Standing Committee on Employment, Education and Workplace Relations

Inquiry into the Role of Institutes of TAFE
Submissions

This document has been scanned from the original printed submission. It may contain some errors

Submission 87

The Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry
PO Box 21
Hawthorn VIC 3122
Robyn Helms
Principal Adviser
Training and Education

INQUIRY INTO THE APPROPRIATE ROLES OF INSTITUTES OF TECHNICAL AND

FURTHER EDUCATION

1. INTRODUCTION

The Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI) was formed in 1991 as a result of a merger between the former Victorian Employers' Federation, and the State Chamber of Commerce and Industry. It is Victoria's leading business Organisation with 7500 members.

VECCI draws its membership from almost every sector of industry and commerce including manufacturing, retail, tourism, leisure and hospitality, health, business services, local government, building and construction, road transport and related industries, and the trade sector. The bulk of its members are in the small business sector.

Membership is in the form of direct corporate membership, or through industry groups of associations. In addition to corporate membership, more than 20 affiliated groups and associations through which many thousands of individual businesses are represented, draw service support from VECCI.

In addition to its 7500 members VECCI works closely with most other employer associations in Australia. Through its membership of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), VECCI has also established links with State Chambers' of Commerce and Industry in all other States and Territories, and nationally, with an extensive network of local Chambers' of Commerce and Industry.

VECCI works pro-actively with governments and government agencies at both the State and National level, to ensure the demands and expectations of business are taken into account in the development and delivery of training.

2. VECCI AND THE INSTITUTES OF TECHNICAL AND FURTHER EDUCATION (TAFE)

VECCI has been a key player in the development of the Victorian training system, and contributed significantly of issues associated with the development of vocational training. This influence covers such areas as legislation changes, industrial relations, regulations, industry advisory arrangements, training delivery, accreditation, and strategic planning.

VECCI, along with a large number of employer and industry associations , has a very close involvement in the governance and delivery of training across the state. For example, VECCI's Chief Executive Officer, Mr David Edwards, is Deputy Chair of the State Training Board, and industry organisations, as well as enterprise based industry representatives, are members of TAFE Institute Councils and state and national Industry Training Advisory Boards.

The Victorian TAFE system is a largely autonomous one with Institutes having a high degree of responsibility for their operation, with their annual program profile and recurrent funding arrangements negotiated with the state training authority. Victorian TAFE Institutes also have a high degree of flexibility to generate fee for service activity locally, nationally and internationally.

Institute Councils have a substantial level of industry representation which facilitates the Institutes ability to respond effectively to industry and enterprise demands for specific training products and services.

These arrangements promote a high level of employer satisfaction which is critical to the on-going success of TAFE. Therefore, the structural arrangements which determine the governance of TAFE in Australia would benefit from a decentralised model which includes strong industry involvement in the governance of the Institutes at the local level as is the case in Victoria.

3. SUBMISSION

VECCI is of the view that that the key role for TAFE Institutes should be the design and delivery of high quality, cost effective, efficient and responsive training for industry. To support this view VECCI wishes to present a series of principles it considers should be taken into account when determining the appropriate roles of Institutes of TAFE nationally.

PRINCIPLE I

The focus of Institutes of TAFE should be determined by a high level of industry involvement and be responsive to industry needs.

• that the focus of training be on the development of skills for industry;
• that a high level of industry involvement eg. in Institute Councils, etc., be established, promoted and maintained;
• that individual Institutes be managed along autonomous lines, rather than governed by a central bureaucracy;

PRINCIPLE 2

The structural arrangements for TAFE must ensure the development and maintenance of a quality, flexible, responsive, client focussed, and cost effective training.

• the goal should be to improve the quality and delivery of training;
• industry specific training should be located in the geographic areas of identified need;
• efficiency in training delivery must be achieved with maximum usage of all available facilities and resources;
• employment arrangements for teachers/trainers must be flexible to respond effectively to the changing demands of business/industry;
• TAFE Institutes need the flexibility to respond to employer requirements with the introduction of the user-choice concept, and will need to adopt a more client focus orientation to the planning and delivery of training;
• effective and efficient arrangements between TAFE Institutes and schools must be established to facilitate quality vocational education opportunities for senior secondary students.

PRINCIPLE 3

Linkages with universities must not prohibit Institutes of TAFE from operating effectively in the open training market, locally, nationally, or internationally.

the formal merging of Institutes of TAFE with Universities could potentially inhibit the capacity of TAFE to respond to industry need and to national and international opportunities;a more informal approach is preferred whereby affiliations are established, which maximise the strengths of the various partners for specific purposes; TAFE Institutes are becoming increasingly recognised as world class providers of training to a range of client groups. As universities do not share this recognition, and are not perceived as having a niche' in this market, there is a real risk that clients will turn away from University TAFE, and use private providers to meet their training need; mergers between Institutes of TAFE and Universities must be able to demonstrate the benefits to both students and industry.

PRINCIPLE 4

The status of TAFE training within the general community as well as the business community must be raised as an outcome of any inquiry process.

• the marketing of TAFE studies as a high quality option for young people as a pathway to a future career requires the status of TAFE within the community to be raised considerably;
• there is the potential for TAFE studies to assume a second rate status if TAFE is absorbed by Universities, whose focus is clearly on academic programs;
• there is a perception within the business community that if TAFE activity is to become the responsibility of Universities, industry will have a reduced capacity to influence training development and delivery.

4. CONCLUSION

The future focus for Institutes of TAFE should be on developing excellence in vocational education and training. The goal should be to improve the quality and delivery of training which effectively meets the needs of the client, but with a focus on achieving the optimal use of available facilities and resources.

VECCI believes that strong autonomous TAFE Institutes (such as those that currently exist in Victoria) represent the most appropriate arrangement for ensuring the delivery of high quality, efficient and customer focussed training.

Back to top