Victorian Skills Plan for 2024 into 2025

The 2024 Skills Plan builds on the actions from the 2022 and 2023 Skills Plans

2022 Skills Plan Actions

• Start the VET journey at school
• Help learners make informed choices
• Enable students to put theory into practice
• Build foundation skills
• Bridge the gender gap
• Support Victoria’s clean economy intentions
• Create innovative solutions for future skills
• Align qualifications to new needs
• Build the VET Workforce
• Expand up-skilling and re-skilling opportunities
• Drive for higher skills and progression

2023 Skills Plan Actions

• Develop an inclusive VET system for learners
• Pursue VET qualifications redesign
• Empower self-determination
• Improve opportunities for Victorians with disability
• Prepare VET for future jobs
• Build an integrated postsecondary school system
• Embed applied research in VET

Completed actions from the 2022 Skills Plan

Completed actions from the 2023 Skills Plan

Actions underway

(discussed in the Skills Plan Implementation Update)

• Create innovative solutions to support future skills development
• Align qualifications to new needs
• Develop a VET workforce strategy for Victoria
• Drive for higher skills and progression through education and training
• Pursue VET qualification redesign
• Empower self-determination for First Nations peoples
• Improve opportunities for Victorians with disability
• Deliver the skills Victoria needs through an integrated postsecondary school system
• Embed applied research in the vocational education model

National aspirations for a renewed approach to vocational education and higher rates of tertiary education attainment set new ambitions for the nation. Shared responsibilities between governments require a new approach to stewardship.

The National Skills Agreement

The five-year National Skills Agreement (NSA) between the Commonwealth and state and territory governments sets out new expectations for vocational education such as developing a skilled workforce, lifting quality toward excellence and responding to the learning needs of students to meet their aspirations in life. Central to the NSA is strong collaboration between TAFEs, universities and industry, including through TAFE Centres of Excellence.

The success of the NSA rests on shared stewardship of vocational education. The agreement acknowledges the direct role of states and territories and the shared objectives between governments. Shared stewardship, built on the key role of industry in vocational education – with TAFEs at the heart and reflecting the needs of learners – is the new framework to drive for excellence and deliver state and national priorities for workforce development.¹

The Australian Universities Accord

Following a 12-month review of the Australian higher education system, the Australian Universities Accord Final Report provides recommendations to strengthen tertiary education in Australia so that all Australians can obtain the knowledge and skills to thrive in the jobs of the future. A central tenet of the Accord is to remove barriers to tertiary education participation and increase attainment across under-represented cohorts.

The Commonwealth Government has committed to the Accord’s target for 80 per cent of working-age Australians to have a VET or higher education qualification by 2050.² The Accord highlights opportunities for stronger alignment and collaboration between higher education and the VET sector in a more joined- up post-secondary system to better serve learners, industry and governments.

Through the Skills Plan, the Victorian Government is progressing national skills reform

This Skills Plan reflects the power of collaboration to deliver a joined-up approach for Victoria that recognises national priorities for post-secondary education and training. Working together with national stakeholders in a tripartite arrangement through Jobs and Skills Australia solidifies this approach.

The series of Skills Plans is one of Victoria’s key contributions to national skills reform and Victoria is well progressed in its efforts as one of the first jurisdictions to release a comprehensive Skills Plan. Through the Skills Plan’s work program, several priorities and policy initiatives from the NSA and the Accord are already being actioned, with the Victorian TAFE Network leading the way.

Covered in the Skills Plans

National Skills Agreement

• Increase access to foundation skills
• Close the Gap
• Support the Net Zero transformation
• Strengthen the VET Workforce
• Support gender equality
• Develop Australia’s digital capability

Universities Accord

• Increase First Nations participation
• Improve participation in post-secondary education for people with disability
• Support placement students

This section provides high level information on the 2024-2027 employment projections, highlights the role of skills in training in meeting workforce demand for key government priorities such as housing and clean energy and emphasises the importance of apprentices and trainees in delivering those priorities.

