Canadian Bridgit Burns is learning shearing from the best

Canadian Bridgit Burns found herself working in a shearing shed while on her work visa, and the experience was a win on a number of levels.

No rundown of Australia’s history would be complete without the inclusion of the role of shearers.

The iconic Tom Roberts painting Shearing the Rams is one of the nation’s best known art works, and the shearers’ strike in 1891 was a catalyst in the creation of the Australian Labour Party.

It’s an industry that has ridden the fortunes of wool, and enthusiasm for those working in the industry have had an equally bumpy ride.

But those who love it are passionate, and people like Marion Kelly wouldn’t want to be involved in any other industry.

Marion is a trainer with Shearer Wool Handler Training, and is contracted by the industry’s peak body, Shearing Contractors Association of Australia, to help improve skills for those who work in it.

Her husband, Tom Kelly, has instructed shearers for more than two decades, while Marion has worked with classers and wool handlers to teach them the finer points of preparation.

People such as Canadian Bridgit Burns from Vancouver, who recently had a first-time experience working in a shearing shed.

Bridgit Burns from Vancouver, Canada, learning the finer details of skirting from wool handling from teacher Marion Kelly. Picture: Zoe Phillips

Bridgit came to work on a sheep property to fulfil her 88-day working holiday visa extension requirements, and it coincided with shearing on the farm.

She’d never even seen sheep shorn, and walking into the shed on the first day was a totally foreign experience.

“You have to be able to learn a lot, and there is a lot to learn,” Bridgit said.

“It’s everything from throwing a fleece to learning how to sweep the board properly to staying out of the shearers’ way.

“There’s so many things you need to be aware off.”

It’s here where Marion steps in, guiding new workers to becoming a valuable asset in the shed.

“We like teaching everyone and for people like Bridgit, who have the smarts and the work ethic and the willingness to learn - people like this are very teachable,” Marion said.

“A lot of it is about respect - we need to respect the sheep, we need to respect the producer because it’s their income we are influencing and we need to respect everyone’s role in the process.”

This week, Marion was out visiting a shed near Nagambie, where there was a learner shed hand on the job.

Marion Kelly and her husband Tom Kelly travel around Victoria and Southern NSW training skills for the wool industry. Marion teaches wool related skills, Tom teaches shearing related skills. Picture: Zoe Phillips

Marion gives advice and tips, and she said the wool grower was overwhelmed with the support.

“We’ve got some growers who are doing a fair bit themselves - they might be bringing the sheep in, they might be classing the clip, and then taking the sheep away,” she said.

“It’s a really important time of the year as it’s their harvest and income, and we need to make sure that those who are working to help that harvest, like shearers and shed hands, are doing the job as well as they can for the grower.”

That’s something that wasn’t lost on Bridgit, who said she felt a keen sense of responsibility when working in the shed.

“Everything moves quite quickly - you’ve got three shearers who are each turning out a sheep every two or two and a half minutes and there’s a lot of wool coming at you,” she said.

“There’s a lot of steps in the preparation of wool that I just wasn’t aware of until I worked in the shed.”

Bridgit Burns from Vancouver, Canada, working in the shearing shed. Picture: Zoe Phillips

The high energy and fast paced work of shearing has its benefits though, and Bridgit loved it so much that she said she was not adverse to doing more wool handling work in her future.

“When the music is on and the vibes are high, it was a lot of fun,” she said.

It may well have tempted her to pursue a career in agriculture in the future too.

“I grew up in the city and I have a lot more respect for agriculture now and my plan is to stay in Australia for another year, and it may well mean I spend some of that time on farms now too,” she said.