Water Skills Forum 2023

The Queensland Water Skills Partnership hosted its sixth annual Water Skills Forum on Thursday 8 June 2023 at our Eagle Farm offices. The Water Skills Forum provide an opportunity for Water and Sewerage Managers, Human Resources and Learning and Development professionals to hear presentations from water industry and other workforce experts and

Government stakeholders. The theme for the event was Hi-Vis; raising the profile of the Urban Water sector.

As an industry we are largely invisible unless something goes wrong. The Forum explored opportunities for the sector to not only increase its visibility to the wider community and stakeholders, but also to increase visibility within – whether from an Employee Value Proposition perspective, a skills and training planning viewpoint or of the mental health and wellbeing across our workforce.

We thank the following speakers for participating on the day and sharing their engaging content:

Amber Robinson, Manager Water Utilities at Central Highlands Regional Council and Chair of the Water Skills Partnership, kicked off the proceedings with some of her perspectives on the way the water sector is managed in Queensland, claiming that water utilities don’t “fit the mould” that dictates Council employment conditions and need to compete for funding with nonessential services and projects. There are also challenges in making the sector visible in Government processes, for example including water on the skilled migration list. There seems to be a lack of understanding of the risk associated with water services and a national approach is required to solve some of the wicked problems.

Fresh off the bus from the Water Connections Tour, Steph Hogan, Executive Director Strategic Water Initiatives at the Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water (RDMW), reflected on the value of the tour and the obvious pressure on staff struggling with increased regulation, lack of staff and a host of other pressures. Steph hoped that the QWRAP program could be a vehicle to promote the industry and that the Cross Government Committee will help to streamline processes from a government perspective.

Cassandra Cowley, Manager Industry Engagement at DYJESBT, dispelled a few myths or misconceptions around training support and programs including options for the duration of Apprenticeships and Traineeships, as well as being able to access subsidy more than once, when the eligibility criteria are right.

This presentation was a precursor to a more detailed look at the subsidy options which will be made available to members, most likely as a webinar discussion, for members to explore and understand funding options more deeply.

Over the past year, the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) invested a significant amount of time and resources to help water service providers refine their Employee Value Proposition (EVP). What makes the water sector stand out from the crowd in this war for talent? Peter Gee, Manager Performance Improvement at WSAA provided an overview of the project to date and how the outputs created can be shared and utilised by qldwater members.