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AE News Volume 12, Issue 47
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Thursday, 12th December 2019
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Upcoming Events
12 February - IR & Financial Controllers Network Meeting
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18 February - QA Standards Network Meeting
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18 February - Competency Based Training Workshop
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AEN Annual Awards - Winners
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Last week, the AEN & GAN Australia held their annual awards ceremony at Victorian Parliament House. The event was a great success with the biggest turnout to date of over 180 guests.
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Winner Summary
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ATOA Apprentice of the Year - Sponsored by Apprenticeship Support Australia
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Jessica Scott-Smith - Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd - Certificate III in Parks and Gardens
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Trainee of the Year - Sponsored by VicSuper
Ashleigh McCafferty - Westvic Staffing Solutions - Certificate IV in Education Support
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GAN International Scholarship
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Joel Handcock - Bendigo TAFE - Certificate III in Electrotechnology
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School-based Apprentice or Trainee of the Year - Sponsored by Australian Super
Heidi Rasmussen - Gforce Employment Solutions - Certificate III in Companion Animal Services
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Inspiration Award: Indigenous Student of the Year - Sponsored by Apprenticeship Support Australia
Kayleigh Gallagher - WPC Group - Certificate III in Business
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Inspiration Award: Overcoming Adversity - Sponsored by RMIT University
Sian Prangnell - AGA Apprenticeships Plus - Certificate III in Business
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Inspiration Award: Woman in Trades - Sponsored by AATIS
Jessica Scott-Smith - Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd - Certificate III in Parks and Gardens
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STAR Award - Sponsored by Marsh Advantage Insurance
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Nicholas Wu - AGA Apprenticeships Plus - Certificate III in Business
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GAN National Youth Initiative of the Year
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The Adecco Group - CEO for One Month Initiative
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GTO Outstanding OHS Initiative Award - Sponsored by EML
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AGA Apprenticeships Plus/Mas National
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GTO Service Excellence Awards - Sponsored by Bunnings Warehouse
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AGA Apprenticeships Plus - Supporting Disadvantaged Workers in Major Projects
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Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd - Indigenous Advancement Strategy
Westvic Staffing Solutions - Shaping Futures Pilot Program
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Lifetime Achievement Award
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Michael Bellamy - Westvic Staffing Solutions
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Congratulations to all the winners, finalists, nominees and organisations represented on the night.
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Victorian Governor Celebrates Women in Trades
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On Tuesday afternoon this week the Victorian Governor, the Honourable Linda Dessau AC, held an event to celebrate women in the trades at Victorian Government House in Kings Domain gardens. There were over 400 guests and female apprentices in attendance from across the State.
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As part of the event AEN and GAN Australia were invited to create ornaments for the Governor's Christmas tree. Check out our 3D printed decorations below.
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Thanks to everyone who was able to invite their female apprentices to the event.
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A New Future for VET and Higher Education
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On Tuesday this week a joint statement was released following the review of the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF), headed by Professor Peter Noonan.
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Students will get a post-secondary education that better serves their needs with stronger alignment between the higher education and VET sectors.
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- Senior secondary students can study subjects at school that count towards a vocational training qualification or university degree.
- Recognition of microcredentials to allow providers to offer short, highly-targeted courses.
- VET and higher education to have clear and flexible entry and exit points, as well as pathways within and between, to allow students to mix and match the subjects they study to meet their education requirements.
The Government today accepted all recommendations of the review in relation to higher education and accepted the aims of recommendations of the review in relation to vocational education contingent on further discussions with state and territory governments.
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Minister for Education Dan Tehan said the Government was providing flexibility to the qualifications system to meet student and employer demand.
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“We are providing structure and clarity to vocational education and higher education to reflect the real world,” Mr Tehan said. “We want to make it easier for Australians to move between vocational training and higher education and to earn microcredential qualifications that will improve their productivity.
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“These reforms will cut red tape and improve the operation and quality of education in Australia.”
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Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business Michaelia Cash said the Government would continue to work closely with the sector and state and territory Skills Ministers.
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“We will fully consider the recommendations in the context of our broader reform agenda, including the COAG VET Roadmap already underway,” Minister Cash said.
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“Our Government is lifting the status of VET and there are clear benefits for both sectors working closer together – for example, someone studying engineering at university could benefit from hands-on experience by studying a site management course at a TAFE or private RTO.”
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2020 AEN Event Dates
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12th - IR & Financial Controllers
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18th - QA Standards Network and Competency Based Training Workshop
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26th - Cyber Security Awareness Workshop
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4th - Cross-Cultural Responsiveness Training
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12th - Apprentice Luncheon
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7th - OHS Network Meeting
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18th & 19th - Mid-year Conference
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14th - OHS Network Meeting
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4th - Trade Women Australia
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12th - QA Standards Network Meeting
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20th & 21st - Field Officer Conference
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9th - GTO Managers Meeting
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15th - IR & Financial Controllers Network Meeting
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10th - OHS Network Meeting
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PD workshops will be announced throughout the year. Keep an eye on the AEN Event Calendar for updates.
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December Apprenticeship Vacancy Index
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Over the past eight months we have found over 9588 apprenticeship vacancies.
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Top industry sectors included
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Building and Construction - 2184
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Business Administration - 816
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Hospitality & Tourism - 780
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Most states and industries saw a rise in the number of apprenticeship job vacancies for November.
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Brotherhood of St Laurence Youth Employment Monitor
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Young people are twice as likely to experience long-term unemployment compared to a decade ago, the report says.
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Research found that one in five Australian jobseekers (46,000 people) aged 15 to 24 have experienced unemployment for a year or longer.
