What better place to gain practical experience for a Community House Building, Brick Laying and Carpentry certificate than at one of the Western Cape’s most experienced community home builders? And what better feeling could there be than participating in one of @ASLA Construction’s buzzing housing development, that is directly benefiting your own community and the people you have grown up knowing?
Currently 18 youths, from the Bonteheuwel community, who are enrolled at the Industries Education and Training Institute (IETI), are doing just that. They are participating in a one-year learnership and, following three months of theory, are now gaining hands-on experience of what it looks like, in practice, to construct a house from the foundations up. The group had originally responded to a call by Councillor Angus McKenzie, encouraging the Bonteheuwel youth job seekers to consider careers in construction, and the group started their industry journey on site on 5 June this year.
One of our participants is Jamie Isaacs, who is 24 years old and like all the other participants was born and raised in Bonteheuwel. She has discovered a passion for the work, and is taking in as much as she can, across all of the construction disciplines.
Jamie, what is the most enjoyable part of working on site?
“I never knew that construction work would be so enjoyable. I’ve learned a lot. We first worked with the civils, and it was interesting for me to see how the pipes are laid from scratch, and how they connect the joins. We didn’t learn this at college, but it’s nice to see and do it practically.”
“It’s amazing seeing a house being built from nothing, and these are going to look very nice. I’m proud that I was able to help subcontractors build these houses, and when they are done, I can say that I was part of this. It also means a lot to the community – people that don’t have, will be getting a house and they will have a roof over their heads.”
Another learner, Nicole Morkel, had been unemployed and seeking work for a while. She had worked at a warehouse before having kids, at a perfume shop, and at the Visfabriek past Montague gardens. “I didn’t know if we were going to receive a stipend when I saw the advertisement, but I said to myself that I should go for it as one never knows what lays ahead,” she says. “If I was successful with the learnership, I could look at an apprenticeship next, and this could become something long-term for me.”
Nicole has taken on the role of the group’s team leader, which entails both on and off-site activities and responsibilities. On site she and the rest of the group fulfil the activities required for the completion of their logbooks. She has created a WhatsApp group where pictures and posts about the activities completed each day are shared, and keeps the group updated on other matters and news from the college. “The WhatsApp group is for in case anyone forgets what we did today, or last week, then it’s in the chat,” says Nicole, “and I will also share the opportunities the college lays down with the group directly, as well as on the chat.”
Nicole, what’s it like being part of a project like this?
“It’s amazing – like when we walk in the road and people ask us if you’re one of the people building the houses, then I’m proud to say that yes, I am. Though I am a student, I can still tell them what is happening here, and the fact, whoever is getting the houses will be able to live there soon. I feel proud to be part of everything here.
“I didn’t know how big the project was when the opportunity arose, but it’s out there, and everyone knows about it. I had decided to grab the opportunity because I was sitting at home applying for jobs, and because I didn’t finish my matric it was harder getting a job.
“My family makes me feel super proud now. Everything on site was new for me, and I never saw myself as someone who would enjoy getting their hands dirty, but now friends ask, ‘so now you know how to build a house, you can build ours’ and I can have a full-on conversation with my father-in-law who used to work in building…”
It is of course our hope and dream at the ASLA Foundation, that Nicole, Jamie, and all of the others will go on to carve out careers, build their friends’ houses and contribute to the construction sector and economy as a whole. Partnering with colleges like IETI, with the Western Cape Department of Infrastructure and ASLA gives us the platform to facilitate skills development that ignite enthusiasm and opportunity.
