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Recommendations
Chapter 2 Skill
Shortfalls and Future Skill Needs
Recommendation 1 page: 38
The committee recommends that the Commonwealth, in conjunction with state and
territory governments,
develops a new, integrated,
nationally consistent approach to the collection and reporting of the complete
range of statistical information on the labour market and current and future
skill needs. This would entail:
- agreement
between all stakeholders on the relevant indicators of skill supply and demand,
including underlying drivers, and consistent collection approaches;
- inclusion of information on skill shortages and regional labour markets; and
- inclusion of information
on the skill needs of major resource and construction projects, from the
earliest possible stage.
The National Centre for Vocational Education Research
(NCVER) should be tasked with:
-
facilitating this
process in consultation with relevant Commonwealth agencies, state and
territory governments, the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) and
industry, through industry skill councils; and
- developing a
national database for recording the information and for permitting analysis of
key trends, to be accessible to stakeholders and to the general public.
Updated
information should also be continuously available through a website and
disseminated in an annual report on the status of skill formation in Australia.
Recommendation 2 page: 39
The committee recommends that the Commonwealth, in
conjunction with states and territories:
- examines the feasibility
of a nationally integrated approach to collecting and reporting information on
skill gaps, and for inclusion of such information in the national skills
database; and
- considers the most appropriate means of incorporating
qualitative information on current and future skill needs, including the
training needs of emerging industries, and the changing nature of skill needs,
in the national database and reports on skill formation.
Recommendation 3 page:
39
The
committee, recommends that DEWR and the ABS, in developing the Australian and New Zealand Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO)
in conjunction with Statistics New
Zealand, commit to
the implementation of strategies that they are considering to:
- improve ANZSCO’s
value as a tool for monitoring occupational change and changing skill needs;
- update the
classifications regularly as occupations change, to capture labour force data
at the occupation level;
- report on
specialisations and higher skill levels within occupations; and
- make provision for information on skills to be linked to
occupational structure.
Recommendation 4 page: 39
In
conjunction with the work to be undertaken in recommendation 1, the
committee recommends that DEWR, in consultation with industry representatives, including skill councils, reviews
its current approach to assessing skill shortages with the aim of capturing
information: on a broader range of vacancies, including vacancies that are not
advertised in the print media; on regional skill needs; details of
specialisations and the extent or severity of the skill shortages. This skill
shortage information should be included in the national database developed by NCVER,
and distributed by DEWR.
Chapter 3 Skills
Formation and the Labour Market
Recommendation 5 page: 68
The committee recommends that ANTA, in consultation with
stakeholders, should consider developing a set of skill performance indicators
in addition to the relevant AQF level to better distinguish between basic,
intermediate and higher vocational training outcomes. These could be modelled
on the OECD benchmarks and would provide an improved basis for targeting
incentives under the New Apprenticeship scheme.
Recommendation 6 page: 69
The committee recognises
that lack of national consistency in training standards and incentives makes
the ideal of nationally portable qualifications difficult to achieve. The
committee therefore recommends that the Commonwealth should work towards
achieving nationally consistent standards and New Apprenticeship incentives
through ANTA MINCO for the benefit of providers and their clients: employers
and trainees.
Recommendation 7 page:
71
The committee recommends
that the Workplace Relations Act should be amended, or a regulation made, to
ensure that Subsection 170VR (2) applies equally to all New Apprenticeships;
that is both apprentices and trainees.
Recommendation 8 page: 71
To prevent abuse of New
Apprenticeships, the committee considers that provisions for a training wage
should not apply to existing workers.
Recommendation 9 page: 73
The committee recommends that states and territories should
review time-based requirements governing apprenticeships and provision be made
for true competency based training to be achieved by completion of the full
apprenticeship in an unspecified timeframe.
Recommendation 10 page:
74
The committee recommends that, where core competencies have
been achieved, these should be accredited through a process of Recognition of
Prior Learning to allow additional or supplementary units to be taken to achieve
the apprenticeship in a shorter time frame.
Recommendation 11 page: 75
The Committee reiterates
its view, expressed in its report on quality in vocational education and
training, Aspiring to Excellence (2000) that individual training plans
require a higher level of commitment on the part of all stakeholders, and
recommends that ANTA MINCO should review its position on the usefulness of
these training plans for monitoring, auditing and evaluating outcomes.