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In October 2009, 21,000 young people were in the same predicament, representing just under one in 10 young job hunters.
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BSL’s executive director Conny Lenneberg said it was unacceptable that 265,000 young people were unemployed in Australia, despite 30 years of continuous economic growth.
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She noted the national youth unemployment rate – sitting at 12 per cent – was almost three times the 3.9 per cent unemployment rate for people aged over 25.
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“There is no doubt youth unemployment overall remains an ongoing and urgent challenge – the national rate has again broken through to 12 per cent after an 18-month hiatus,” Lenneberg said.
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“We are deeply concerned the long road of prosperity is pitted with potholes for Australia’s youth."
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“As a nation, we need to renew our efforts to help young people achieve economic security and reach their goals, like generations of Australians that came before them.”
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The report found that youth unemployment rates were highest in Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia with rates of 14 per cent or more.
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Australian Capital Territory (8.8 per cent) was the only region to have a youth unemployment rate below 10 per cent.
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BSL urged young people to consider entering industries set to witness major job growth in coming years, such as in health care and social assistance, construction, and education and training.
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The report said there would be plenty of job opportunities in the future for young people around supporting baby boomers as they enter old age.
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But Lenneberg questioned whether Australia’s vocational education and training system was equipped to meet future demand in these growing industries.
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“As we head into a new decade, reforming the vocational education and training system must be a top priority for policymakers,” she said.
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“There’s also clear evidence that all young unemployed people on income support need access to a youth specialist employment service.”
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THE BIG PICTURE: YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT NATIONALLY
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The youth unemployment rate in October 2019, at 12.0%, was three times as high as the 3.9% unemployment rate for those aged 25 and over.
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This represents more than 265,000 young Australians. While there has been some improvement since 2014, youth unemployment remains slightly higher than the rate 10 years ago, in October 2009 in the wake of the GFC, at 11.4%.
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Myskills - VET Alumni Program - Website Launched
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What is the Australian VET Alumni Program?
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The Australian VET Alumni Program is a national community of Vocational Education & Training (VET) graduates, registered training organisations (RTOs), VET practitioners and businesses dedicated to sharing their VET journey with Australians to encourage greater participation in VET.
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The national vocational education and training (VET) system is a world-leading, sophisticated education system drawing on the expertise of industry to deliver relevant, transferable and innovative career skills to Australians.
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The Australian VET Alumni (Alumni) aims to help Australians understand the benefits of being a VET graduate by sharing real stories of career success. For organisations delivering VET, and businesses training staff through VET, the Alumni is a great resource to learn more about best practice in training delivery.
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Australia Takes the Lead in Training and Skilling a Global Workforce
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The Commonwealth Government has reaffirmed its commitment to position Australia as a world leader in delivering quality vocational education and training (VET), with the launch of the VET International Engagement Strategy 2025 on Thursday last week .
Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, said the strategy will ensure the Australian VET sector continues to play a significant role in contributing to the development of a highly skilled workforce.
“Enhancing Australia’s role as a global leader in vocational education and training is a priority for the Government,” said Minister Cash.
“By supporting international VET students in Australia and building the capacity of partner countries to develop training systems aligned with industry needs, we will open up market opportunities for Australian training providers while ensuring local employers can access the skilled workers they need, when they need them.”
The strategy was developed in partnership with key VET stakeholders, including providers and industry peak bodies.
Implementing the strategy will be a collaborative effort between the sector, industry and government, with an implementation plan to be developed in 2020. A working group drawn from the sector will work with Expert Members of the Council for International Education.
Assistant Minister for Vocational Education, Training and Apprenticeships, The Hon Steve Irons MP said Australia’s VET system is among the best in the world in developing a skilled workforce that is flexible and responsive to the changing needs of business and industry.
“Increasing our skills engagement with the world and leading the charge in building a highly skilled global workforce is essential to securing Australia’s social and economic prosperity,” said Assistant Minister Irons.
The strategy was endorsed at the recent meeting of the Council for International Education.
For more information please see the Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business - International skills engagement.
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Expert Panel Releases Interim Findings On NAPLAN Review
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The Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and ACT governments last week released the Interim Report for their independent joint review of NAPLAN.
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The Interim Report sets out the major issues with NAPLAN as identified during an initial consultation round. The Report also includes preliminary ideas for addressing these issues.
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Major issues identified in the Interim Report include the increased stakes of NAPLAN and related impacts, such as school comparisons, and the inability of NAPLAN to provide meaningful information about the level of achievement for both high and low performing students.
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The Interim Report also identifies concerns about the timing of the test, as the significant delay between students sitting the test and receiving the results means that schools have limited opportunity to use the results to improve student learning outcomes.
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The Interim Report identifies a number of potential changes for further discussion including:
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- Shifting the timing of the assessment from May to earlier in the year so that results can be better used to inform decisions about future curriculum and teaching choices.
- Changing the school years that tests are administered from the current years 3, 5, 7 and 9.
- Reviewing test content, particularly the writing assessment, to ensure that it tests students for meaningful and useful skills.
- Limiting the availability of test data so it is less likely be used to make unfair comparisons between schools.
This Interim Report was developed by the Expert Panel leading the review, Emeritus Professor Barry McGaw, Emeritus Professor Bill Louden, and Professor Claire Wyatt Smith.
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The issues and possible changes identified in the Interim Report are intended to guide further work in the new year, when the Panel will undertake further detailed consultations and seek written submissions.
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The panel will present their final report by mid-2020.
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Do you want to be kept up to date with everything that’s happening with GAN Australia and the wider VET sector?
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Thanks to our Industry Partners
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