Lachlan may only be in Year 11, but he’s already making steps to kick-start his future career. Lachlan connected with us and started his Certificate II in Retail Services traineeship in March this year.
Every Tuesday Lachlan has a day away from school, heading to an eight-hour shift at Woolworths Garden City. Despite never having worked prior to starting his traineeship, Lachlan is progressing well.
“I decided to do a school-based traineeship to learn about life outside of the school environment,” said Lachlan.
“It’s going great so far, I have learned a lot already. Woolworths has been a great environment to learn the basics of grocery retail, and the staff have been patient with my progress.”
Lachlan, who has autism spectrum disorder, says he is learning valuable life skills from his traineeship.
“I’ve learned responsibility and appropriate work behaviours, as well as how to save money and not spend everything I earn,” said Lachlan.
“My traineeship is the highlight of the week for me, I am enjoying the placement and learning so much. I appreciate the independence that I don’t experience while at school.”
As Lachlan has progressed in his workplace, he has required less on-the-job support from us.
“I give a thumbs-up to the support from EPIC,” said Lachlan.
“EPIC had a support worker alongside me the whole way through, and in past weeks the support has been pulled off as I gain independence and confidence in my work.”
Store Manager Ben Campione agrees that Lachlan is going from strength to strength and see’s a promising future in retail for Lachlan.
“Lachlan has certainly come a long way from his first shifts where he was simply performing cardboard and presentation work in the aisles,” said Ben.
“Lachlan has learnt a great deal about our store layout and products which he uses regularly to assist customers in the store. This customer interaction is now helping to build Lachlan’s confidence and communication skills.”
“It is really positive to see his growth. We are proud and glad to be assisting a young man on his journey integrating successfully into the workforce.”