Today's workplaces and our workforces have jumped the precipice - with businesses across the nation clambering to fill critical roles central to keep their industries afloat.
According to a report by the National Skills Commission - The Future of Work in Australia, "the COVID-19 pandemic has caused large-scale disruption to Australian businesses, workplaces and jobs. Even as the Australian economy recovers, we are likely to see more workforce transitions due to increased digitisation, technological adoption and ongoing structural changes. In these times of global uncertainty and change, skills are key."
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Australian Bureau of Statistics 2022 March quarter data revealed a record nearly 3 per cent of all jobs across the nation were vacant, with 420,000 out of about 15 million positions waiting to be filled. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, Australia is experiencing the second most severe labour shortage in the developed world, exposing a skills crisis.
Border closures and a lack of mobility, alongside industry pivots and innovation, have highlighted the need for homegrown skills diversification, National Skills Week chair Brian Wexham said.
"Today's high school students have numerous choices and pathways before them - and the opportunity to activate these while still in the secondary education system," he said. "Our Vocational Education and Training (VET) offerings across Australia are vast, and this means that our young people can start and test their future options.
"VET offers a jump-start to a career pathway, whereas a university education carries a later start to a career, and for many young people, more debt. VET is and hands-on experience alongside education - offering exposure to the workforce while at school - and can be a five-year or more career head start."
The newly released blockbuster biopic Elvis showcases the layers of opportunities one project presents for young people across Australia who may begin their working lives through VET skills. With the entire movie process delivered on Australia's Gold Coast, the actors perhaps played minor roles in bringing the biopic to life. Without producers, cameramen, caterers, set designers, carpenters, electricians, digital editors, sound technicians and a raft of others, Elvis may not be in this building or any other.
"The sky truly is the limit for our VET skilled workers - in every industry and across a range of exciting geographies," Mr Wexham said. "VET-skilled workers can set sail for new horizons and charter a cruise ship career on a cruise ship - as a chef, an entertainer, an electrician, a yoga instructor, an events manager, or even an IT manager."
