Chapter 2 - Attracting workers to the transport industry
On Friday I actually had to drive through this city because we
did not have a driver...I actually made the delivery because we had a commitment
to a customer that we had to meet...that is how serious it is – the state
manager of a major business in the transport industry, particularly the
removals industry, driving a truck because there were no other options.[1]
2.1
This chapter details the extent of labour shortages in the transport and
logistics industry. As noted in Chapter 1, the committee heard consistent
evidence that skills shortages arising from population ageing and worker
retirement are being made worse by difficulties in attracting new employees.
Young people and women are particularly difficult to engage, with reasons
commonly cited including poor industry image and ineffective recruitment
strategies. However, the committee also heard examples of effective strategies
to attract workers. These issues, as well as recommendations for addressing the
problem, are described below.
Areas of need
2.2
While the committee heard evidence of difficulty attracting workers in
all sectors of the industry, there are certain areas in which shortages, and
therefore the urgency for attracting new entrants, are most acute. According to
the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) the largest
employing occupations in the transport industry are drivers – of trucks, buses,
trams, taxis, and chauffeurs.[2]
The committee heard evidence from numerous witnesses of serious shortages in
these areas. For example, the Australian Trucking Association submitted that:
...the industry's skills shortage is worsening, especially for
drivers and diesel mechanics...It is not uncommon for regional carriers to have
their trucks parked for protracted periods of time, as there is no one
available to drive them. Whilst the trucks and trailers remain stationary,
freight to be moved continues to accumulate and debts for the trucks must be
funded.[3]
2.3
Similarly, Transport Forum WA told the committee that:
...the rate of turnover for truck drivers was equal to the average
of all industries with the high vacancy level primarily caused through growth.
The combination of an ageing workforce and maintained increases in the freight
task will exacerbate the current skills shortage. It is clear that with the
forecasts that predict a growth in the freight task of between 75 per cent and
100 per cent over the next decade there will need to be a significant
recruitment of drivers aged 25-34, particularly in the multi-combination
vehicle class, to address the potential gap.[4]
2.4
In relation to train drivers, the Australian Rail, Tram and Bus Industry
Union submitted that:
It is our experience that there is a shortage of locomotive
drivers. Whilst we acknowledge that there is no hard data, information coming
to the RTBU is highly indicative of such a shortage...employers have mentioned
from time to time that it is difficult to find locomotive drivers.[5]
2.5
Shortages in truck and train drivers can not only affect freight and
passenger transport, but also indirectly those industries relying on road and
rail transport. For example, in relation to ports and the maritime industry,
the Maritime Union of Australia noted that:
In order to handle the increased volumes, the stevedores will
need to undertake further investment and improve the efficiency of their
road-port and rail-port interfaces...an uncoordinated trucking task can have a
severe negative impact on port efficiency.[6]
2.6
Aside from driver shortages, there are also shortages in other areas of
the transport and logistics industry, including occupational groups classified
as skilled. The Department of Employment and Workplace relations submitted to
the committee that a quarter of jobs in the transport industry are classified as
skilled occupations, such as managers, professionals, associate professionals
and trade. Amongst these skilled occupations, there are pressing and widespread
shortages of motor mechanics, accountants and engineers. A particular problem
with shortages of accountants and engineers is that these occupations are
required in many professions, so the transport industry is competing for
skilled workers against these other industries.[7]
2.7
This proposition was supported by findings of the Transport and
Logistics Industry Skills Council survey, which showed that truck driving
skills represent an area of need, but that there are also shortages in:
...a number of ancillary and segmented industry roles, including
marine surveyors, lecturing staff, rail engineers, track workers, warehouse
trainees, freight forwarders and train drivers. Also mentioned was a growing
need for higher level skills in manager/supervisory positions, as well as the
ongoing impact of the increase in legislative and regulatory responsibilities
(requiring) management of subcontractors and issues relating to chain of
responsibility.[8]
2.8
Skills shortages in the maritime and aviation industries are influenced
