Former Department of Education Secretary Dr Michelle Bruniges AM has concluded her independent review of Jobs and Skills Australia – which was required under the agency’s establishing legislation.

Bruniges found “that JSA is overwhelmingly seen as a trusted, independent source of data and evidence-based analysis on the labour market, workforce and skills needs.” She went on to add that the recommendations in her report “seek to enable JSA to build on its considerable progress to date and do not diminish JSA’s early success.”

The report contains recommendations focussed on:

  • Strengthening JSA’s strong independent advice to government – by JSA giving more explicit directions for further action in its reports, and government and the Secretary of the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) acknowledging JSA reports and advice.
  • Reducing duplication by JSA maintaining strong relationships with other agencies, formalising collaborative arrangements, adopting a ‘stewardship’ role with the Jobs and Skills Councils (JSCs), and making this clearer on the JSA website.
  • JSA providing more state and territory-level data, balancing qualitative and quantitative data, and establishing longitudinal datasets.
  • Expanding its consultations and offering webinars to explain its methodologies.
  • Improving its website to show progress on the reports it is working on and publishing more concise reports.
  • Strengthening relationships with key government agencies and ensuring reports are focussed on whole-of-government priorities.
  • Better engaging with industry, particularly smaller sectors and SMEs, enhancing inclusivity of engagement with the sector, and using two-way feedback with specific cohorts.
  • Reducing duplication with DEWR and the JSCs by better coordinating stakeholder engagement, reconsidering the use of Deeds of Confidentiality, and engaging more strategically with the sector including through JSA’s Ministerial Advisory Board. (MAB)
  • Allow sufficient time for consultations and better communicating when it is consulting.
  • JSA should remain as a statutory body attached to DEWR and have performance measures set for it which are reported in DEWR’s annual report.
  • Providing more clarity to stakeholders on the roles of the Secretary of DEWR, and the Commissioner, Deputy Commissioners, and Executive Director of JSA.
  • Making better use of the expertise of members of the MAB and ensuring both small and large jurisdictions are represented on it.
  • Adopting a 3-year work plan cycle with annual updates – and government should commit to funding certainty for JSA across the 3 year cycle.
  • The Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and the Minister for Skills and Training should issue a statement of expectations for JSA which it can build its workplans around.
  • There should be a formal Statement of Agreed Arrangements between DEWR and JSA; and

JSA should receive sufficient funding to deliver on its legislated framework and should be able to charge for commissioned work.