Jobs and Skills Australia’s First Nations VET Workforce Research Paper looks at both the opportunities and persistent structural barriers shaping participation and outcomes for First Nations people working in VET.
It starts by noting some good news – that there is a “higher rate of increase in First Nations representation in the VET workforce (+18%) than that of the broader population (+1%)”, but also adds that “this research demonstrates the First Nations VET workforce requires urgent expansion and stronger advocacy.”
That is because:
- “First Nations representation in the VET workforce was 2% in 2021, compared to 2.2% of the whole Australian workforce and a 3.8% share of the population.
- NCVER analysis suggests that Indigenous students make up 5.6% of all domestic students enrolled in VET qualifications.
- First Nations students achieve better outcomes when taught by First Nations teachers, trainers and assessors… (and)
- Under-representation of First Nations peoples in the workforce is most pronounced in regional areas—the same regions where national priorities require more VET-trained workers and more VET teachers, trainers and assessors to deliver that training.”
First Nations people working in VET are more likely to be employed fulltime (68%), compared to First Nations people working in the wider workforce (56%) which suggests that employment in VET is more stable for First Nations people than employment in other industries, even though the research also finds that First Nations people working in VET “experience greater income volatility and earn lower median weekly income compared to the overall VET teaching workforce.” This may in part be due to the fact that First Nations people in VET are more likely to be working in learning support roles (12%) compared to the overall VET workforce (4.3%), and less likely to be teachers, trainers and assessors (VET workforce 48.5%, First Nations VET workforce 40%).
A key insight from the report is the importance of community-connected and culturally safe training environments. Programs that are co-designed with First Nations communities, incorporate local knowledge, and are delivered by trusted providers show stronger engagement and retention outcomes.
Another important insight is that “compliance requirements (in VET) have intensified and that training for teachers, trainers and assessors is now focussed on compliance with training package requirements. The resulting ‘compliance mindset’ reduces the ability of First Nations staff to bring First Nations understandings into their work in VET. This makes recruitment to identified roles more difficult and reduces job satisfaction.”
The report emphasises that culturally responsive pedagogy is not an “add-on” but is central to effective VET delivery for First Nations learners, and suggests that enabling RTOs to adjust curriculum requirements to local circumstances and allowing teachers more autonomy could help balance the growing ‘compliance mindset’.
The research also identified the often unrecognised workload First Nations staff have with respect to ‘cultural load’. That is, the additional unpaid responsibilities First Nations workers have or feel they have in their workplaces for First Nations issues. Keeping this in mind will be important as non-Indigenous RTOs look to continue to grow and support their First Nations workforce and thus improve outcomes for First Nations students and communities.
