Australia's electrical and communications contracting peak body has warned standards at Canberra Institute of Technology are so low that some graduate apprentices can't conduct simple tests and could pose a safety risk.
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In a submission to the Legislative Assembly's inquiry into vocational education, National Electrical and Communications Association chief executive Suresh Manickam said a new registered training organisation was needed in Canberra to provide more effective industry-focused training with improved processes.
The inquiry is considering training courses at CIT and the wider sector.
The criticism comes a month after the ACT Electrotechnology Energy Advisory Board asked education officials to investigate a complaint about the CIT electricians' course, including if it met national standards and included required industry experience.
Mr Manickam said members of the electrical and communications industry had made "significant complaints" about standards at CIT for some years, while the problems had been made worse by the 2013 closure of an electrical skills course for apprentice electricians.
Highlighting a range of problems, Mr Manickam told the committee that some apprentices couldn't conduct simple electrical testing, which had serious safety implications when working with electricity. He linked a lowering of standards to the need to "push more apprentices through the system" to gain funding.
He said communication with employers was poor in relation to timetables and subject requirements; that employers had been told apprentices had not attended classes which they weren't even enrolled in; that there had been "frequent changes to the curriculum without explanation" and that students suffered from a lack of continuity and even had to repeat some subjects they had already completed.
"Anecdotally, we believe that a significant number of apprentices have dropped out due to these issues, and the stress, lost time, financial cost and frustration involved," Mr Manickam said.
"These issues with CIT have resulted in many businesses taking on fewer apprentices, or not taking on any altogether, due to the significant costs in financial terms as well as time."
In April, former CIT trainer and assessor Ian Dunstan said inadequate training of electrical apprentices had created a safety risk in the community, including from house fires and electrocution.
Mr Dunstan, who complained repeatedly to CIT officials without effect, said senior executives interfered with training programs.
He is preparing another submission to the committee to address what he said was misinformation about internal problems at CIT.
The former industry project manager said systemic and cultural problems had remained at CIT for years, including employed graduates without all the required training being able to work in homes and businesses around Canberra.
Mr Dunstan could be recalled to give more evidence at a future public hearing.
"The NECA submission, to a great extent, vindicates everything I've said in the past about the problems. I believe the situation is a lot worse than anyone can imagine at the present point," he said.
In August, the Electrotechnology Energy Advisory Board said it was likely to make an official complaint to the Australian Skills Quality Authority over CIT's lack of response to its concerns raised with CIT as far back as 2013.
The inquiry is ongoing.