Recommendation 12 page: 75
The committee further recommends that at the
next meeting with MINCO, ANTA should give consideration to requiring nationally
consistent implementation of individual training plans, and support provision
of additional Commonwealth funding for targeted incentives directed to TAFE to:
- develop individual training plans with the input of both the
employer and apprentice;
- develop and maintain student profiles linked to individual
training plans, and
- implement quality assessment and mentoring procedures for
employers.
The committee considers that if TAFE is not
involved, any additional incentive could be allocated to another negotiator
such as a Registered Training Organisation (where it is not also the employer), a union or industry body to
help employers negotiate individual training plans with the New Apprentice and
carry out the necessary support and auditing roles.
Recommendation 13 page: 78
The committee recommends that incentives for
trade level qualifications and higher level traineeships, should provide for
the bulk of the New Apprenticeship incentive payment to be awarded to the
employer at commencement. The payment should be contingent on compliance with a
negotiated individual training plan, attached to the New Apprenticeship
Training Agreement.
Recommendation 14 page: 79
The
committee further recommends that for training qualifications below AQF
Certificate 3, the full New Apprenticeship incentive payment should be awarded
on completion on demonstration of skill outcomes, as negotiated under the individual
training plan.
Recommendation 15 page: 79
The committee recommends that New
Apprenticeships incentives should be available for qualifications at AQF
Certificate 5 and above, to foster higher skill development under traditional
and non-traditional New Apprenticeships.
Recommendation 16 page:
80
The
committee recommends that ANTA should be funded to provide targeted innovation
incentives to TAFE and universities to develop of partnerships with industry,
and to support efforts to build multiple training pathways between
institutions.
Recommendation 17 page: 82
The committee considers that Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL),
encompassing recognition of current competencies, should be conducted for all
jobseekers to ensure that those with relevant skills or capacities have the
opportunity to acquire the necessary skills to meet their own and industry’s
training needs. To achieve this, the committee recommends:
- ANTA should endorse the adoption of national common principles
and operational guidelines for RPL, and address identified barriers to RTOs and
TAFE undertaking RPL;
- an incentive for RPL should be provided under New Apprenticeship
contract arrangements, either as a supplement or as a complement to incentives
provided for training ; and
- training should be provided for Job Network staff with relevant
industry experience under the proposed Training and Assessment (TAA)
Training Package. All job seekers registered with Job Network should be RPL
assessed and have access to appropriate training and available jobs. For higher level or specialised
skills this may require TAFE or other RTOs to undertake the RPL.
Recommendation 18 page:
85
The committee recommends
that additional provision should be made through the Job Network Job Seeker
account to support 15 to 24 year olds to obtain employment-related training
that leads to national qualifications, particularly in the traditional
trades and areas of skill shortage.
Recommendation 19 page:
85
The committee recommends that the Commonwealth should
identify and develop strategies to address impediments to genuine work
placements, including the availability of public liability insurance and
workers compensation, so that young people have increased opportunity to gain
work experience and build their skills.
Recommendation 20 page:
86
The committee recommends
that Job Network providers should enter into arrangements with
employers, with the agreement of all industry players, to access New
Apprenticeships for unemployed people who have relevant skills to achieve fast‑tracked
apprenticeship qualifications in skill shortage areas.
Recommendation 21 page:
87
The committee recommends that
the Industries Strategies Task Force should monitor the present capacity of Job
Network to meet skill shortage needs. It should establish benchmarks to assess
employment outcomes and evaluate whether any mechanisms are needed to improve
Job Network’s capacity to arrange additional training for jobseekers with
competencies in skill shortage areas.
Chapter 4 Vocational
Education and Training Framework
Recommendation 22 page: 107
The committee recommends that, in the context of the
next ANTA agreement:
- the Commonwealth
recognises its responsibilities for providing funding for growth and unmet
demand for VET and agrees to increase funding accordingly; and
- the Commonwealth and states recognise their respective
responsibilities for meeting the diverse skill formation needs recognised in
the new national strategy and in this report and supporting improvements in the
quality of VET facilities and teaching, and agree to increase funding
accordingly.