not only by domestic employment dynamics, but also by global workforce
dynamics, due to the international nature of much air and sea transport
activity. Here, too, there is evidence of skills shortages, particularly in
skilled occupations. The Maritime Union of Australia stated that, in the
context of a global shortage of seafarers, there is a particularly acute
shortage of officers and engineers, and that a critical seafarer labour
shortage is emerging with the potential to disrupt the price of labour and the
orderly development of Australia's energy resources.[9]
In relation to the aviation sector, Qantas noted that:
Signals are beginning to indicate potential shortages of pilots
in the future, for example, already in Australia we are seeing the number of
student pilot licenses issued declining. This will have a significant impact on
the number of suitable applications for direct entry pilots and a consequential
direct flow on to the ability to meet demand for such labour...We are also
beginning to see a rise in the number of Australian pilots who are willing to
be based overseas to work for other carriers (for example,) Cathay Pacific,
Emirates, Dragon Air have all been taking on significant numbers of pilots from
Australia. As the demand for pilots globally increases without a concurrent
rise in supply, so too will the rate of pay demanded by pilots rise.[10]
2.9
Overall, the committee found that there are significant skills shortages
in several areas of the transport and logistics industry, which are causing
many employers difficulty in attracting workers to fill vacancies. A survey by
the Transport and Logistics Industry Skills Council indicated that:
63 per cent of all employers responding to the survey indicated
that they had found it difficult to attract staff to their organisations over
the past 12 months, with an additional 23 per cent indicating that they had found
more severe difficulties in attracting staff. [11]
2.10
Data from the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) 2005
Survey of employer use and views of the VET system also showed that
transport and storage employers tend to experience more recruitment
difficulties than employers overall, with skills shortages being cited as the
main reason:
Table 3: Recruitment
Difficulties, 2005
|
Percentage of T and S
employers
|
Percentage of all employers
|
A lot of difficulty
|
30 |
21 |
Some difficulty
|
13 |
20 |
No difficulty
|
45 |
45 |
Have not looked for staff
|
12 |
15 |
Total
|
100 |
100 |
Source:
NCVER 2005 Survey of Employer Use and Views of the VET system.[12]
Table 4: Of those with
recruitment difficulties – reasons for recruitment difficulties, 2005
|
Percentage
|
All industries (top 3 reasons)
|
|
Shortage of skilled people
in the industry
|
69 |
Lack of existing workers
in the industry being skilled up
|
9 |
Young people have a poor
work ethic
|
9 |
Transport and storage
industry (top 3 reasons)
|
|
Shortage of skilled people
in the industry
|
62 |
Remote location
|
15 |
Lack of existing workers
in the industry being skilled up
|
14 |
Source:
NCVER 2005 Survey of Employer Use and Views of the VET system.[13]
2.11
Issues for employers in managing worker demand will be dealt with in
more detail later in the report. However, it is clear that there is an urgent
need to consider how more workers may be attracted to the transport industry.
In order to develop strategies addressing this problem, the committee
considered some of the underlying reasons for difficulty attracting workers to
the industry. These are explained below.
Industry image
According to members, remuneration in the freight logistics
chain is above average, and there is no financial disincentive for people,
particularly those that are young, to enter. Rather, the lack of new entrants
to the sector appears to be more a consequence of a lack of desire to work in
the transport industry per se. It is widely acknowledged that the
transport industry, in particular long-haul driving, has faced significant
image problems, compounded by sensationalist media, over recent times.[14]
2.12
Few witnesses or submissions to the inquiry did not make reference to
the poor image from which the transport industry suffers, and it was often
cited as the key factor making it difficult to attract new industry entrants.
Employment in transport and logistics is consistently seen as blue-collar,
uncouth, male-dominated, unhealthy, unsophisticated work, with few longer term
career options, poor working conditions, and a distinct lack of glamour. The
committee heard numerous reference to the image problem, and the fact that
despite some efforts to counter it, the negative perception persists:
When you see photographs of rail systems, they tend to be
middle-aged men in rail cars or people in fluorescent vests with hammers – when
I say people, they are generally male – working on a track somewhere. This is
nowhere near the range and scope of career opportunity that exists within the
industry.[15]
...the attractiveness of driving a truck is no longer there.
