Australia's skills future: New major study

24 November 2006

Skill shortages are a headline issue. A major body of research to be presented at a forum in Melbourne today outlines what needs to be done to anticipate and plan for the skills of the future.

Managed by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), the research investigates how to get a better match between the skill needs of employers and the offerings of the national training system.

'A clear message from the research is that addressing skill shortages into the future requires a sophisticated understanding of their causes and possible remedies. There are lessons for both employers and training providers,' says Dr Tom Karmel, Managing Director, NCVER.

A major challenge for employers will be adjusting to an older workforce. Employers will need to encourage older workers to undertake training by demonstrating a return on investment to the employee.

While employers have been containing costs by downsizing their workforces, hiring large numbers of casual workers and reducing their training investment, they are also demanding higher performing employees with cognitive and interactive skills, not just staff who are technically proficient.

For training policy-makers and providers, the research identifies a number of ways forward. These include:

• concentrating training effort on the skills that are difficult to learn and are likely to grow in demand or where replacement vacancies are large
• learning from successful regions, which combine local networks and positive community attitudes, and seeking creative ways to work with employers
•  investing more resources in teaching higher-level qualifications-Associate professionals and professionals occupations have shown the fastest rates of growth in recent years.

Dr Karmel, however, offers a warning to those who wish to know exactly what jobs of the future will look like.

'The research is very clear about this. It is difficult to forecast with accuracy what jobs of the future will look like. It will, therefore, be challenging to coordinate and organise the VET system to respond to these needs,' says Dr Tom Karmel, Managing Director, NCVER.

A well-skilled future: Tailoring vocational education and training to the emerging labour market , was undertaken by a consortium of researchers from the National Institute of Labour Studies (NILS) and the Centre for Post-compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning (CPELL).

It undertook the comprehensive body of work to specifically investigate the nature of the future labour demand and supply, the changing nature of work organisation, the participation of existing and new workers in VET, and the VET sector's current and adaptive capacity-its future and value and effectiveness.

The forum will be held at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre today, from 9.30am to 4pm.

 This research was produced on behalf of the Australian, state and territory governments with funding through the Australian Department of Education, Science and Training.

Copies of the A well-skilled future: Tailoring VET to the emerging labour market - Research overviews can be accessed from 9.30am AEST, Friday 24 November 2006, from http://www.ncver.edu.au/publications/1721.html

For further information about the forum, please visit http://www.ncver.edu.au/newsevents/events/wellskilled/forum.html

Available for interview are:

• Dr Tom Karmel, Managing Director, NCVER 
• Professor Sue Richardson, Director, National Institute of Labour Studies (NILS) 
• Professor Richard Teese, Director, Centre for Post-Compulsory Education & Lifelong Learning (CPELL)