Over the next three years, around 392,000 new workers are expected to enter the Victorian labour market.⁴ This includes 168,000 workers in new jobs and 224,000 workers to replace retiring workers.⁵ These new workers will be in addition to the 3.7 million workers already in Victoria.⁶

Health care and social assistance and construction are expected to be the highest growth industries over the next three to 10 years³

New workers expected by industry and occupations most in demand, 2024 to 2027

Across the 19 industries, around 392,000 new workers are expected to enter the Victorian labour market over the next three years.

Note: Occupations in demand are the top five ANZSCO four-digit occupations in each industry with the highest number of new workers expected between 2024 and 2027. New workers expected represents employment growth plus workers needed to replace retirements. Occupations that require VET qualifications are supported by government-subsidised training and fee-for-service training. For more detail, see the Employment Projections Dashboard. The number of early childhood (pre-primary school) teachers does not reflect recent changes to the rollout schedule of the Best Start, Best Life reforms announced as part of the 2024/25 Victorian Budget.

Source: DJSIR and VSA modelling, 2024.

Occupations in demand in construction by industry subdivision

Note: VET pathways into construction occupations were selected based on whether the qualification had a medium or higher training need for the associated occupation and on the number of enrolments.

Source: DJSIR and VSA modelling, 2024.

Apprentices and trainees play a vital role in Victoria's economy and the delivery of its infrastructure and clean economy agenda, including delivering better transport, more affordable housing and renewable energy.

The Victorian TAFE Network continues to play a critical role in apprenticeship training. In 2023, there were around 72,000 apprentices and trainees in Victoria, with 72 per cent in the trades.⁹ Around 94 per cent of people who completed their apprenticeships continued in employment after training.¹⁰ Over 1,500 apprentices or trainees employed by a Group Training Organisation have worked on Big Build projects.

Victoria’s Apprenticeship Employment Network (AEN) employs and supports Victorian apprentices and trainees, and facilitates broad skills development through placement with several employers during their training.

Occupations in demand will require a growing number of apprentices in carpentry, electrotechnology and plumbing. Trainees will also play an important role in the health care and social assistance industry to meet growing demand for ageing and disability caring, nursing and early childhood education.

Selected occupations in demand and VET pathways

*Required to become a qualified tradesperson in the occupation

A rapid expansion of the clean economy workforce is critical to support the transition to a low-carbon economy and achieve Victoria’s emissions reduction targets.

The clean economy transition is transforming many existing jobs through new skills needs and emerging technologies. This provides Victorians with opportunities to re-skill, up-skill and move into new sectors. The State Electricity Commission (SEC) Centre of Training Excellence will be established to support the attraction, training and retention of Victoria’s clean economy workforce. At the same time, the Victorian Government has enshrined the SEC in Victoria's Constitution, providing certainty to accelerate the renewable energy transition.

As of June 2024, Victoria has an approved pipeline of 72 solar energy projects, seven wind energy projects, 18 battery energy projects and three bioenergy projects.¹¹ These projects – mainly located in regional Victoria, will contribute towards the low-carbon economy transition and create jobs. The clean economy transition also presents opportunities to grow the skilled workforce needed for critical minerals production and associated industries.

A strong local manufacturing capability, supported by a highly-skilled workforce is enabling a successful clean economy transition. The Victorian Government has supported the expansion of manufacturers’ production capacity and capability to support the transition to a circular economy with net-zero emissions and low-emission technologies.¹²

The demand for clean economy skills and jobs is increasing

The Victorian labour market is already seeing growing demand for clean economy related skills, particularly in air quality and emissions, and conservation.

Many critical occupations that support the renewable energy transition, from generation to distribution and supply, are already in high demand in other sectors of the economy, particularly construction – for example, construction managers, electricians, and electrical engineers.¹³

Established and emerging renewable technologies will bring demand for a specific set of occupations and skills. For example, the proposed offshore wind Star of the South project in Gippsland will require divers, environment and approvals managers, and rope access managers and technicians.¹⁴

Selected VET pathways into clean economy jobs

• Certificate III in Plumbing
• Certificate III in Electrotechnology Electrician
• Certificate III in Engineering – Mechanical Trade
• Certificate III in Light Vehicle Mechanical Technology
• Certificate III in Air Conditioning and Refrigeration
• Certificate III in Automotive Electrical Technology
• Certificate IV in Engineering
• Certificate IV in Building and Construction

This section covers focus areas related to the need for stronger foundation skills and building the digital capability of Victoria’s workforce. It also looks provides the case for re-design of VET qualifications to meet industry and learner needs.

