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Eric Solomon: Born in Temuka, a Chatham Islander by ancestry, he has spent all his working life around the
shearing sheds and passing on the expertise built up since he first started shearing in South Canterbury.
After buying and operating a shearing run in Western Australia from 1989 to 1995, he was recruited onto the instructor panel for Peter Black's
Shearing Industry Consultants, a Private Training Provider, organising in-shed
coaching and courses
at many venues including various agricultural schools, and
helping whole teams on mainly merino properties.
Now, after nearly 20 years in WA, those skills are coming back to New Zealand. From his newly built home in the Christchurch suburb of Northwood, Eric is busy setting up an innovative new
Wool harvesting Coaching programme in partnership with Peter
Black and former shearing mate Colin
Coochey.
Eric is expert in shearing patterns, and used to different
coaching methods. It’s not hard to teach people how to make money out of shearing, he says, but it’s not so easy to show them how to save that money and profit from their experience.
The lack of fresh blood coming into the industry, and the loss of interest when pay rates fail to recognise the level of skill required, must be addressed, he says.
“It’s coming to a head now, as the pressure is on for high quality shed-hands, and farmers want an expert job done.”
“We’ve got to work on ways to make shearing more rewarding, and we think we’ve got the right people behind
us." Shearers are transient workers, but as they move around the world circuit, they are very likely to end up in Western Australia. |
That's where Eric's association with the
Peter Black group will bear fruit, as Work With Wool coaching to New
Zealand unit standards and levels will transfer across to
Australian unit standards and shearers will be able to carry on their
studies overseas.
“We are aiming to over a whole range of life skills, including
literacy and numeracy , so that their job can become a career”
Coaching will cover not just shearing, wool handling and pressing, and maintenance, but health and safety and employment issues, personal development and goal setting.
“We’ve got to work on ways to make shearing more rewarding, and we think we’ve got the right people behind us.”
Colin Coochey:
Colin
is just as concerned as Eric about the huge shortage of skilled
workers that could occur here when shearers 45 and over retire.
After being in business for ten years, Colin caught up with his
old
shearing colleague at the end of last year, just as Eric was
considering his options for the future . The two heads together
then came up with the idea of an independent private training
organisation (PTE) - and Work With Wool Ltd was born.
Colin is just as concerned as Eric about the huge shortage of
skilled workers that could occur here when shearers 45 and over
retire.
“After ten years away, I walked back into a shed and saw the
same old faces there. Everyone we talk to says something has to
be done, but just what to do is another question.” says Colin
“That’s why we’re taking this step.”
Colin
has been involved in the shearing industry almost all of his
life in one form or another. He started shearing at the age of
16, working around the Timaru, Geraldine area of South
Canterbury, when he was 18 he and his wife to be Wendy, moved to
Perth WA, where he continued shearing for the next 3 years
before returning to NZ to live.
At
this time Colin and Wendy brought there first property, and over
the next 12 years they had two children, and continued to buy,
renovate, build and sell property until they purchased a 50 acre
block of land in Geraldine.
Colin then moved into buying and selling stock mainly Ewes and
lambs, shearing them, fattening stock and selling as a dealer,
with up to 1000 head at some stages, on his own property as well
as a 200 acre block of leased land, mean while continuing
shearing both in NZ and spending time shearing in Western
Australia for two to three months each year. |
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Colin
and Wendy purchased a Service Station and Workshop in a small
rural town in South Canterbury, as well as continuing with their
land holding in Geraldine.
They
ran and grew the business for the next ten years, reaching 1.5
million turn over with up to five full time and 3 part time
staff as well as themselves. |
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After
ten years in a seven day a week business, and both their
children out on there own they decided it was a time for a
change, and sold the business and Colin went back shearing for a
break for the next 2 years. They travelled back to WA shearing
as a working holiday and Colin went to the USA for 3 months
shearing mainly in Colorado and Wyoming. At present Colin
and Wendy are living and working in Christchurch, Colin holds a
Real Estate license and is working in Christchurch as a
Marketing Consultant. Over his life Colin has gained a vast
range of experience and knowledge, he has shown the ability to
quickly learn any new tasks, is very honest and reliable, Self
motivated – always seeking opportunities with a positive
attitude. He has a Friendly out going personality, excellent
communication skills, problem solving skills, and organisational
and planning ability and thrives on challenges.
Colin takes Pride in
producing a high standard of work, and has wide experience of
business management, with a very sound knowledge of all aspects
of shearing including, contracting, negotiation of rates for
Farmers and also for Shearer’s and shed hands.
Colin has completed
courses in Business Management, computer courses, and Real
Estate. The Industry has a future!
“Shearing is a small industry, where everyone knows everyone,
and farmers tend to think things will work out OK, but then only
three or four shearers turn up for work. We’re interested in
working with the farmers and contractors and negotiating job
placements, and making sure that shearers can earn the good
money there still is in this industry, anything from $50,000 to
$100,000 a year if they go about it the right way”
“You can shear for 30 years and you’re still learning, and
that’s why we plan a one on one approach.
The word is out, and a lot of people are asking just when we are
starting. That’s a sign that there is a real need for
something like this.
Work With Wool will be seeking to emphasise its point of
difference from other programmes”
There is still plenty of evidence that Eric and Colin are very
serious about Work With Wool Ltd. |
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