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$400m fix for labour shortage

07 Feb $400m fix for labour shortage

Posted at 07:09h in Media Clip by Jo Lea

The Australian Government will invest $402 million over the next four years to establish Jobs and Skills Councils (JSCs) as it looks to address the country’s widespread skills shortage. Led by industry, the JSCs will collaborate with Job and Skills Australia to address workforce challenges and scarce skills. One of the selected JSCs is the Australian Minerals and Energy Skills Alliance (AUSMESA), which will focus on correcting the labour shortage within the mining and automotive industries. AUSMESA chief executive Dr Gavin Lind said the JSCs created a cohesive structure for the industry to have a voice in strategic workplace development. “Having industry at the forefront of a demand-driven vocational education and training system will ensure the emphasis is correct and where it needs to be for the right period of time,” he told Paydirt. “The industry helps define what occupations and skills are in demand and the registered training organisations (RTO) can then respond accordingly with training standards or curriculum in their training that is effective for the learner and gets them into a job as fast as possible.” Dr Lind believes fixing the shortage is in the best interests of all Australians given the mining sector accounts for most of the nation’s exports. “Every Australian benefits from the mining industry being successful and we want the right people with the right energy and mindset to want to help solve important solutions to make sure mining exists into the future,” he said. However, in the rush to fix the skills shortage, the JSCs also need to ensure the quality of talent is not compromised, according to Dr Lind. AUSMESA will work with TAFEs and RTOs to ensure the delivery of training is lining up with the skills in need, he said. When it comes to retaining talent, Dr Lind believes it will come down to showcasing the future capabilities of the sector. “It’s an interesting industry that is going to be around for a long time and it’s an industry that is very innovative,” he said. “Many people out there don’t realise the mining industry is at the forefront of automation, robotics and data science, so it’s about communicating the attractive proposition for those in the workforce and those wanting to join the workforce.” The $402 million investment is promising for the mining sector, which according to data from the ABS has the greatest proportion of vacant positions. Dr Lind said the labour shortages were a result of a post-COVID world where people have relocated and may have different aspirations as to the type of work they want to do. “I’ve never seen the skills or labour market as tight as it is right now and that includes going back to previous boom cycles,” he said. “The reason why the mining industry has been hit very hard is because of the competition for skills with other industries and in part lifestyle choices. “The toughest shortage that we know of is the heavy diesel fitter. One in 20 vacancies are for that role.” The sector is also on the hunt for geoscientists, after universities cut back on courses and staff due to a reduction in international students. IMDEX chief of product management and marketing Dr Michelle Carey said the mining- tech sector was trying to attract geoscientists from an increasingly small pool. “Over the past couple of years some universities have shut geology departments,” she said. “Macquarie University shut their entire geology department in the past 12 months. It was the highest-ranking geology department from a research perspective in Australia. There is a complete disconnect between those actions and the needs of the industry. “You have the universities’ reaction, the impact of COVID, the industry going through a boom because of net zero and electrification, mining not considered an attractive employment option and then someone is chopping off our pipeline for reasons of their own.” In a November report released by the Australian Geoscience Council, Earth Science enrolments had fallen dramatically after 2012. Dr Carey believes the shortage is not going to improve any time soon and the mining industry must instead embrace technological innovation. “The mining sector doesn’t actually have a choice. They have to accept technological change because they won’t be able to do things the way they always have,” she said. – Yvette Ogilvie Dr Gavin Lind AUSTRALIA’S PAYDIRT FEBRUARY 2023 PAGE 47

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