Top Student Thrives After Redundancy Setback

When Lauryn Pinckney lost her first apprenticeship to redundancy, she nearly wrote off her chances of finding another one. Instead, she ended up somewhere better.

Pinckney, who grew up on a farm near Edendale, graduated top of her class from Southern Institute of Technology's heavy automotive engineering programme in 2024 — taking out both the top student award in the automotive heavy stream and top overall automotive student. She'd been fascinated by trucks and heavy machinery since childhood, confirmed a career path during a work experience placement at Fonterra in Year 13, and enrolled at SIT straight after school.

The programme suited her. "It was very involved and there was a lot of hands-on work, which is the way I learn best," she said. She entered with less practical experience than some classmates but leaned into the gap. "It was hard sometimes seeing other people understand things before I did," she admitted. "But I had heaps of support, and I'm quite a competitive learner ... that probably helped me catch up."

She landed an apprenticeship with a heavy equipment company after graduating. Then, in 2025, she was made redundant.

"It was a bit disappointing," she said. "I thought I'd had one apprenticeship and didn't really like my chances of finding another one."

Pinckney contacted her SIT tutor, Neil Allen, to ask if he'd still act as a referee. That conversation reached SIT employment liaison and administrator Cathy Jenner, who made a call.

"Through my industry liaison role I knew SouthRoads was looking for an apprentice; I contacted them and recommended Lauryn," Jenner said.

The result was swift. "Cathy rang me," Pinckney said. "It was incredible really. I hadn't even considered asking for help. I never would have found SouthRoads without Cathy letting me know about it."

After meeting SouthRoads manager Neil Hall, she was offered a position. No gap in her apprenticeship. "There was no gap in between," she said. "That was really good."

The new role has opened up more than she expected. "There's a lot more variety of equipment to work on. Every day is different, and there's always something new to learn. It's more interesting than working on just trucks, as I had been previously."

Hall — who confirmed Pinckney is the first female apprentice on his team — has no reservations. "Lauryn's been more successful than I ever would have thought; she's like a breath of fresh air — a good worker and just a really good new team member." He's already asked her to take on a second qualification alongside her truck apprenticeship. "Lauryn's doing a truck apprenticeship, and I've asked her to do a heavy earth moving apprenticeship as well, just to add another feather in her cap."

On the fit with the workshop team: "They've welcomed her and I just can't believe how well she fits in; she's got a really good attitude and a good rapport with all the guys."

His summary is blunt. "She's a treasure; I would clone her if I could."

Pinckney's own read on where she's landed: "100%, it feels really fulfilling. I've found my niche."