This article was originally published in Fitpro Business magazine, Jan 2010. To read similar stories or to find out more about subscribing to FitPro titles, visit our members' page.
To some of the major players in the fitness industry, exercise and health are not just about lifestyle, they’re about providing lifechanging opportunities. One of those major players, Fitness Industry Association’s chair Fred Turok, is offering these opportunities to a whole new generation. South African born Turok, whose father was in prison alongside Nelson Mandela, understands what deprivation can do to communities and has always had a keen desire to help.
The result is TAG (Transforming A Generation), which provides professional opportunities in the fitness industry for 18-24 year olds not in training, employment or education, and who would otherwise face limited job prospects. It works by identifying disadvantaged individuals and training them – with the help of training providers Lifetime – in a level 2 fitness instructor qualification. They are also taught skills to prepare them for a work environment, before being put in work placements and given an exit strategy into full-time employment at a health club.
And, from the employer’s point of view, which has so far included the likes of LA Fitness and Fitness First, taking on TAG graduates in work placements can also have its benefits: they get to work closely with graduates, seeing how they “gel” within the organisation and whether there’s potentially a long-term relationship – a bit like a four-month job interview and work placement rolled into one.
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