Recommendation 23 page: 107
The committee also
recommends that ANTA MINCO develops a broader range of accountability and
reporting measures for VET, to apply during the life of the next ANTA
Agreement. A focus on student contact hours and enrolments must be balanced
against accountability measures that value and support key outcomes, such
addressing current skill shortages, increasing the skills of the workforce
against clearly defined targets and meeting the skill needs of individuals and
communities.
Recommendation 24 page: 107
The committee recommends that ANTA MINCO
develops a long-term vision to guide and direct future investment in public
infrastructure so as to ensure the sustainability of the TAFE system. This should include a professional
development strategy for TAFE teachers to ensure that they have both up-to-date
industry experience, appropriate teaching competencies and qualifications, and
the skills necessary to develop generic skills, including critical thinking, as
well as technical skills.
Recommendation 25 page: 107
The committee recommends that the evaluation of ‘user
choice’ policy currently underway should include a consideration of the
policy’s role within the broader objectives of the new national strategy, and
jurisdictions’ own strategies for skill formation.
The committee also
recommends that ANTA MINCO defers further consideration of user choice policies
and principles until after
the report of the evaluation has been provided to it and there has been
an open and public debate on the policy, including with the full range of VET
stakeholders.
Recommendation 26 page:
109
The
committee recommends that MINCO directs ANTA to review all training packages to
ensure that the requirements for grant of the AQF qualification take account of
any licencing requirements for the occupation, including international
licencing requirements, where appropriate (for example in some aviation and
marine occupations).
The committee also recommends that
relevant Commonwealth and state authorities work towards the goal of national
consistency of licencing requirements for the traditional trades.
Recommendation 27 page: 118
The committee recommends that ANTA’s review of training
packages address the full range of concerns about their design and
implementation, including:
- the need for greater focus on the development of underpinning
knowledge, critical thinking and generic skills;
- more consideration of the requirements of Small and Medium
Enterprises (SMEs) and the differing industry structures in the smaller states;
- provision for all qualifications within a package to
articulate to higher level qualifications within the package;
- greater scope for combining competencies from a range of
packages into national qualifications;
- the need for quality learning and assessment support materials
to be included with the release of every package; and
- measures to strengthen the integrity, consistency and
informative nature of assessments, which might include one or more of: greater
use of graded assessments, moderation of assessments, involvement of state industry advisory bodies
and better integration with workplace and institutional learning.
Recommendation 28 page:
118
The committee also
recommends that, in order to improve the quality and consistency of the assessment process, ANTA:
- reviews the current competency
standards for
assessors to address criticisms about the adequacy of the current requirements
for pedagogical skills and industry knowledge; and
- examines the scope for approaches such as moderation or
involvement of industry advisory bodies in assessment.
Recommendation 29 page:
125
The committee recommends that MCEETYA agrees
that the further development and implementation of the employability skills
framework should involve employee as well as employer interests and include a
focus on:
- the need for unemployed people to have recognition of their
current level of employability skills, and for assistance with upgrading these
where necessary;
- the role of workplaces and employers in developing, fostering
and utilizing employability skills;
- any necessary adjustment to the suite of employability skills
to include or highlight, skills that are important for individuals, such as
career management skills;
- appropriate support for the development of basic numeracy and
literacy skills, particularly among older workers with limited formal education and the long-term unemployed;
- the implications for professional development and professional
standards for teachers and trainers; and
- an agreed convention to clarify when a reference employability
skills includes reference to the set of preferred personal attributes.
Recommendation 30 page: 127
The committee recommends that the
Commonwealth government agrees to fund the proposed pilot scheme for increasing
apprenticeship training in the Illawara, to meet some pressing social and
economic problems in the region, and as a possible model for other regions
experiencing high youth unemployment and chronic skill shortages
in trades areas such as manufacturing.
Recommendation 31 page: 128
The committee recommends that there
should be consistent standards for the maintenance of training records,
including the keeping of log books by apprentices, in all industry sectors.
Where Group Training Organisations are the hiring agency, they should be
responsible for ensuring these standards are met, and that the required
competencies are achieved within the period allotted for the apprenticeship.
