MIGRATION CAP LIFTED; FREE TRAINING LURE
Immediate boost to permanent migration levels
Australia will immediately raise the annual level of permanent planned migration to 195,000 (from 160,000) to address critical skills shortages, in one of the major outcomes from the Jobs and Skills Summit. The Federal Government will also examine the potential for industry sponsorship of skilled migrants. In addition, the summit flagged an update of the Fair Work Act, with a view to “removing unnecessary limitations on access to single and multi-employer agreements.” Post-summit, Federal Treasury will now start the process of receiving submissions for its Employment White Paper.
$1.1 billion more for fee-free TAFE
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese kicked off the Jobs and Skills Summit by announcing an additional 180,000 fee-free TAFE places for 2023, with costs shared between the Federal Government and States and Territories. National Cabinet approved the $1.1 billion package, in an immediate bid to lift skill levels and address worker shortages. The PM said National Cabinet would co-operate in designing a long-term National Skills Agreement.
Business partnership targets disability employment
In the aftermath of the Jobs and Skills Summit, the Federal Government will work with peak industry group, the Business Council of Australia, to lift employment opportunities for disabled people. Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth has committed up to $3.3 million to a memorandum of understanding with the BCA to increase employment and improve career pathways for people with a disability. Ms Rishworth claimed that 93 per cent of unemployed people aged 15-64 with disability experienced difficulties in finding employment; the unemployment rate for people with a disability was more than double that of working age people without disability.
Post-study work rights relaxed for international students
International students will be able to work for longer periods in Australia after finishing their tertiary studies, the Federal Government has announced. Education Minister Jason Clare and Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said post-study work rights in areas of verified skills shortages would be increased from two years to four years for select Bachelor’s degrees, three to five years for select Masters degrees and from four to six years for select PhDs. Mr Clare said only 16 per cent of international students presently stayed on after completing their studies.
Shake-up for vocational education training model
Federal Skills and Training Minister Brendan O’Connor has announced a major overhaul of the vocational education training system, promising to simplify qualifications and remove duplication across courses. The Federal Government will work with state, territories, unions and employers to make the qualifications system easier to understand. Mr O’Connor said the current VET model comprised 56 nationally-endorsed training packages, with more than 1,200 qualifications, 1,500 skill sets and 15,400 units of competency. He said 5,000 units had more than 70 per cent overlap with at least one other unit, and that the qualifications system had been largely unchanged since the 1990s.
Private capital investment retreats
Private capital investment has flatlined in Australia, with a 0.3 per cent fall, seasonally-adjusted, in the June quarter reflecting tougher economic conditions. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, new private investment in building and structures fell by 2.5 per cent and in mining by 0.3 per cent; investment in equipment, plant and machinery, however, rose by 2.1 per cent in the quarter. Private capital investment plunged during the onset of coronavirus in 2019, but was recovering steadily until last December.