At the end of the year the Productivity Commission released five reports from inquiries it was asked by the Federal Treasurer to undertake as a means of identifying how to improve productivity.
The five inquiries were focussed on:
- Creating a more dynamic and resilient economy
- Building a skilled and adaptable workforce
- Harnessing data and digital technology
- Delivering quality care more efficiently
- Investing in cheaper, cleaner energy and the net zero transformation.
The recommendations in the ‘skilled and adaptable workforce’ report – identify the need to improve credit transfer between VET and higher education – including suggesting that “all universities should have a clear, comprehensive and easily accessible source of information about likely credit outcomes so that prospective students can understand what credit they are likely to receive and compare credit across institutions.”
With respect to strengthening RPL (Recommendation 2.3) – the implications for VET could be significant if implemented. The Commission recommends encouraging Jobs and Skills Councils to “lead work on developing toolkits to support consistency and streamlining of RPL assessment practices in high-priority and high-volume pathways (where appropriate).” They also suggest ASQA could consider “expanding independent validation or requiring RTOs to be accredited to provide RPL assessments” as a means of improving trust in RPL.
With respect to increasing the recognition of work-related training – the Commission lends its weight to further development of the National Skills Passport and the use of microcredentials. And to support more small and medium-sized enterprises to invest in training, the Commission recommends that the Australian government pilot “a co-funded package of vouchers to provide work-related training… and advisory support through a consultation to diagnose skills needs, co-design a short training plan, and disseminate materials… to help SMEs measure the impact of training over time.”
Finally, the Commission focuses on occupational licensing and opportunities to streamline inconsistent regulations and improve productivity. In doing so they look at a few different examples of licensing for different occupations in different jurisdictions.
VDC News was surprised to learn, for example, that it is only in New South Wales and South Australia where hairdressers need to hold a Certificate III qualification to practice. The Commission’s analysis shows that hairdresser safety (measured by workers compensation claims) and consumer satisfaction (measured using Google Reviews of 9,900 hairdressers across the country) “are not strongly correlated with qualification requirements” and that other states and territories instead use a range of quality, workplace health and safety laws, and consumer safety laws to regulate hairdressing. They suggest moving away from a qualifications-based approach to licensing would improve productivity.