The whole process should be subject to external monitoring against an agreed
training plan and monitored by an appropriate body.
Recommendation 32 page:
129
The committee recommends
that the MINCO should review and assess the most appropriate Commonwealth and
state and territory requirements for companies tendering on government jobs
with a view to establishing a national benchmark to sustain the skills base in
skill shortage areas. These could include a commitment to percentage of the
tender value for training, or direct hire of apprentices, where appropriate.
Recommendation 33 page:
131
The committee
recommends that the Steering Committee which undertook the 2002 review of group
training for ANTA should resume to oversight implementation of the new funding
arrangements to:
- closely monitor
the effect on rates of trade training, and other areas of skill shortage, and
the hire of New Apprentices by small and medium enterprises; and
- advise ANTA of
any further changes needed to address any problems that may arise during the
implementation.
Recommendation
34 page: 135
The committee recommends that the review of
skill centres currently being undertaken by ANTA consider the broader role that
they can play in meeting the training needs of industry, including:
- providing intensive upfront training, whether through pre-apprenticeship
training or providing all the theoretical and practical work required for the
first year of an apprenticeship;
- providing access to the latest technology for training; and
-
promoting collaboration between enterprises within an industry
and partnerships between industry and the education sector.
The review should
also consider any revision to funding arrangements and guidelines which may be
needed to support these broader objectives, including support for
intensive upfront apprenticeship training as a variation on current incentive
arrangements for New Apprenticeships. Any such funding could and should be tied
to an equal commitment of funds from the relevant local industry.
Recommendation 35 page:
135
The committee also
recommends that state and
territory governments investigate innovative and effective models
for the local delivery of vocational education by both public and private
providers. Models to be investigated should include access to industry’s
state-of-the-art facilities for the practical component of training.
Recommendation 36 page: 139
The committee recommends that the MCEETYA Taskforce on Transition from
School and ANTA, which are considering new funding models for VET in schools,
specifically consider:
- removing any
disincentives to collaborative arrangements with TAFE;
- facilitating the
introduction of programs in a broader range of industry and occupational areas;
and
-
ensuring that fees
and charges are not a barrier to student participation in any chosen VET in
schools program.
Chapter 5 Education and
Training Pathways
Recommendation
37 page 144
The
committee recommends that the MCEETYA Task Force on Transition should consult
with TAFE about the particular literacy and numeracy requirements of current
vocational training, including for emerging industries and traditional trades,
and how schools could best provide these to students planning to follow VET
pathways on completion of school.
Recommendation 38 page:
148
The committee recommends that the
MCEETYA Task Force on Transition should support the funding and development of
mechanisms to help schools provide opportunities for all students, from years 8
and 9 onwards, to learn about the nature of industry and the world of work
through workplaces visits so that they can make informed choices about future
education and careers.
Recommendation 39 page:
148
The committee also recommends that the
Commonwealth and states and territories support the establishment of local
networks of schools, industry associations and representatives, the VET sector
and higher education sector and the community, to help link vocational
education and training, both in schools and in the VET sector, with industry
needs and to assist transition between school and employment or further
education.
Recommendation 40 page:
148
The committee recommends that the
MCEETYA should examine VET in schools models, such as the T3 model in New
South Wales and promote their value for traditional apprenticeship and other
vocational training, with state and territory education authorities. Industry
should also take responsibility for promoting the development and
implementation of best practice models.
Recommendation 41 page:
148
The committee also
recommends that ANTA develop, in conjunction with TAFE, industry bodies,
schools and universities, programs based on the RMIT/Bosch model which combine
school and apprenticeship training with an option for simultaneous progression
to diploma, and that ANTA provides financial assistance for the national
implementation of those programs.
Recommendation 42 page: 152
The committee recommends that
all students should have access to professionally trained and well informed
careers advisers, whether these are located in schools or are accessible
through rotation, industry partnerships, or outsourcing arrangements. To
facilitate this, MCEETYA
should direct the task force examining career counselling issues to develop a
set of national set of standards for career development services:
- in consultation
with the Australian Association of Careers Counsellors and universities and
TAFE institutes offering awards in career development;
- to require that
all career counsellors are educated about the technical sophistication,
challenges and career opportunities in industry today, and establish contacts
with relevant local industry associations;
- to recommend that
units in career development should be made available as part of the teacher
training curriculum.
