01 JANUARY 2022
Mary Coulter, Electrical Maintenance Technician at GEMCO, who was recently named Austin Asche Apprentice of the Year at the 2022 Northern Territory Government (NTG) Training Awards.
Congratulations to Mary Coulter, Electrical Maintenance Technician at GEMCO, who was recently named Austin Asche Apprentice of the Year at the 2022 Northern Territory Government (NTG) Training Awards.
Mary, who was up against stiff competition, was absolutely thrilled to scoop the award and is now in the line up for the Australian Training Awards in November.
This win isn’t the only feather in Mary’s cap. Mary has also been named 2022 GTNT Apprentice of the Year winner, 2021 GTNT Outstanding Apprentice Commendation Award winner, 2020 GTNT Outstanding Apprentice finalist, 2022 Women in Resources Awards finalist and most recently, James Bell Overall Apprentice of the Year at the EBC Master Builders Awards NT.
So how did Mary progress through her career to become a shining star?
For all the accolades, she hasn’t always been an electrician - Mary was working as a counterhand at a butcher shop when she decided she needed a career change.
“I began looking for jobs that would challenge me,” Mary said.
“I wanted to get a qualification and decided that electro-technology would be a great trade to have as there are so many different pathways in the industry once you are qualified,” she said.
Mary completed initial training at the GTNT trade school, before joining GEMCO in 2018 and taking on a dual apprenticeship (Cert III in Electrotechnology and Cert III in Instrumentation and Control) as part of the Power Career Program – a GTNT and Charles Darwin University (CDU) initiative providing pathways for women in trades.
Since then, Mary has thrived, completing her apprenticeship and gaining a full-time role with GEMCO, along with an in-depth knowledge of and true passion for her work.
“As a maintenance electrician with GEMCO, I’m being challenged every day and learning so much,” Mary said.
“I love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I’ve completed a job and it’s great being able to get experience across different electrical specialties,” she said.
Mary is so passionate about her field of work she’s volunteered her time in Timor-Leste with her father – who is also an electrician - to assist with a solar installation at a school to generate power.
“The school had constant power outages they couldn’t teach the students properly with the interruptions,” she said.
“We were able to configure the set up for them so the solar would power the school during interruptions and the students and teachers were so grateful to us for this,” she said.
And Mary’s thoughts when it comes to being female in a male-dominated trade?
“It can be challenging, but I have supportive and friendly work colleagues who have helped me become my best and succeed in my career with GEMCO,” she said.
Congratulations Mary!
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