Description
This study, undertaken for the National Electrical and Communications Association, profiles the electrotechnology workforce and focuses especially on how the industry is adapting to the rapidly changing environment. Through analysis of data and interviews, the study found that the electrotechnology industry has adapted well to its customers' demands to integrate the electrical and communication skills into a narrow range of occupations. Skills shortages remain in the industry but tend to be region or occupation specific.Summary
About the research
This study set out to profile the electrotechnology industry workforce, and to understand how the industry is adapting to the rapidly changing environment, and how well it is positioned for the future. Through an analysis of extant data, combined with 25 in-depth interviews with contractors, training providers and vendors, this study provides the following key messages.
- The electrotechnology industry has adapted well to the growing demands from its customers to integrate the electrical and communications skills sets into a narrow range of occupations, such as electrical and communications tradespersons. The industry response has been to use the traditional electrical tradespersons as the core of its skill base, up-skilling in new technologies and the communications area predominantly by vendor training and short courses.
- Training within the formal Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) structure in emerging technologies within the electrotechnology industry has been reactive rather than future-looking, with vendor training filling the gaps by providing the workforce with the skills required for new products as they are brought to market.
- Since mid-2004 there has been a flattening of the steady increase in skills shortages experienced over the preceding three years. Other evidence indicates that the skills shortages remaining in the industry tend to be region- or occupation-specific. The challenge appears not to lie in attracting people to the industry across the board, but rather, in attracting those with the appropriate skills or the ability to gain the appropriate skills, and to do so in the geographic regions of high need.
- One vulnerable group of employees in the electrotechnology industry may be non-tradespeople who have only specialist skills in the data communications area. This group of employees tends to have lower-level (certificate II) qualifications, and the industry tends not to train them up to the electrical trades certificate III level, but rather the other way aroundótraining electricians in the data communications area. With predictions of a downturn in the information communications and technology (ICT) area in the future, this creates a vulnerable workforce group.