Representatives from Transurban, John Holland and the project gathered to celebrate the graduation of 11 program participants who have secured permanent, ongoing employment with John Holland.
The graduation – held on International Women’s Day – celebrated participants’ completion of a four-week paid training program that prepares them for an apprenticeship in civil construction and ongoing full-time employment.
The women were selected from 400 applicants, all located in Western Sydney.
The first of its kind, the program provides participants with the same benefits that any other direct John Holland employee receives through the Flex from the Start program, supported by the NSW Government’s Women in Construction Industry Innovation Program.
Through this initiative, an additional pre-start time at 8:45am has been introduced to improve work-life balance on the project and make a career in construction attractive to a more diverse range of candidates.
The program directly supports the NSW Government’s goal to increase the number of women in trade and non-traditional construction roles by 2030. The M7-M12 Integration Project has already exceeded these targets with 27 per cent representation of women in blue collar positions.
The M7-M12 pre-employment program is funded by the NSW Department of Education.
During the life of construction, the M7-M12 Integration Project will provide more than 7000 employment opportunities.
John Holland was appointed to design and construct the M7-M12 Integration Project on behalf of WSO Co – a joint venture comprising Transurban Group, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and QIC Private Capital on behalf of its managed funds and clients.
Due to open in 2026, the M7-M12 Integration Project will increase road capacity, reducing congestion and improving travel times for motorists and freight around Western Sydney, and reduce traffic in the local road network, transforming local communities. Once complete, the project will provide direct access to commercial and residential hubs, and the new Western Sydney International Airport.