Foundation skills including language, literacy, numeracy, and digital skills are critical for people to participate in work and in society.

The need for these skills extends to hands-on trade occupations in construction, and patient-focused roles in the care economy. For example, carpenters need to have strong literacy skills to understand and implement occupational health and safety regulations at work. Moreover, nurses and ageing and disability carers need digital skills to use digital tools for reporting and patient records management.

Low levels of foundation skills create issues for learners, workers and employers alike

Around one in four Victorians have low levels of foundation skills.¹⁵

Learners with low levels of foundation skills often struggle to complete their education and training. They can find it difficult to understand course content and undertake placements.

Workers with low levels of foundation skills can find it difficult to obtain secure work, have limited development opportunities and face periods of unemployment or underemployment.¹⁶

Employers report that workers with low levels of foundation skills can need extra support in the workplace to complete documents, implement safe practices, and work and communicate within a team.¹⁷

Victoria’s skills system supports learners to develop their foundation skills

Victoria’s Adult, Community and Further Education (ACFE) sector delivers foundation skills to the broadest section of the community to develop their skills and confidence to pursue further education and employment. The sector supports many educationally disadvantaged Victorians who may include disengaged young people, people without Year 12 or higher qualifications, unemployed people, and low-skilled and vulnerable workers.¹⁸ In 2023, the ACFE sector supported more than 28,000 Victorians through 229 contracted Learn Local providers, including adult education institutions.¹⁹

In accredited vocational education and training, the Victorian Government added the Literacy and Numeracy Support (LN Support) program to the Free TAFE list. This program provides wrap around literacy and numeracy supports for learners across all TAFE courses, and supports better outcomes for students, including completions. Since 2023, the program has supported more than 3,500 people in Victoria.²⁰

Through the Training Needs List funded under Skills First, many foundation skills courses and skill sets are offered to Victorians. The Victorian TAFE Network also offers additional supports to learners to strengthen their foundation skills, including career coaches and advisors.

Opportunities exist to deliver strong foundation skills to more Victorians

Skills reforms underway present opportunities to increase the delivery of foundation skills. These include:

• the NSA’s $19 million commitment to Victoria to deliver more foundation skills training under the NSA initiative, Ensuring Access to Foundation Skills.²¹
• national VET qualification reform²² that will pilot new models of foundation skills qualifications to build equity and productivity.²³

VET has a long history of providing learners with job-ready skills and meeting Victoria’s skills needs.

The VET qualifications system can be strengthened

Across the economy, the nature of work is changing. Workers need to undertake more cognitive and non-routine tasks, increasing the need for better knowledge and understanding to complement skills.

While many VET qualifications are fit for purpose and lead to strong employment outcomes, others would benefit from better design to improve their value and resulting job options.

Importantly, the current one-size-fits-all competency-based approach that focuses on performing specific tasks (rather than developing the broader knowledge and understanding needed across the workforce) is putting learners at a disadvantage.

New qualification models can help learners

Proposed new qualification models

Occupation-specific qualifications

These qualifications will continue to be highly specialised for occupations that rely on specific technical skills, especially to meet regulatory or licensing requirements (such as the licensed trades). Many of these qualifications are working well and will be retained.

In construction, for example, occupation-specific qualifications include the Certificate III in Electrotechnology Electrician and Certificate III in Carpentry.

Industry-specific qualifications

Industry-specific qualifications seek to provide learners with a common core of (transferable) skills and knowledge needed across an industry and improve intra-industry job mobility. Such qualifications could benefit a range of sectors, including agriculture and manufacturing – supporting Australia’s sovereign capability and food security.

The broader transferable skills that arise from these qualifications provide a good base for re-skilling within an industry – through recognition of prior learning or credit transfer for example – in response to emerging workforce demands and structural or technological changes within an industry. Recognition of skills for industry-wide application also improves workforce adaptability and supports industries with flexibility in deploying skills. For example, these industry-specific qualifications could better support carers for older Victorians to transition into disability care.

