As part of its long-term strategic plan to address the national shortage of skilled heavy vehicle mechanics, Hino Australia has welcomed 15 experienced technicians from the Philippines, while also commencing a second round of international recruitment.
In late 2019, Hino Australia initiated its first international recruitment drive, which resulted in the employment of 20 skilled technicians, whose arrival was ultimately delayed by COVID-related border closures.
“We currently have 15 of the 20 technicians working in dealerships around the country, with the remainder due to arrive in coming months,” said Gus Belanszky, General Manager – Service and Customer Support for Hino Australia.
“The enthusiasm, knowledge and skills of the technicians has been impressive so far, and they will all undergo extensive training at Hino Australia’s headquarters to provide them with all the expertise necessary to meet our exacting standards,” he continued.
Melbourne’s Prestige Hino is one of a number of Hino dealerships that has been recruiting Filipino technicians for many years – their latest recruits Tito Sagaral Jr. and Roden Ofilan join a strong team of Filipino technicians at the dealership including Patrick Colcol who started over 14 years ago.
Sci-Fleet Hino Brisbane has welcomed four Filipino technicians, Melecio Flojo, Bengie Pasaylo, Angelo Marasigan and Lindyl De Luna, to its Eagle Farm and Coopers Plains dealerships.
“It’s been great to welcome Melecio, Bengie, Angelo and Lindyl to Sci-Fleet – we have been really impressed with their willingness to learn about Hino, our people, customers and products,” said Sam Torpy, Service Manager at Sci-Fleet Hino, Eagle Farm.
“They have excellent experience and knowledge and we look forward to them being a part of our team for a long time to come.
CMI Hino Adelaide and Melbourne, WA Hino and Wagga Trucks currently have Filipino technicians at their dealerships with Adtrans Hino (Sydney) technicians arriving soon.
Hino Australia’s second round of international recruitment is underway with more dealerships expected to participate.
“The drought of heavy vehicle mechanics is an industry-wide problem, which is why it is listed as a skills shortage on the Australian Government’s Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List – we are determined to continue to work closely with our Hino dealers to address this,” continued Mr Belanszky.
“At Hino Australia, we believe continual learning and development is vitally important for all of our technicians, which is why we go through a comprehensive induction program and provide ongoing technical training that is both face-to-face and online.
“In addition to learning and development, we also reward performance with the implementation of the Hino Master Technician program, which provides pathways to progress through different levels of accreditation.
“The Guild Program is another initiative that allows technicians to earn rewards per quarter based on performance and provide regular prize giveaways.
“The Skills Contest runs nationally, showcasing the best in service and allows all technicians to participate and test their diagnostic, analytical and technical skills with a significant prize at the end.
“The importance of our technicians to Hino Australia cannot be underestimated, which is why we continue to invest in them and their development,” he concluded.
Australian-based heavy vehicle mechanics who are interested in becoming a Hino technician can contact their local Hino dealer or call 1300 01 HINO.