It is business as usual this week for New Zealand Apprentice of the Year Baydon Harris who scooped the top award from five others last Friday but is now back at work at Dunedin screen printing firm John Colours (1998) Ltd.
Baydon says he was quite nervous leading up to Pride In Print on Friday evening and even more so when he saw the Apprentice of the Year trophy being placed on stage.
"When my name was called as Apprentice of the Year I went into shock and had to compose myself before I could speak. I'm sure some people thought I was going to faint!
"The adrenaline kicked in and I delivered my speech to a supportive crowd despite my shaking hands, which continued well into the evening. The rest of the night was amazing, receiving well wishes and letting my achievement sink in."
Baydon started his career in screen printing at John Colours on high school work experience. After using his initiative to gain a holiday job, Baydon went on to gain a full-time job and later signed onto an apprenticeship programme. At this time he set himself a goal of winning the screen printing apprentice award. During his training programme Baydon gained 16 excellent assignment marks, something rarely seen by PrintNZ Training.
"I enjoy seeing a job through to its completion and ensuring that high quality is maintained at every step of the process. I really enjoy working at John Colours as it is a small business and I get to be involved in varied and wide ranging tasks from pre-press to the finished product.
"I believe that a good employer should motivate and encourage their employees and make them proud to produce the company's work. My employer and Lindsay Baird, my supervisor, have always supported me in my work and without this I couldn't have achieved what I have."
John Colours manager, Sean Toomey, says it has been a pleasure to watch someone training who is so focused on succeeding in their chosen field.
"Baydon has been very keen and diligent in his training. He looked at all the different sections of his training very carefully before completing assignments or undertaking assessments.
"We are absolutely thrilled with Baydon's award".
PrintNZ Training CEO Joan Grace says the six finalists can be proud of their achievements and face bright futures within the industry.
"Baydon completed fabric and flat sheet screen printing apprenticeships as well as a die cutting qualification. Baydon's work portfolio was outstanding as it reflected the wide range of skills he has learnt during his training. He has shown passion for his industry, loyalty to the people who have given him a start and a commitment to setting and achieving his future goals."
On the morning of June 15 at the PrintNZ Training Apprentice Awards Breakfast, Baydon received his screen printing award, sponsored by Blue Print Imaging, taking his total winnings to $2,500. At this event the six finalists and top National Certificate trainee received their category awards in front of 80 friends, family and industry members. EPMU National Secretary Andrew Little was guest speaker at the breakfast and commended printing companies for strongly supporting industry training.
