Every skilled plasterer started somewhere, and Shore Decorating in South Canterbury is offering the right person a genuine and fully supported starting point right now. Shore Decorating, a trusted family-owned painting and plastering company serving South Canterbury and its surrounding regions, is currently seeking an enthusiastic and motivated Interior Plastering Apprentice to join their experienced team of painters and stoppers. This is a hands-on, learn-on-the-job apprenticeship role where you will work alongside some of the best tradespeople in the business, developing your plastering and stopping skills daily while completing the learning standard units required to achieve your BCITO qualification within three years. Apprenticeship fees are fully covered by Shore Decorating, meaning there is no personal financial cost to gaining a nationally recognized trade qualification through this role. No prior experience is required and applicants who are already partway through a plastering apprenticeship will be seriously considered. With an estimated competitive starting hourly rate of $16.00 to $20.00 based on current New Zealand BCITO apprenticeship benchmarks for the plastering and decorating trade, a positive family business culture, close integration with the Shore Construction team, and the backing of a company whose motto is Quality is Everything, this interior plastering apprentice job in South Canterbury NZ is a genuinely excellent career-launching opportunity for a can-do, detail-focused, and self-motivated individual with a current driver’s licence who is ready to learn a trade from people who truly love it.
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Company Overview
Shore Decorating is a family-owned and operated painting and plastering business with deep roots in the South Canterbury trades community and a hard-earned reputation as a trusted trade partner for builders, homeowners, and commercial clients throughout the region and its surrounding areas. The team of painters and stoppers at Shore Decorating takes genuine personal pride in their craft, specialising in the interior plastering and decorating work that adds the final, finishing quality to homes and buildings that people will live and work in for decades. The company operates by the philosophy that Quality is Everything, and that belief informs every decision they make about how they work, who they work with, and how they develop and support the people on their team. Shore Decorating is the sister company of Shore Construction, and the two businesses enjoy a close working relationship and an integrated team culture that creates a connected, collaborative, and professionally stimulating environment for everyone involved. As a family business, Shore Decorating is deeply committed to creating a workplace culture that is positive, friendly, and genuinely team-oriented from day one.
Key Responsibilities
Apprenticeship and On-the-Job Learning:
- Learn to carry out and progressively complete interior plastering and stopping tasks under the direct guidance and mentorship of Shore Decorating’s experienced team of plasterers, developing your practical trade skills across real residential and commercial project environments throughout South Canterbury and the surrounding region
- Complete all required BCITO learning standard units within the three-year apprenticeship timeframe, engaging actively and consistently with both the on-the-job training components and the formal learning requirements of the qualification program to ensure timely and successful progression toward full trade certification
- Apply the techniques, methods, and quality standards demonstrated by your supervising plasterers to every task you are assigned, developing the attention to detail, surface preparation precision, and finishing quality that Shore Decorating’s professional reputation and client expectations demand on every project
Site Support and General Duties:
- Carry out basic but essential site support tasks throughout the working day including removing debris from work areas, sweeping and maintaining clean and organized job sites, and retrieving tools and materials for the experienced plastering team to keep the workflow moving efficiently on every project
- Assist experienced plasterers with the preparation, mixing, and application stages of interior plastering and stopping work as your skills and confidence develop throughout the apprenticeship, taking on progressively more complex and independent tasks as your competence and your mentor’s confidence in your ability grows over time
- Maintain a safe, clean, and professionally organized work environment on every project site in full accordance with Shore Decorating’s health and safety policies and all applicable New Zealand workplace health and safety legislation and site-specific requirements
Health, Safety, and Professional Conduct:
- Understand, uphold, and actively contribute to the health and safety culture of every project site you work on, following all relevant safety guidelines, using personal protective equipment correctly, and reporting any hazards, unsafe conditions, or incidents to the supervising tradesperson or site manager promptly and without hesitation
- Conduct yourself professionally and courteously in every client, contractor, and team interaction on site, representing Shore Decorating with the positive, reliable, and quality-focused personal approach that the company’s long-standing trade reputation is built on
- Manage your personal time, tools, and task responsibilities with the organizational discipline and self-motivation that a productive apprenticeship and a busy professional trades environment genuinely require from every team member regardless of experience level
Qualifications
What Shore Decorating is Looking For:
- No prior plastering experience or formal trade qualification is required for this apprenticeship position as Shore Decorating will provide comprehensive on-the-job training and mentorship from their experienced team throughout the full three-year BCITO qualification program