In the Victorian construction industry, these qualifications would aid the mobility of qualified and experienced workers across different areas of construction (such as housing, public infrastructure and clean energy projects), improve career progression and wages for construction workers and help meet emerging construction demands that require a skilled and adaptable workforce.

Vocational learning qualifications

These new qualifications will incorporate skills and knowledge applicable across many industries to help individuals up-skill, for example in digital and management skills. Such qualifications would lift the capability of graduates to be effectively prepared for a broad range of roles in the economy.

The Future Skills Organisation is trialling the principles of cross-industry qualifications by designing new cross-industry digital units of learning that align with five focus areas from the Australian Digital Capability Framework. These include information and data literacy; communication and collaboration; digital content creation; protection and safety; and technical proficiency and problem solving.

Designing new qualifications models

Designing new qualifications models reflects the aspirations of learners for qualifications that are relevant, engaging and valuable to building their careers.

In 2023, Skills and Workforce Ministers established the tripartite Qualification Reform Design Group to investigate new models for qualifications that will provide benefits to both learners, workers and industry.

For learners, new qualification models will make the VET system easier to navigate and support broader career pathways.

For workers, a clearer focus on transferable skills – acquired through formal learning and on the job – will help them switch jobs and adapt to new working situations or changes in work practices.

For industry, new qualification models will produce graduates with transferable skills for a wide range of jobs within an industry to efficiently meet workforce needs.

Self-accreditation for the Victorian TAFE Network could be used to reshape curriculum more regularly to provide Victorian students with contemporary training relevant to new technologies and modern jobs. This would encourage innovation and help the VET curriculum be more responsive to new and emerging skills needs.

Innovative qualifications can be developed in Victoria

Through its strong TAFE Network and local industry engagement, Victoria can pilot innovative VET qualifications.

The VSA is working closely with Jobs and Skills Councils, which have been commissioned to design and test new qualification models. For example, the VSA is collaborating with the Victorian Automotive Chamber of Commerce and the Mining and Automotive Skills Alliance to streamline 14 existing qualifications into fewer, broader qualifications that provide the shared skills needed for pathways into the automotive sector.

There is scope for Victoria to pilot new construction qualifications for key industry areas including Modern Methods of Construction. The qualifications could be co-designed with industry to produce well-rounded graduates who can easily transition through the construction industry and the broader labour market.

The VSA is working with industry to co-design a new educational offering in the sustainable construction industry and the Victorian Government has committed $7 million for the development of new renewable energy VET certificates and other qualifications including in sustainable construction.

The Certificate II in Building and Construction Pre-apprenticeship allows the integration of sustainable building modules from the construction training package. Passive House principles such as energy efficiency and sustainable living can be introduced to provide skills in sustainable practices to help Victoria achieve net zero while building the future.²⁴

Developing a digitally skilled workforce is critical to take advantage of new technologies and improve labour productivity.

Digital skills are needed to engage with a wide range of technologies in work and life. Almost 90 per cent of the workforce, including in health, retail, manufacturing and agriculture need digital skills; for example, to use productivity software tools such as spreadsheets or messaging and collaboration tools.

Acquiring strong digital skills requires good knowledge of digital processes and tools and learning that is contextualised in a work setting. In Victoria, through the Skills Solutions Partnerships program, RMIT, Grampians Health and Cisco are piloting a new co-designed approach to uplift digital capabilities that are specific to the health workforce and looking into new approaches to deliver digital training across health occupations.

Leveraging digital technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, could improve labour productivity. For example, AI helps health care professionals improve diagnoses and monitor patients’ vital signs.²⁵ To make the most of these opportunities, Victorians must have the digital knowledge and skills needed to use and adapt to new technologies.

