's employer when requested, that the trainee is continuing an Associate Diploma course appropriate to the trainee's work and undertaken in a recognised educational institution or any course at least equivalent thereto.

(c) Rates of Pay

The minimum weekly wage rate for all trainees subject to this award shall be the undermentioned percentages of the Weekly Wage Rate for Level C9 - Engineering Technician Level 1 adjusted to the nearest 10 cents:

Years of Age	%
17 years of age and under	48.10
18 years of age	57.36
19 years of age	69.38
20 years of age	81.40

PROVIDED that in the event that an employee was paid in accordance with Order No. 2 of 2002 for the period 1 August 2002 to 28 January 2003 those payments shall not be recoverable by the employer.

(d) Proportion

The proportion of trainees who may be employed by any employer shall not exceed one trainee to every two adults in that area in which the trainee is employed under this division.

(e) Payment of Fees

A Trainee - Engineering Associate who attends in any one year not less than 80 percent of the maximum possible attendances of the approved course at the training institution at which the trainee is pursuing their course of study, and passes the annual examinations in that year, or, if there is no examination, receives a satisfactory report, shall be reimbursed by the employer for all fees paid by the trainee for that course during that year. In the case of trainee who complies with the foregoing requirement for attendances and who passes or receives a satisfactory report in a proportion of the subjects taken in any year, the employer shall reimburse a like proportion of fees.

The employer shall not, however, be required to reimburse fees or a proportion thereof for more than one year in excess of the period prescribed by the training institution for the approved course.

PROVIDED that, where a trainee is in the employ of more than one employer in any school year, then the last such employer shall be liable only for the payment of the fee pro-rata to the period of employment with the employer.

(f) Daytime Schooling

Trainees shall be allowed reasonable time off (not exceeding an average of eight hours per week during a school term) for the purpose of attending classes in connection with the appropriate certificate course on the same basis as apprentices in the establishment are allowed off for daytime schooling.