- Applicants who are already enrolled in and partially completing a plastering apprenticeship elsewhere will be seriously considered and are strongly encouraged to apply, as their existing progress and familiarity with the trade will be recognized and supported by the Shore Decorating team
- A current New Zealand driver’s licence of any class is an essential requirement for this role as team members need to travel between project sites across South Canterbury and the surrounding regions throughout the working week
- Excellent personal attention to detail with the genuine care for precision and quality that interior plastering and stopping work demands at every stage from surface preparation through to final finish
- Good listening and communication skills with the ability to receive, understand, and apply trade instruction from experienced plasterers clearly and consistently, asking questions when needed and demonstrating the kind of active learning engagement that accelerates apprenticeship skill development
- A genuine and demonstrated willingness to learn the trade from the ground up, including starting with basic site support tasks and building toward more complex and independent plastering work as your skills develop throughout the apprenticeship
- Strong personal self-motivation and a can-do attitude that drives you to show up ready to work, contribute, and improve every single day without needing to be pushed or reminded of your responsibilities on site
- A professional personal approach to the working day including punctuality, reliable attendance, neat personal presentation, and the consistent effort and respectful conduct that a family-run business with a quality-first culture genuinely expects from every member of their team
- Ability to work calmly and effectively under pressure on busy project sites with competing deadlines, multiple tasks, and the physical and mental demands of an active outdoor and indoor trades environment
- Organizational and time management skills sufficient to balance the practical on-the-job learning demands of the apprenticeship with the formal BCITO unit study requirements throughout the three-year qualification program
Benefits and Perks
Shore Decorating has built an apprenticeship opportunity that removes the most common barriers to entering the plastering trade and replaces them with genuine support, mentorship, and a career foundation that sets the successful candidate up for long-term success in South Canterbury’s active construction and decorating industry. Here is everything that comes with this Interior Plastering Apprentice position:
- An estimated competitive hourly rate of $16.00 to $20.00 based on current New Zealand BCITO apprenticeship pay benchmarks for the plastering and decorating trade in South Canterbury, with actual remuneration reflecting the candidate’s starting point in the apprenticeship, any prior relevant experience, and progression through the qualification milestones over the three-year program
- Full coverage of all BCITO apprenticeship fees by Shore Decorating, meaning the successful candidate gains a nationally recognized New Zealand trade qualification in interior plastering at absolutely no personal financial cost throughout the three-year apprenticeship period
- Direct daily mentorship and on-the-job training from some of the most experienced and quality-focused plasterers and decorators in the South Canterbury trades community, giving the apprentice access to the kind of practical, real-world trade knowledge that only comes from working alongside genuinely skilled and passionate tradspeople on live residential and commercial projects
- A structured three-year pathway to full BCITO trade certification in interior plastering, providing a clear and supported career development timeline that ends with a recognized qualification and the professional credibility to build a long-term and well-paid career in the New Zealand construction and decorating industry
- Work within a positive, friendly, and team-oriented family business culture where every team member is valued, supported, and given the space to grow their skills and confidence throughout their time with Shore Decorating
- Access to the integrated team environment created by the close working relationship between Shore Decorating and sister company Shore Construction, broadening the apprentice’s exposure to the wider construction industry and the professional network that comes with being part of two well-regarded South Canterbury trade businesses
- Work on a diverse range of residential and commercial interior plastering and stopping projects throughout South Canterbury and surrounding regions, building a well-rounded and practically rich trade skill set across different project types, surface conditions, and finishing requirements throughout the apprenticeship
How to Apply
Shore Decorating is actively recruiting for their Interior Plastering Apprentice position and is ready to welcome the right candidate onto their team in South Canterbury with an immediate start available for the right person.
To apply, send your current resume along with a brief cover letter or personal statement telling the Shore Decorating team why you want to learn the plastering trade, what it is about their company and their Quality is Everything philosophy that appeals to you, and any relevant personal qualities, work experience, or partial apprenticeship progress you bring to the application. Please confirm that you hold a current New Zealand driver’s licence of any class as part of your application.
Applicants who are already enrolled in a BCITO plastering apprenticeship and looking for a better team and a stronger mentorship environment are particularly encouraged to apply and will be given serious consideration throughout the selection process. Shore Decorating covers your fees, surrounds you with experienced tradespeople who genuinely love what they do, and gives you the project variety and team culture to build a trade career you can be proud of. If you have the attitude, the attention to detail, and the drive to make the most of a fully supported apprenticeship in one of South Canterbury’s most respected decorating companies, apply today and take the first real step toward a plastering career that is worth showing up for every single morning.