The demand for advanced digital skills is growing

From 2014 to 2022, the Victorian technology workforce increased by 100,000 to reach 279,000 workers and employment is expected to keep growing over the next decade. Information technology (IT) encompasses a range of technologies and systems that store, receive or send information.²⁶

AI, machine learning and generative AI tools are impacting skills needs and reshaping IT jobs. Around 39 per cent of Victorian IT businesses use AI and Machine Learning and nearly 30 per cent of IT job advertisements in Victoria mention the need for cloud computing skills and 15 percent mention the need for cyber security skills.²⁷

Emerging digital skills are in demand among IT occupations

Responding to the rapidly changing digital skills needed in IT jobs is essential

Given the rapid changes in skills needed to keep pace with emerging technology in IT jobs, learners and businesses are increasingly using internal or industry-specific training, in addition to formal qualifications.

The Victorian Government is making significant investments to boost the digital skills of the state’s workforce. This includes the Digital Jobs program, Free TAFE courses in IT and cyber security, and shorter forms of training including the Victorian Government Cyber Internship Program, and the Women in Security Program.

Vocational education can do more to deliver knowledge and skills that prepare students to engage with current and emerging technologies.

The Future Skills Organisation (FSO) is responsible for developing national VET training products for the technology workforce and is currently undertaking a review of the ICT Training Package.

In developing the training package, consideration should be given to the following principles to improve the employability of graduates:

• Broader outcomes would allow learners to adapt to new and emerging technologies. Adopting an international common language for digital skills that describes skills and competencies, such as the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA), rather than specific software or tools would help Australia align with global best practice.
• More applied project-based learning would support students to develop better problem-solving and analytical skills to meet industry standards
• More co-design with industry would help learners develop relevant skills for jobs in demand.

Boosting female participation in digital careers is important

Women are under-represented in the IT industry. In Victoria, women comprise only 28 per cent of the technology workforce and 17 per cent of the cyber security workforce.²⁸

The Victorian Government is working to boost female participation in IT training and in the IT sector. More women in the IT sector will help meet skills needs and contribute to greater diversity and productivity.

The Digital Jobs program is helping more women move into technology careers, with women representing 59 per cent of program participants and accounting for the majority of the participants who then move into digital roles.²⁹

The Victorian Women in Security program is helping more women move into in-demand cyber security roles by providing training, career coaching and mentoring.³⁰

The SummerTech LIVE program supported 500 tertiary ICT students and recent graduates start their technology careers through 10-12 week paid studentships at small-to-medium sized Victorian businesses.³¹

The success of these programs can be leveraged to inform skilling responses that attract more women into IT training and in-demand jobs such as cybersecurity as well as increase the representation of women in leadership roles in the industry.

Micro-credentials co-designed with industry build the pipeline of digital talent

Micro-credentials continue to successfully up-skill workers with full qualifications, particularly in IT.

The Digital Jobs program has re-skilled over 5,000 mid-career Victorians for jobs in the digital economy. The program offers 12 week of micro-credential training delivered by leading training institutions including Victorian TAFEs. Victoria University Polytechnic and Bendigo Kangan Institute have offered Digital Jobs micro-credentials in key areas including cyber security, programming, software development and IT operations and support. The program has helped participants move into higher paying jobs in the digital economy.

This section emphasises the need to better recognise the existing skills of workers through strengthening Recognition of Prior Learning as well as advocating to the Commonwealth Government on expanding financial support available to VET learners, better wages for apprentices and payments for student placements.

To meet high workforce demands in sectors like construction and care, Victorians must be able to up-skill and re-skill without unnecessary barriers.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) assesses competency acquired through informal learning (such as work experience, life experience, and self-directed study)³² to determine if requirements for a unit of study are met.

A well-functioning RPL process benefits workers and employers.

• Skilled workers avoid unnecessary training and focus on bridging their training gap to obtain formal qualifications.³³
• Employers access a greater pool of skilled workers who have the formal recognition that they require.³⁴

Victoria has successfully used RPL to help workers transition into priority industries such as clean energy

Mine workers affected by the closure of the Hazelwood power plant in the Latrobe Valley were able to have their work experience recognised through RPL to gain a Certificate III in Civil Construction, or a pathway to tertiary studies via the Certificate IV in Engineering – the latter allows workers to shift towards renewable energy (offshore wind).³⁵ RPL can be used alongside other government supports for workers in transitioning industries.

The Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions (DJSIR) funded Chisholm Institute of TAFE to develop an RPL toolkit and gap training course for the Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care. This will support early childhood educators to use their work experience and previous qualifications to obtain the new Certificate III qualification, which is now a pre-requisite for the Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care under new national regulations.³⁶

The toolkit will be shared across the Victorian TAFE Network to support the workforce needs of the Victorian Government’s Best Start, Best Life reforms.³⁷ RPL toolkits could support other occupations in the care economy, as done previously in aged and disability care.

Strengthening RPL

RPL can be strengthened to help Victoria meet its significant workforce demands and to remedy the high costs RPL currently imposes on all parties involved.

Experienced workers find it easier to study than obtain recognition for their work experience. This is due to the higher cost and time constraints of compiling the evidence required for RPL to meet units of competency, compared to completing a new course of study.

Employers may have negative perceptions of RPL due to concerns about the relevance of candidates’ qualifications and experience. Consequently, they may prefer training over existing skills recognition.³⁸

Training providers find it time consuming and expensive to assess RPL. This is driven by the lack of guidance and clear criteria for assessing work experience for RPL processes.

RPL can also be difficult as learners need to demonstrate competency through requirements in VET qualifications that, in some cases, can be prescriptive. The proposed re-design of VET qualifications will help address this barrier. Exploring approaches to skills recognition as the basis for RPL could better support workers transitioning between industries.

While a strengthened RPL process will be easier to use, safeguards are needed to strike the right balance between ease of use and granting RPL to workers who genuinely hold the skills to meet the standard of completing the related subject or qualification.

Improved RPL can support the construction industry

Currently, 373,000 people are employed in the Victorian construction industry.³⁹ While many construction workers are VET qualified, more than 116,000 do not hold any post-secondary school qualifications.⁴⁰

Supporting these workers to obtain qualifications through RPL could help them up-skill through gap training and assist in addressing skills shortages in construction, which will facilitate the delivery of the government’s infrastructure priorities such as the Big Build and Housing Statement.

This section provides insights into expanding loan assistance for VET learners, and increasing financial supports for apprentices and student placements.

4.2.1 Expand Loan assistance for VET learners

Victoria’s Free TAFE initiative makes it easier for more Victorians to access training to get the skills they need. Free TAFE supplements other government initiatives, including Skills First, VET Delivered to School Students and school-based apprenticeships and traineeships.

Free TAFE covers the cost of tuition fees for many courses, helping many Victorians who may not have the financial capacity to pay for their studies. Since 2019, over 170,500 Victorians accessed Free TAFE, saving them $460 million in tuition fees.

Following Victoria’s success with Free TAFE, the Commonwealth Government funded $107 million of fee-free TAFE, giving 62,800 more Victorians access to training in areas of need.⁴¹ It also announced 5,200 fee-free TAFE places in construction and housing, available to Victorians from January 2025.⁴²

Disparities in Commonwealth Government funding between VET and higher education have a negative impact on learners

For learners who cannot access VET through Free TAFE or Skills First, loan assistance from the Commonwealth Government is another option.

While most higher education students can access the Higher Education Contribution Scheme and Higher Education Loan Program (HECS-HELP),⁴³ VET learners who cannot access Victorian Government support must pay their tuition fees up front or incur a 20 per cent loan application fee if they undertake a Commonwealth Government funded VET Student Loan.⁴⁴ VET Student Loans are also subject to loan caps, with some only covering around $6,000.⁴⁵

Funding disparities may lead to learners not choosing the training pathway that suits them best, with VET pathways at a disadvantage.⁴⁶ Research shows that VET diplomas and advanced diplomas are substitutes for higher education graduate diplomas and Bachelor degrees in the labour market.⁴⁷ However, more Commonwealth loan assistance is available for higher education qualifications than for diplomas, distorting student choice.⁴⁸

Expanding the Commonwealth Government’s VET Student Loans will be beneficial

Greater Commonwealth Government investment in the VET Student Loans scheme can help meet its commitment to lifting tertiary attainment to better meet industry needs. A loan scheme is an attractive option for expansion at this scale, as students repay their loans when they start earning above the income threshold.

