The latest ABS Work-Related Training and Adult Learning survey results show approximately one-third (34%) of all Australians reported participating in some form of work-related education and training in the previous year.
While that is a sizeable amount – almost 7 million people, it is down from 39 percent in 2020–21 (although in making comparisons, we should keep in mind the fact that 2020 was the start of the COVID-19 pandemic – when people had worries about job security and unemployment, and enrolments in VET and higher education rose).
Participation in both formal study and work-related training fell to around 19 percent each in the latest survey. When looking back to 2013, the survey found 22 percent of people engaged in formal study (a small drop in the intervening decade), but 27 percent were engaged in workplace-based training – signifying a large drop of almost 10 percent in people doing workplace-based training.
This suggests that, despite ongoing policy attention on skills and workforce development, fewer adults are engaging in learning overall, even as technology and other factors are now rapidly changing job roles and activities in many occupations.
For the VET sector, one of the most important findings is the level of participation in work-related training. Less than one in five Australians (19%) did some workplace-based training in 2024-25. This low level might suggest that either employers are investing less in training, or that workers are finding it harder to access training opportunities. It also suggests that there are opportunities and challenges for VET providers wanting to work with employers to upskill their workforce.
The survey highlights that time pressures are now the biggest barrier to learning. Among people who wanted to undertake training but did not do so, 44 percent said they had too much work or not enough time. Financial barriers are also important, with costs cited as a key issue, and 17 percent of those who did training reporting they paid some of the cost themselves.
There were also important differences across groups of learners. Younger people were unsurprisingly much more likely to be in formal study, while work-related training was more common among people in mid-career age groups.
Participation was lower for people with disability (28% compared to 36% for those who did not have a disability or restrictive condition), and there are ongoing geographic challenges, with people in outer regional and remote areas more likely to report (42%) that courses were not available.
Overall, the survey paints a picture of a system where demand for skills development exists, and participation is being constrained by practical barriers rather than a lack of interest. Many people undertake study to improve their job prospects or to learn new skills, but competing work pressures, costs, and access issues are limiting engagement.
For the VET sector, the key implications are that growing participation will require not just more course offerings, but more flexible delivery, stronger employer engagement, and targeted support for underrepresented groups.