Twenty or thirty years ago boys and young men would give their right arm to be
seen to be a truck driver. Now it just does not have that appeal. That is a
perception or an image thing that is very difficult to overcome. The training aspect
is almost secondary to encouraging people into the industry.[16]
The only message conveyed in the media is negative. The good
news stories do not make headlines therefore providing a poor public
perception, particularly in the area of job security in the aviation industry.
In recent years the media coverage of Qantas job cuts has created a very low
level of public confidence in aviation careers.[17]
2.13
There is evidence of particular problems with image in the road
transport sector. Studies have shown a range of perceptions exist, but as a
recent report commissioned by the Transport Workers Union highlighted:
Their (survey respondents') top-of-mind perceptions of a truck
driver was someone who didn't see their family very much, worked long hours,
was stressed, relied on drugs for stimulant if driving long distance, and was
likely to be lonely.[18]
2.14
In the rail sector, a report by the Australasian Railways Association
noted the effect negative image can have on existing, as well as prospective,
employees:
Current employees in the industry believe the general public
perspective of the rail industry is negative. The perceived poor image by the
general public has significant impacts on industry employees in terms of
absenteeism, morale and turnover.[19]
2.15
Like all other industries, transport is not a single homogenous block.
'Image' can vary across sectors. For example, the aviation industry does not
suffer from the same problem, and there is less difficulty attracting new
entrants. During a site visit to Aviation Australia's headquarters in Brisbane,
the committee heard that there continues to be little difficulty attracting new
entrants to cabin crew training courses; although the risk of worker oversupply
also tended to be offset by very high turnover rates once graduates completed
training and commenced employment, particularly with some airlines. Both Qantas
and Aviation Australia noted, however, that there may be emerging difficulties
in regard to attracting, training and retaining skilled aircraft maintenance
personnel.[20]
Young people
2.16
With the rapid ageing of the current transport workforce, it is
critically important that a new generation of young people become involved in
the industry to fill the areas of skills shortage outlined above.[21]
Without this, the industry itself, as well as the economic growth it supports,
is at risk of becoming unsustainable. The committee noted with some concern
that even where new entrants are being attracted to careers in the transport
and logistics industry, they are not always young people. Rather, new industry
entrants are commencing training later in life after having explored a number
of other occupations first. For example, the Transport and Logistics Industry
Skills Council told the committee that:
As an industry, transport has one of the highest qualification
rates in terms of vocational qualifications when you look at the statistics.
Unfortunately, when you look inside that, very few of those are actually
related to the industry. So you have a whole lot of people who have qualified in
other industries who are not working in this industry. So there is a job of
work to be done in the context of a recruitment campaign: how do you maximise
that and bring those people across and utilise those skills that they have
already got? Because the evidence is there that people are attracted to us as
second and third career choices.[22]
2.17
The National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) provided
data showing that the majority of students undertaking an apprenticeship or
traineeship in the transport industry are men over the age of 25, and that just
over half were existing workers in the workforce, and hence not new entrants.[23]
The result of this is that, in part, retiring workers or those exiting the
industry for other reasons are being replaced by older people, who may also
then be expected to retire themselves within a relatively short period of time.
While this may be a useful interim solution to skills shortages, it is clear
that the longer term sustainability of the transport workforce would be better
served by finding better ways to attract and retain young people.
2.18
The image barrier is a particular challenge to attracting young people
to consider and engage in careers in the transport and logistics industry. In a
dynamic employment market place, many witnesses and submissions highlighted the
fact that young people are aware of a variety of career and lifestyle options,
and a future in transport does not seem appealing in comparison to these
options. Hours of work, and particularly distance from home, are regarded by
young people as an obstacle to job satisfaction. The Australian Logistics
Council told the committee of research showing that when young people were
asked what they thought about logistics, the answer was that they simply did not
think about it at all.[24]
Where there is a level of awareness, there is a problem of perception that the
industry offers 'jobs, not careers'; that there is no longer term pathway
offering professional progression across a worker's employment life. There is
evidence of some truth in this perception, and the issue of career pathways
will be dealt with in more detail later in the report. In terms of negative
image and difficulty attracting young people, however, it is a significant
concern.