The Commonwealth Government is making it easier to repay these loans by cutting 20 per cent of all existing student loans by June 2025.⁴⁹

An extended Commonwealth Government’s VET Student Loans scheme could cover more Diplomas and Advanced Diplomas and certain Certificate III and IV level courses with high-quality learning experiences and strong employment outcomes. The loan caps could be increased to cover the full cost of a course with consideration given to students’ capacity to repay.

Funding must be accompanied by suitable oversight

The VET Student Loan scheme currently extends to fewer than 100 VET courses. An expansion of the scheme should be accompanied by suitable national oversight of the VET system, to make sure any expansion of the scheme strengthens the VET system and leaves learners better off.

4.2.2 Better wages for apprentices and payments for student placements

Low wages for apprentices and mandatory unpaid placements for students are significant barriers to training completion, which are exacerbated by current cost of living pressures.

Apprentices are impacted by low wages

Apprentices play a critical role in Victoria’s transformative agenda to deliver better transport, more affordable housing and more renewable energy to all Victorians.

The Fair Work Commission sets the minimum wage rates for apprentices, generally as a percentage of the relevant adult rate in modern awards. Their wages increase after each year of their apprenticeship, or for some awards, on achieving a proportion of the required units of competency.⁵⁰ While some employers pay above the award, most apprentices are disproportionately impacted by very low wages which are often below the national minimum wage, particularly in the initial stages or years of an apprenticeship commenced before the age of 21.

Low wages are a key barrier to commencing and completing an apprenticeship, especially for mature-aged workers.⁵¹

The Victorian Government is advocating for more financial supports for apprentices

The Victorian Government advocated to the Fair Work Commission in March 2024 to consider the viability and fairness of increasing apprentice wages via the Annual Wage Review process.⁵²

The Commonwealth Government is undertaking a Strategic Review of the Australian Apprenticeship Incentive System to identify how payments for apprentices and employers in priority occupations can be improved to increase completion rates and address skill shortages.⁵³ The Victorian Government will continue to advocate for fair wages for apprentices.

Students are impacted by mandatory unpaid placements

Health care and social assistance is Victoria’s largest and fastest growing industry. Given the high demand for skilled workers in the care sector, financially supporting learners to complete their placements should be a priority.

For students who are not undertaking a paid traineeship, mandatory unpaid placements can disproportionately affect women. Many learners in female-dominated occupations such as nursing, social work and teaching need to undertake mandatory unpaid placements for long periods of time (up to 1,000 hours, which is equivalent to six months of full-time work) and potentially relocate to obtain their qualifications.

The Victorian Government is providing cost-of-living supports for placement students in areas of demand such as nursing, midwifery, social work, and community services.⁵⁴

From July 2025, the Commonwealth Government will provide a weekly Prac Payment of $319.50 for 68,000 higher education students and 5,000 VET placement students across Australia in nursing, teaching and midwifery during their placements.⁵⁵

In improving financial supports for students undertaking mandatory unpaid placements, consideration should be given to promoting: parity between supports for VET and higher education students; financial supports that provide a decent standard of living; and coverage of all occupations in demand or in shortage in the care economy (such as ageing and disability carers and nursing support and personal care workers). The duration and requirements of some work placements should also be considered.

Offering VET pathways in school is making a difference

An increasing number of Victorian students are enrolling in VET in school.⁵⁶ VET Delivered to School Students (VDSS) is available in Victorian Government schools and allows secondary school students to undertake VET to complete their Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE), including the VCE Vocational Major (VCE VM) and the Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC).

The VDSS program allows students to undertake structured workplace learning placements to gain practical hands-on experience in industry as part of their studies and learn about the multiple career options within an industry. This makes it easier for students to understand the benefits of VDSS and inform subject selection.

VDSS priority pathways includes VET certificates that align with Victoria’s growth industries and government priorities, such as renewable energy, construction, the care economy and digital technologies. Flexible pathways include additional VET certificates that are aligned to students’ interests, regional demand, and community needs. It is the aspiration for all government schools to offer all six priority pathways and two flexible pathways.

Now rolled out to all government secondary schools, Head Start is a nation-leading program that allows students to commence SBATs. Designed in consultation with industry, the program helps students start their career by developing the hands-on skills and experience that employers need. Students spend time doing this paid, on-the-job training while completing their VCE, VCE VM or VPC at school.

