Skills for the Future: Policy and Practice for the Australian Manufacturing Industry
Start: September 2022
Expected end date: March 2026
Manufacturing in Australia has been identified as an area of priority for policy actors, more so since the COVID pandemic where there has been a recognition that having a domestic supply chain can be necessary for national security and to ensure that Australia/Australians continue to thrive (Australian Senate Economics Reference Committee, 2022). A crucial issue for Australia to be able to develop the capacity to meet the skills needs of the manufacturing industry and in particular, advanced manufacturing, is an understanding of the skills required and developing pathways from education and training to jobs in the sector.
The study looks to provide insights into how policy shapes educational outcomes and pathways to work. It will provide both industry and educational institutions data on areas of challenge in preparing students for a modern workplace and identify possible models and pathways that support development of skills needed into the future.
This research project aims to provide a deeper understanding about the pathways to work in the manufacturing sector and provide critical understanding from a range of stakeholders to help develop effective policies and plans to meet future skills needs of an advanced manufacturing workforce.
Expected Outcomes
Upon completing this research, we expect to develop:
- Firstly, the findings will generate important new knowledge of the extent to which, and how, the Australian VET system provides current and future workers with the skills and capacities required by the manufacturing industry. It will examine various training options to understand how skills needs of industry are identified, responded to and new programs developed to meet needs. It will investigate traditional programs and new ways of training including higher apprenticeships and microcredentials. As one case site is situated in industry it will consider how and why employers may want their own particular training programs outside of formal training structures.
- Secondly, scholarly contributions will be to investigation how notions of employability are shaping policy and practice across the education ecosystem. It will provide further research into how employability is understood in both industry and educational institutions and whether this contributes to the perceived skills gap between education and work. The research also seeks to examine how employability is shaping practices.
- Thirdly, the findings will inform specific recommendations for the design, delivery and coordination of education and training that may address the current skills deficit and better support a thriving, efficient and highly skilled manufacturing workforce. It can inform policy on the effectiveness of dual sector and innovative approaches and how these can be utilised to provide skills across the advanced manufacturing workforce including upskilling options through mechanisms such as microcredentials.
Supervisory Team
- Principal Supervisor: Prof Paula McDonald
- Associate Supervisors: Dr Melinda Laundon
Publications
First Author
- TBC
Other Publications
- TBC
Associated Researchers