2.19
In describing their efforts to attract young people to the industry,
many witnesses referred to their efforts to engage with schools and school age
students. Here, the emphasis of activity is on dispelling negative perceptions
about an unsophisticated employment environment, and securing attention and
interest before these were diverted to other career options. In particular,
many operators engaged with schools felt that giving practical examples and
demonstrations of the types of work available, and the nature of the workplace,
was important:
My experience over the last five years of the 10 has been that
the best modus operandi is for me to go out to a school...We form a link with the
young people and then turn up on another day and talk to them about
occupational health and safety, about manual handling, about our industry and
about career paths. Then we turn up on another day with a bus and take them
down to a Star Track, a TNT or somewhere like that, which is preplanned – or
Woolworths – and get management to talk to them...It is incumbent on us as
industry people, stakeholders, to lead those young people through the
workplace, show them what the work entails and give them an opportunity to talk
to our people who have been working in the industry long term...[25]
2.20
Employers and transport operators were also aware of the role school
career counsellors can play in advising young people entering the transport
industry. Unfortunately, there is a common perception that such counsellors do
not encourage students to consider a transport career, or may in fact
discourage it. Reasons for this range from a lack of awareness and information
on the part of counsellors,[26]
to active encouragement to pursue other career and education or training paths.
The committee heard that this may be the case with students who have higher
academic results, where there can be a strong expectation that moving from
school to university is the most desirable course,[27]
and that staying longer in school is preferable to leaving in order to
undertake industry training:
...I was at a high school late last year and I said to the
headmaster, 'I would like to talk to your kids about a career.' He said, 'I
want to keep the kids at school.' Where we want to go and where the education
system wants to go are two different things.[28]
2.21
Several witnesses also highlighted the important role of parents and
friends in making young people aware of and interested in the possibilities of
a career in the transport industry. During a visit to the Queensland Rail (QR)
workshops in Townsville, the committee had an opportunity to meet current QR
apprentices, and heard first hand from one apprentice of the important role his
father had in guiding him to undertake the training. Similarly, members of the
Victorian Transport and Logistics Industry Government Partnership told the
committee that:
...we know from research that careers counsellors, teachers and
particularly parents, friends and families are very much an influence on young
people in their career choices. I think if we did a study of this – it has not
been done – we would find that there are a lot of people in the transport
industry who have uncles, father or others who have been in the industry.[29]
2.22
In this case, poor image can be offset by informal and personal
influences. There are a number of avenues to consider in developing strategies
for breaking down those negative images, and providing young people with more
accurate and positive information about the opportunities which are available.
The committee saw evidence of several encouraging examples of such strategies
operating in different parts of the country, and which may act as blueprints
for development of more comprehensive and more widely available ways to attract
young people. These are described in more detail later in the chapter.
Women in the industry
Chair – My next question is not about scraping the bottom of the
barrel, but what about the use of female labour?
Mr Heldberg – Love them.
Chair – Can you get them?