In 2025, two VCE VM studies – Work Related Skills and Personal Development Skills – will be available for schools to offer to all VCE students, giving them the opportunity to learn skills and knowledge in the context of ‘real life’ experiences. By building student aspiration for vocational pathways at school, the reforms are keeping young people engaged in education, helping them finish school with skill-based learning, an employability edge and their VCE.

Connecting school students to the world of work is essential

School students can explore work-based learning opportunities and gain exposure to different industries and occupations through industry incursions or excursions, engagement with Tech Schools, work experience and vocational taster programs. The latter are short, immersive experiences to learn more about a vocation or industry.

These programs are a valuable exploration for students to support decision making about future learning pathways, including undertaking VET certificates as part of their secondary schooling.

By providing young people with hands- on experience in a work-based setting during school, VET, Head Start, and vocational tasters can help dispel negative perceptions about particular industries, and promote the breadth of training and career pathways available to students.

One of the VET in school programs with the highest enrolments is the Certificate II in Building and Construction Pre-apprenticeship that prepares students for a future career in construction.

Pre-apprenticeships can help students prepare for, and obtain, an apprenticeship in their chosen industry as well as boost apprenticeship completion rates.

TAFEs and other training providers help pre-apprenticeship students transition into an apprenticeship and this transition can be strengthened to improve apprenticeship take up and completion.

Better information will benefit students and their influencers

The Victorian Government provides many resources to help students and their influencers navigate through study and career options. For instance, every Victorian Government school student can access a career diagnostic tool in Year 9 to inform their choices for senior secondary school and beyond by exploring their strengths, interests and career opportunities. It can also help identify work-based learning opportunities of interest.

The Victorian Government can further improve access to, and the relevance of, post-school training information. This can keep students engaged in education by reinforcing the value of completing Year 12 and help them make informed study choices that align with their career aspirations.

Strengthening school awareness of products like the VSA’s Employment Projections Dashboard supports schools to keep students informed of future skills demand and promising career pathways. Up-to-date career information must remain accessible to parents or guardians, as they have significant influence over the education decisions of their children.

The Victorian Government can also continue to enhance the promotion of VET in schools to employers. It would encourage more employers to engage with schools and provide students with a workplace learning experience or placement. Employers may also be more willing to offer SBATs through Head Start, which helps businesses by matching students with employers and providing follow-up so that the employer-student relationship is sustainable.

Shared responsibility underpins the approach to education and training across Australia, as reflected in the National Skills Agreement and the Universities Accord.

Victoria has adopted a shared responsibility model for some time. The VSA works with the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions, Apprenticeships Victoria and the Office of TAFE Coordination and Delivery to set and respond to skills priorities in Victoria. The VSA also acts as a central point for determining and communicating skills in demand through engaging closely with industry and learners.

The insights in the Skills Plan signal a strong Victorian economy and show that skilled workers are needed across most industries.

This is why the VSA is recommending further work to reshape vocational qualifications so VET graduates are prepared for a wider range of roles in the workforce. At the same time, workers who have acquired skills through experience must be assisted – through improved Recognition of Prior Learning – to have those skills recognised so they can pursue new career opportunities.

Building and construction feature strongly in this year’s Skills Plan, with plans to lift the state’s housing stock over the next decade and to build new energy generation, storage, transmission and distribution systems. The care economy underpins the health and well-being of Victorians and continues to need highly-skilled workers. The digital economy, which supplements and even transforms existing industries, is seeing growing demand for specific digital skills. This highlights the need to lift digital literacy for more workers.

Core skills such as literacy, numeracy and digital literacy are key to developing technical and human skills and improving productivity and wages. Cognitive skills are ever more important. Teaching and learning that recognise the criticality of these skills is the next stage of reform in vocational education and training.

Better connecting school students to the world of work will help them find the career pathway that suits them best and achieve the most out of their schooling.

This year’s Skills Plan benefited from insights through the VSA’s Industry Advisory Groups and other regular engagement channels and webinars. The VSA’s Advisory Board continues to add rich perspective to the priorities and recommendations set out in each Plan.