More TAFE SA courses target staff shortages

TAFE SA is targeting regional centres, school students and segments of the workforce that may have been previously overlooked in an attempt to fill significant shortages in the hospitality industry.

It comes a year after TAFE SA offered more than 10,600 fee-free courses that saw applications for places increase by 65% from two years ago.

“Last year really was transformational for us,” said TAFE SA CEO, David Coltman.

“It really highlighted how that fee barrier was stopping people from giving it a go.

“To us, it showed there are still people out there who want to work in the sector and we just need to provide them with the opportunity to get the skills so they can do it well.”

The SA government is funding another 4500 fee-free positions this year.

“Increasing the workforce in rural areas is one of the priorities,” said David.

“So we do that particularly with a regional focus.

“In the Barossa (Nuriootpa) and in Berri, we’ve got demonstration restaurants. People can come in for a meal and students can practice in the safety of that environment rather than making small mistakes in a restaurant where guests are paying top dollar.

“We’re looking to Whyalla, Pirie and Port Augusta to find workforces that are not yet engaged. The aim is to connect with those folk, rather than just respond to those people who have already decided they want to work in the hospitality sector before.”

NEEDS BASED

But that’s not where assistance for country centres begins and ends.

“In the regions we’ve had a minimum class size of 10,” said David.

“This year we have we have additional funding that’s allowing us to take our class size down to five. That means more courses being run.

“We’ve also set up a regional skills advisory committee for each of the regions across SA.

“We do it from a data perspective.

“For example, we don’t always know that the Bridgeport Hotel is opening in Murray Bridge and we need to build a workforce for that hotel, unless we have a relationship with them at local levels - which TAFE SA usually does.

“We'll work with the regional skills advisory committees to pilot and test, and if we see demand, we’ll make that part of our core offering going forward.

“And that’s not just in the hospitality field, that’s right across the board.

“But I am anticipating, a real increase in those hospitality courses to build a workforce for the regions.”

NEW TARGETING

Course places will also be reserved for specific groups that may not have previously considered or had the opportunity to undertake skills training.

“Last year, it was a first come, first served basis,” said David.

“We were over-subscribed very early in the year.

“This year, we’re targeting what we’ve identified as ‘priority cohorts’. These are people who have been unemployed for a long period of time and also women to work in industries that have not traditionally been over-subscribed by women.

“We’re trying to find the potential of building a workforce in really tight times where there are jobs for everybody.

“How do you get more people into the workforce who might not have been considered part of that potential? That explains where and why we are taking these actions.”

Schools are also on TAFE SA's radar.

“We’re working really strongly with the schools to encourage a cohort of young people to look at hospitality as a viable option and trying to sell the sector to them not only as a job but a career,” David said.

“We have targeted those entry level courses of Cert II (including cookery and hospitality) and Cert III in order to build entry level capability for the sector because that’s what’s needed.

“We'll work with the regional skills advisory committees to pathways program, which gives people a taster but also some credits towards their SACE qualifications.

“We start off by doing a barista training program for school students. That involves a mobile barista unit that comes around because everyone associates coffee with cool and it’s fun to learn.

“It starts with the customer service aspects of coffee, as well as the artist aspect of coffee.

“People will undertake responsible service of alcohol, hygiene and food safety.

“It gives them the tickets they need to be employed and then they can commence their journey of work and study, doing the training and apprenticeship model.”

It’s a genuine holistic approach to solving a significant shift in the labour market.

“We’re trying to build the pool from which we can build a potential workforce because the labour and skills shortage are across every sector.

“Most industries are ringing me now, not to talk about what the content of the course is or what they think we should be doing but how they get their hands on the students we have.

“Every sector is facing this challenge. It’s a new world for us.

“Employers are having to think very hard.

“It’s not just about the money, it’s about the values and the opportunities for a person to be doing what they love.”

The challenge employers face in finding staff is not a problem unique to South Australia, David said.

“This is why the government through its new national skills agreement has significantly increased the resourcing to all providers of skills and training, including TAFE SA.

“We’ll be looking at how we build workforces where we can. It will mean more staff and more courses, particularly in the regions.”

HIGH CONVERSION

TAFE SA’s success in converting course qualifications into employment is elite.

In the most recent National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) Student Outcomes Survey, 87 per cent of TAFE SA students were employed or enrolled in further study after training.

“Across all of TAFE SA, we sit in the top quartile of employment outcomes for graduates.

“There are some real opportunities in basically every part of the hospitality sector.”

None more so than in the kitchen.

“In terms of the cooks and kitchens, kitchens are empty and increasingly, we’re seeing people who aren’t trained having to pick up the cheffing roles across the hospitality sector.

“The number of transient workers that the sector relied upon has decreased post-COVID.

“Our cookery programs are full of very, very passionate people about food.

“The hospitality industry offers amazing opportunities in terms of flexibility, transportability, opportunities to work in large organisations, small organisations.

“It’s one of the most dynamic sectors.”

TAFE SA CEO, David Coltman.