With the 146 participants in the federal government’s two-day Jobs and Skills Summit back at their day jobs, attention has turned to how the initiatives agreed to are delivered and the gathering not reduced to another talkfest.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a $1.1 billion commitment for an extra 180,000 fee free TAFE places next year, with costs shared across federal, state and territory governments.
The government’s commitment to draft legislation introducing multi-employer bargaining and modifying the Better Off Overall Test was divisive.
Business Council of Australia (BCA) president Tim Reed said the summit was an opportunity to “reset our national direction and position ourselves on the frontier”.
He said the BCA was concerned about the prospect of multi-employer bargaining, saying it had potential to negatively impact innovation, supply chains, industrial action and the overall complexity of the system.
Reed said broad consultation would be needed to avoid a system that “increases complexity and locks in rigidity”.
“We urge proponents of this change to put a detailed proposition on the table, based on existing elements of the act, and clarifying it with; a clear outline of the problem we’re trying to solve; confirmation that such a system would be voluntary for workers and businesses; and explaining exactly how it would be implemented and how broadly the system would apply.
“We have heard legitimate concerns with the current system, but we can't solve them by creating new problems,” he said.
A new industry body - HVAC Manufacturing and Installation Association - said critics were pushing outdated views.
Spokesperson Mimmo Scavera told the AFR it would ensure an even playing field on pay, job security and standards so employers could focus on innovation, training, and productivity to differentiate themselves from competitors.
The association includes Kavanagh Industries, Sublime Air, Commercial Air, Traminer Industries, Precision Air and Airpac Sheet Metal.
Scavera said the industry was hurting in NSW, with four major companies closing in the last 12 months.
Skills shortages was a major focus for the two days, as was female participation in the workforce.
In the days prior to the summit, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) and the BCA released a statement of agreed principles and policy suggestions.
The pair agreed that women’s participation and the elimination of barriers to workforce participation were core economic issues.
The BCA also committed to working with the Department of Social Services to design a program to lift the workforce participation of people with disability.
BCA chief executive Jennifer Westacott said, “The summit is a chance start forging a new national direction, and repositioning Australia on the global frontier. We have to work together to deliver new industry formation, new and higher paying jobs, higher living standards, better access to skills and training, and a fairer and more inclusive society.”
ACTU secretary Sally McManus added, “This agreement shows what is possible when employers and unions come together to address the issues facing working people and our economy. Finding solutions on skills and training, migration, women’s participation, updating our workplace laws and preparing our workforce for the future will benefit the country.
“Getting wages moving is essential for our country. Working people and their families need the Government to act to fix the problems that have been holding us back so that everyone shares in the prosperity of our nation.”
In the post Jobs and Skills Summit honeymoon, Husic congratulated participants, saying the spirit of cooperation on display was extremely important and necessary for meeting future challenges.
“Straight out of the blocks, we have two pathways to develop. First, we need to deepen the work started on investing in skills development,” Husic said.
Secondly, education and training providers, government and industry need to widen the talent pipeline into science and technology jobs.
The government has asked the Department of Industry, Science and Resources to look at how existing programs could be changed to bring greater diversity into the science and technology sectors.
Husic said improving diversity in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce was the right thing to do and had the capacity to boost the national economy by $60 billion over the next 20 years.
He also doubled down on the government’s commitment to pathways for women and girls into STEM.
“Breaking the back of a decade long science and tech skills shortage will be a tough job – but a necessary one. Ensuring all Australians have the opportunity to develop STEM skills is essential to harnessing new technologies for national wellbeing. It will also help build stronger businesses, secure jobs and higher wages.
“Women remain chronically underrepresented in STEM, making up only 16 percent of people with STEM qualifications. Of First Nations people, only half a percent hold university-level STEM qualifications,” Husic said.
His announcement falls within the government’s target of 1.2 million tech related jobs by 2030.
Australia’s chief scientist Dr Cathy Foley said the review was timely.
“We know that despite years of effort, women are still significantly underrepresented in STEM occupations, and the problem goes all the way back to the mid-school years when the participation of girls starts to drop off.
“But this is more than just about representation. Getting the settings right for women and for other groups in our community, is about equity. It will also ensure we can fill the skills gaps in industries set to shape Australia over the next two decades, by making use of our full human potential,” Foley said.
The review will look at what is and isn’t working, and where these lessons could be applied to improve overall diversity in STEM. The review will look at what is being done internationally for lessons that Australia could apply to its efforts in this area, Husic said.
A Digital and Tech Skills compact was agreed to at the summit, with a pilot scheme to be run that supports people entering the tech industry with a blend of employment and training.
Minister for Skills and Training Brendan O’Connor said, “Australia is facing a skills shortage crisis and we need to better respond to future skills demand and better match taxpayers’ investment in areas of need.
“Digital skills are now core foundation skills for Australians of all ages and essential to jobs now and in the future.”
The compact builds on proposals brought to the summit by the ACTU and the Tech Council of Australia.
The government also announced at the summit it would be lifting permanent migration from 160,000 to 195,000.
Back at the summit, University of Technology Sydney chancellor Catherine Livingstone said it felt like Groundhog Day, recalling Kevin Rudd’s Australia 2020 summit in 2008.
“Had purposeful action being taken at that time in 2008, we would now be seeing that first cohort of students entering the tertiary education system, better equipped with competencies and skills to take advantages of today’s opportunities.”