The committee also calls on employer peak bodies and
industry associations to encourage their members to establish closer links with
schools and career counsellors in particular, to ensure that they have access
to accurate and up-to-date advice on the full range of career opportunities.
Recommendation 43 page:
159
The
committee recommends that the Commonwealth and the state and territory
governments make a joint commitment to significantly increase the proportion of
young people completing year 12 or equivalent vocational education and
training, within the next five years. This will require them to adopt formal
agreements to implementing a more systematic, integrated and comprehensive
approach to youth transition, featuring more intensive support and stronger
safety nets and backed up by significantly increased resources.
DEST should report each year on the
proportion of young people achieving these outcomes.
Recommendation 44 page:
159
Consistent with its view
that all young people should have a right to 12 years of school education or equivalent VET or decent full-time
employment, the committee recommends that all young people under 21 who have not achieved
this outcome, should have access to transition arrangements including career
counselling to reconnect them with education or into full-time employment
consistent with their needs and interests. The entitlement to this form of
assistance should over-ride any other policy frameworks relating to
unemployment assistance, such as Work for the Dole, or other requirements for
certain unemployed people.
Recommendations 45 page: 160
The committee recommends
that the Commonwealth and states and territories recognise the special role
that pre-apprenticeship training can play as another pathway between school and
further education and training, and employment for young people and make funding
available to support such training. The
committee also recommends that the Commonwealth and states and territories
should consider the availability of pre-apprenticeship training as part of a
VET in schools program.
Recommendation 46 page:
170
The
committee recommends that ANTA undertake extensive consultation and research
towards developing a model that allows for graded assessments to be provided
within the competency-based system, where students require this for
articulation to higher education.
The committee recommends that ANTA
should require that all training packages include support materials which
outline basic content and knowledge as well as competencies; include study
skills as well as workplace skills; and accept the classroom as well as the workplace
as a legitimate site for assessment.
Recommendation 47 page:
170
The committee recommends that ANTA, in
conjunction with the AVCC, evaluate the Cast CRC model for a national
integrated education program, as a possible model for other disciplines or
industry areas with low student numbers and a need for skill sets from both VET
and higher education. The committee also recommends that ANTA and the AVCC
consider possible funding arrangements to promote the development and
implementation of such models.
Recommendation 48 page:
170
The committee also considers that
MCEETYA should examine the feasibility and merits of introducing a system for
tracking students’ education and training from year 7 onwards. This examination
should include consideration of the skills passport concept for recording the
full range of VET outcomes.
Recommendation 49 page:
178
The committee recommends that the
Commonwealth consider introducing a separate scheme to support the training of
existing workers, in place of the incentives under the New Apprenticeship
scheme. The National Industry Skills Forum should provide advice on the key
features of a new scheme which would better focus on the career development
needs of workers, including casual employees, and on training which supports
enterprise and industry skills development strategies and national skill
priorities.
Recommendation
50 page: 179
The committee also recommends that the Commonwealth
provide funding to enable mature workers who are unemployed or at risk of being
retrenched, to have a formal Recognition of Prior Learning, career counseling
and access to training to develop new skill sets which will enhance their
future employment prospects.
Chapter 6 Role of
Industry and Other Stakeholders
Recommendation 51 page:
203
The committee recommends that ANTA should:
- review, at the
end of 2004, the effect of reduced funding of state and territory industry
advisory arrangements on their capacity to support the national advisory
arrangements, and the national system;
- consider
expanding the roles of the national skills councils to include
developing skills formation and workforce development strategies for their
industries and supporting
this with appropriate funding; and
- announce its
commitment to the continuing, central importance of the bipartite approach
(based on a partnership between employers and unions) to industry advice, to be
reflected throughout all of ANTA’s advisory bodies and working groups.
Recommendation 52 page:
203
The
committee also considers ANTA should commission independent research on the
full range of strategies that can contribute to increased and more
effective and targeted employer investment in training and more equitable
access to training for the casual and contract workers. The research should include
consideration of collective bargaining arrangements, levies, incentive
arrangements, taxation arrangements, industry training plans and workforce
development strategies.
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