Tomorrow’s training workforce: the planning begins
31 July 2003
Australia’s training professionals of 2013: work has started on finding out who they are, what they will need to know, and how to “grow” them.
Australia has at least 32,000 TAFE teachers, as well as teachers, trainers, assessors, and developers in public and private training providers and enterprises. Over the next decade, many of them will retire, taking their knowledge with them and leaving skill gaps.
A project about to start will establish nationally for the first time:
- who they are
- how they are managed now and
- what needs to happen over the next five to 10 years.
Australian National Training Authority Board member John Smyth says it’s all about looking after the training system’s most valuable resource --- the people.
“We simply don’t know enough about our current VET professionals, which means we can’t make sound planning decisions about recruitment, retention, and training for the future,” he says.
“Like many industries across Australia, we have an ageing workforce and constantly changing technology, an accelerating trend towards flexible employment with more casuals and part-timers, globalisation and increasing market competition.
“Over the next six months we will assess the impact of all of this on our frontline people. Only then can we work out what needs to be done so that apprentices, trainees, students, workers and employers are getting the best training possible from quality professionals.”
Tenders have been called nationally and consultants are expected to be appointed and start work in August. Their job will be to collect and consolidate national and international research and best practice information on human resource development and management appropriate to the Australian VET sector and the management of the future VET professional workforce.
The project will provide:
- a profile of the VET professional, characteristics of the workforce as a whole and possible skills gaps that might appear over the next 10 years
- an analysis of how professional development and workforce planning happen now
- recommendations about what needs to happen to tackle the issues identified.
A final report is due by the end of December 2003.
Media inquiries:
Jan Martin: (07) 3246 2412
Lisa White: (07) 3246 2368