Around 19% of Australian workers report they are not using all their skills at work, according to a new report released by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER).
Analysis of data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey also revealed that about 35% of workers are over-qualified for their job, potentially contributing to a level of skill underutilisation.
The report Skills utilisation in the workplace: the other side of the coin focuses on two industry sectors - manufacturing and early childhood education and care.
The research highlighted that the likelihood and perceived importance of skills utilisation depends on the type of job. High-skilled, complex jobs provide more opportunity for workers to draw on a broader range of their skills than low-skilled jobs.
Interviews with employers at high-performing organisations in the early childhood education and care sector revealed that they believed that all employees were either using, or had the opportunity to use, all their skills. Analysis of HILDA data, however, showed that around 16% of workers in selected occupations within this sector reported they were not using all their skills, with child carers were more likely to report this (18.9%) than early childhood teachers (4.2%).
Employers interviewed in high-performing manufacturing organisations were less confident that workers were using all their skills. HILDA data showed that around 14% of workers in selected manufacturing jobs are not using all their skills, with metal engineering process workers reporting the highest level of overskilling (31.3%).
While employers believe skills utilisation is important for staff satisfaction and retention, there were very few mechanisms in place within the organisations interviewed to understand workers’ skills and ensure their optimal usage. Where mechanisms were used, they tended to be aimed at understanding skills needs, rather than ensuring skills utilisation.
Although employers value the concept of skills usage, they consider skills development and financial support for training, shortages, workforce development and finding the right people for the job, particularly in small organisations, as a higher priority.
Background
Through analysis of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey, this research examined patterns of skill underutilisation across all Australian workers and with a focus on two industry sectors: manufacturing and early childhood education and care. Interviews with employers from these two sectors examined what high-performing organisations are doing to understand the skills of their workers and what, if any, mechanisms are in place to maximise skills utilisation.
Quotes attributable to Simon Walker, Managing Director, NCVER
While skills development has long been a focus of policy-makers, making the best use of those skills has received much less attention. Skills utilisation, however, is a key component of workforce development that leads to increased productivity, higher levels of staff satisfaction and retention, and maximising the return on investment in skills development.
The research shows that even among high performing organisations there are few formal mechanisms in place for understanding workers’ skills and making the best use of them in the workplace. Where formal mechanisms were found, these were geared towards understanding skills needs, rather than ensuring skills utilisation.
Download: Skills utilisation in the workplace: the other side of the coin
Enquiries: Deanne Loan M: 0413 523 691 E: deanneloan@ncver.edu.au
About NCVER: we are the main provider of research, statistics and data on Australia’s VET sector. Our services help promote better understanding of VET and assist policy-makers, practitioners, industry, training providers, and students to make informed decisions.
This work has been produced by NCVER on behalf of the Australian Government and state and territory governments, with funding provided through the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment.