Skill Shortages Addressed at Recent Industry Advisory Council Meeting

The latest Industry Advisory Council (IAC) meeting held at the Lion Hotel was a productive morning for all division chairs, deputy chairs, zone chairs, board members and MTA staff to discuss skill shortages across the automotive industry, amongst many other current issues.

The meeting was opened with a presentation from the Minister for Innovation and Skills, David Pisoni MP covering the Government of South Australia’s response to the skill shortages how they intend on creating future jobs and growth in the automotive sector.

It was an informative presentation, with numerous members taking the opportunity to ask questions and discuss the topics of skilled migration, adult apprenticeships, MTA Group Training Organisation (GTO) activities and raise ideas such as the possibility of introducing a retired mentors scheme for young apprentices.

What was certain to all in the room was the need for us as an industry to change the perception of automotive courses against university study – making them appear on equal terms will encourage numbers to follow their passion, reassuring those interested that there are endless opportunities in our industry brought on by rapidly evolving tech that requires the brightest of minds.

Following this, the group heard from guest speaker for the Department for Education’s Industry Engagement Consultant, Systems Performance, Further Education and Pathways, Rachael Jensen, on the topic of school pathways and how they aim to fix the current Vocational Education and Training (VET) system in our schools.

Rachael was an engaging presenter and the room embraced the new ideas she has brought to the table, all with the aim to get students out experiencing industries earlier in their education and having a better understanding of what awaits them if they were to take a certain path.

The MTA’s General Manager Apprentice Employment Services, Jason Polgreen, who is also a former MTA apprentice, talked through his latest work with a range of stakeholders in the VET space to identify challenges and develop strategies to address current and future industry skills gaps.

The wider group then entered discussion led by MTA CEO Paul Unerkov, and MTA Chairman Frank Agostino, to share their current challenges and debate the priorities for the MTA, industry and government to address skill shortages.

There was a general agreement that encouraging more work experience can only be a good thing, but vetting those interested and potentially having them exposed to different areas of automotive first before they make a decision on what type of business they complete their experience at would be helpful for all parties.

Getting out to as many schools as possible, along with finding teachers and parents who are willing to champion our industry is the goal – with so many schools and fierce competition, there’s a long road ahead.

Mature age apprenticeships is another area members believe to be worth focusing on, with many mentioning the option has worked out for the better in their own businesses.

After much robust discussion, the IAC settled on recommending to the board three priority areas to focus efforts on when it comes to the current skill shortages:

• School pathways, which includes a combination of work experience and industry working with schools directly.

• Mature age apprenticeships and the possibility of creating an employment board.

• Trade assistant qualifications.

The next IAC meeting will focus on the effects of emerging and future technology on the automotive industry.