A second-year apprentice trader has revealed that he earns $150,000 a year, to the shock of many online viewers.
The young electrician revealed his impressive salary when he was stopped on the street for an interview on job app GetAhead in Brisbane.
He has only been in the role for two years and is working on the redevelopment of Queens Wharf, where he was placed by Electrogroup, an organization that trains electrical apprentices.
“It’s lucky I’m there,” he said in a TikTok video..
An apprentice electrician (pictured left) has revealed he is paid $150,000 a year working on the Queens Wharf construction project in Brisbane.
The tradesman, who works full-time, said the job was “pretty fantastic” but was not without its drawbacks.
‘It is dangerous; “Anything can go wrong at any moment and it’s your life that’s at stake,” she said.
Standard shifts at Queens Wharf – the redevelopment of a dockside area into a “lifestyle and entertainment precinct” – are 12 hours, with work starting at 6.30am
There are some night jobs in addition to night shifts on Fridays and Saturdays.
The clip, which has been viewed more than a million times, attracted many comments from shocked social media users.
‘The amount of money businesses in Queens Wharf generate is ridiculous. Almost all of them make 6 figures,” said one person.
“Learning 150,000, I’m in the wrong job,” another person wrote.
“I want to be a sparkler now.”
Young Sparky (pictured) said despite the heavy package, the work is dangerous, but he said he enjoys doing it.
Others pointed out that merchants earned much more than first responders.
‘When professionals are paid more than nurses and paramedics. You just know the system is overwhelmed,’ another person wrote.
Some defended the salary, saying it rewards you for taking on work that others are not interested in doing.
‘For those wondering why he earns so much, it’s because many people don’t want to do manual labor. As simple as that,” one person said.
Second-year apprentices under the age of 21 who have not completed Year 12 earn a minimum wage of $662.39 a week and earn $17.43 an hour, according to the Electrical Trade Union.
Second-year adult trainees over the age of 21 earn $956.61 per week and are paid $25.17 per hour.
Traders’ salaries have soared in recent years due to a shortage of workers and the need for certificates and qualifications that new immigrants do not have.