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Show Your Support for the Future of Our Industry
Master Electricians has set out a clear, proactive direction for the new Electrotechnology & IT Industry Skills Board – ensuring training, qualifications, and workforce development are led by industry, for industry. By endorsing our position, you’re helping us: Protect the quality and integrity of electrical training. Ensure skill pathways meet the needs of businesses and apprentices. Put industry in the driver’s seat on decisions that shape our future workforce. Leave your message of support today – it can be as simple as “I support Master Electricians’ ISB direction” or a few words on why you believe industry-led skills governance matters. Every voice adds weight to the call for an ISB that truly works for our sector.
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The establishment of the new Electrotechnology Industry Skills Board (ISB) represents one of the most important shifts in our industry’s future. For many years, training and skills development have been controlled by government agencies and training providers and supplied by systems that didn’t always serve the needs of electricians, apprentices, or employers.
Now, for the first time, we have a chance to put the electrical industry firmly in the driver’s seat for skills development. We need your support for this vision.
Why your endorsement matters
This is a rare chance to shape the future of our trade. The direction Master Electricians is proposing is designed to:
- Give the industry a voice and control like never before.
- Ensure training and qualifications stay relevant, modern, and industry led.
- Set a culture that works for electricians, not against them.
But we need the industry to stand behind this vision.
What does this mean for you?
With the right leadership, the Electrotechnology ISB promises to:
- Put industry back in control – We can set our own priorities, shape the future of electrification, and decide what really matters for electrical businesses.
- Cut through bureaucracy – We can back evidence-based decision-making and focus on practical solutions that actually benefit businesses.
- Deliver the training the industry has been asking for –
- Accelerated apprenticeships for capable learners.
- Advanced trade certification to recognise and reward excellence.
- Faster qualification updates to keep pace with emerging technologies.
- Better integration with related trades like HVAC, security, and data.
This is about making a real difference to the day-to-day reality of electrical firms.
Master Electricians’ role
Based on our history and track record in supporting the sector, we believe Master Electricians is uniquely positioned to lead this work:
We have the proven capability to provide thought leadership and influence direction.
We are the largest and best-resourced association in the sector.
We’ve earned the trust of industry, government, and providers – and we want to use that to ensure the ISB is run by industry, for industry.
What should the ISB look like?
Lean and efficient, built to support the private sector.
The old Workforce Development Councils did not ultimately meet the industry’s needs. The new ISB must stay close to industry, have the right people in place, and keep structure flat and cost-effective.
Independent focus.
The Electrotechnology ISB will have its own dedicated resources – not shared with construction or infrastructure – to ensure our priorities are fulfilled.
Auckland-based and industry-connected.
This keeps the ISB in the hub of the economy and plugged into the reality of electrical businesses.
What does this mean for training?
Master Electricians is committed to:
- Keeping choice and competition alive.
Competition between providers has driven innovation and better service for over 20 years. We want to keep it that way, with strong regional polytechnics AND private providers working alongside each other. - Empowering contractors to train their way.
EarnLearn, the work-based learning arm we support, already has flexible delivery models ready to go – from fully on-the-job training to blended approaches. - Building towards an electrical-only training provider.
The electrical part of EarnLearn is large enough to stand alone, with 50 staff and full national coverage. That means better service, better outcomes, and a training system that answers to the electrical industry.
The future we can build
With the ISB under strong, industry-led direction, we can:
- Build faster, smarter training systems.
- Empower businesses and apprentices.
- Keep the electrical industry at the cutting edge of technology.
The future of our trade depends on the steps we take now. Let’s take them together.