'We need Australians better trained for the jobs businesses are looking to create'
Australia may soon be changing gears in terms of its economic recovery plan – shifting from JobKeeper and JobSeeker subsidy programs to the upcoming JobMaker initiatives.
JobMaker is aimed at upskilling and reskilling Australians, and enhancing trade skills development and industrial relations in the country.
READ MORE: JobKeeper: Will the government soon slash the wage subsidy?
“Changing Australia’s skills and training system will be a JobMaker priority for national recovery, as we look to create jobs in a labour market undergoing major change,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison told the National Press Club this week.
“We need Australians better trained for the jobs businesses are looking to create,” he said.
A newly established National Skills Commission will closely examine the type of skills needed across industries, and will monitor gaps between the talent supply and demand on a yearly basis.
But the program will give priority to vocational skills training over university education, and fast-track employment in vocational trades. When faced with the current complexity of Australia’s trade skills development, potential students often “default to the university system, even if their career could be best enhanced through vocational education,” Morrison said.
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JobMaker is the next step in Australia’s recovery program in light of the COVID-19 economic crisis. And while JobKeeper and JobSeeker benefits have been designed more as an emergency response, the programs can only be temporary, the prime minister said.
“In the short term, demand stimulus by government can boost your economy,” Morrison said. The government, however, is now beginning to think of long-term solutions.
“At some point, you’ve got to get your economy out of ICU. You’ve got to get it off the medication before it becomes too accustomed to it,” he said.
Morrison is calling on Australians to work together to ‘create momentum’ and ‘rebuild confidence’ in this business sector as the country reopens after the COVID-19 lockdown. He warned, however, that recovery could take three to five years.