Mr Heldberg – No.[30]
2.23
Just as the committee found that negative images associated with work in
the transport and logistics industry are a significant problem in engaging
young people, there is evidence that the same image problem is preventing women
from entering careers in this area. Many witnesses commented on the male
dominance which has traditionally been, and still is, characteristic of
training and employment in all sectors. For example, the National Centre for
Vocational Education Research noted that of all the apprenticeship and
traineeship commencements in transport and storage occupations in the 12 months
to 30 June 2006, 86 per cent were men. This is particularly noteworthy in
comparison to 59 per cent over-all apprenticeship and traineeship
commencements.[31]
Similarly, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations submitted that
female workers in the transport industry account for only 25 per cent of total
employee numbers, which is well below the average of 45 per cent for all
industries. Male full-time employment is the most common arrangement,
accounting for 66.7 per cent of transport workers, compared with 46.5 per cent
of workers across all industries. However, even in part-time work arrangements,
women recorded lower employment rates than men.[32]
2.24
These figures were supported by anecdotal evidence the committee heard
during public hearings, when many witnesses agreed that there is a heavy male
dominance in the transport workforce, and that industry image played a role in
this. Queensland Transport told the committee that:
I think there definitely still is the perception that it is a
man's world. I sit on a number of committees and I know a number of the groups
that you are meeting with, and I am very often the only female even at that
executive level. In the depots that I visit and the organisations that I attend,
it is rarer to see women.[33]
2.25
However, it was also noted that there are other, more practical
considerations which may be making employment in the transport industry less
attractive to women. Working conditions and provisions for balancing work and
family responsibilities were one of these, with several witnesses and
submissions noting the long hours typical in many transport jobs are
unattractive to women with other responsibilities. Similarly, the committee was
told that, despite recent technological advances and improvements in working
conditions, physical job requirements may remain a factor making employment in
the industry unattractive to women:
The other issue is the physical requirement. A lot of the
short-haul work involves getting in and out of the truck all the time, and
moving parcels etc up and down off the truck...the physical exertion involved in
all of that seems to be too much for a lot of women. We have had a number who
have started the courses and just quit.[34]
2.26
In spite of these difficulties, a small number of women are employed in
the transport and logistics industry, including in traditional male roles such
as truck driving, and the committee was interested to hear of the high level of
performance which these women typically display. The Transport Forum WA told
the committee that:
They are preferred employees because they are easy on the
equipment, more careful with what they do and their paperwork is by far better
than the average male. It happens to be a fact.[35]
2.27
Similarly, the South Australian Freight Council stated that:
...the mines rather enjoy having women drive the dump trucks
because their style of operation is softer on the equipment and therefore
creates less wear and tear. That is a real positive. I employ a couple of women
myself in driving trucks and they stand up pretty well against the men in the
job.[36]
2.28
Interestingly, while there are a number of initiatives, many quite
extensively developed and implemented, to attract young people to employment in
the transport industry, there was no evidence of a similarly concerted effort
to engage women, with just a few exceptions. For example, Mr Ron Finemore told
the committee that his trucking company had tried hard to encourage women, and
that while several had been employed, the number was small.[37]
The New South Wales Road Transport Association explained that:
We have gone out into the market place and specifically
advertised a course for females. We even went to Job Network agencies and ran a
little programme called Ready for the Road to try and encourage women
specifically. It was just for women. We got two applicants and the Job Network
agencies just said there were no people who were interested.[38]
2.29
The South Australian Freight Council described an industry-generated
training program called SHIFT which had also had some success in attracting
women to the transport workforce,[39]
but this remains the exception rather than the rule.
2.30
It is clear that there are skills shortages in many areas across the
transport and logistics industry, and that just as improving the attractiveness
of the industry to young people is critical to addressing these shortages and
ameliorating the effects of an ageing workforce, so too is improving the
attractiveness of the industry to women a vital element. The committee heard evidence
of a number of initiatives and strategies which have been developed and
implemented by employers, operators and training groups, and which may provide
a foundation on which further improvements could be made.
Strategies for attracting workers
2.31
Most witnesses and submissions to the inquiry emphasised the risks of a
shrinking workforce to both the transport industry and the economy more
broadly. It is clear there is a high level of concern, and action is required
as a matter of urgency. It was acknowledged that the current situation has
evolved over a period of time, and ideally, preventative measures should have
been taken some time ago,[40]
but the committee is encouraged by evidence of a number of initiatives being
developed and implemented. Some of these appear to be more successful than
others, but there is scope for drawing out lessons and ideas for broader
application.
Branding
2.32
One key problem is that few people outside the industry know what the
'transport and logistics' industry does. The comments of many employers and
transport operators suggested, for example, that it is common for different
industry sectors to be perceived as entirely discrete occupation areas; 'truck
driving', or 'stevedoring', or 'aircraft maintenance', for example. There appears
to be little understanding of the interface between different areas of the
industry, as well as the extensive range of skills and employment opportunities
which are available. The Queensland Trucking Association commented that:
We are a very computer literate business; we have to be
nowadays. We have openings – it is not just truck driving, it is so much more.
I do not think that is understood by a lot of kids or a lot of people in
general.[41]
2.33
To counter this, and to provide a more readily recognisable 'tag' with
which to promote the industry, some operators and administrators have
undertaken comprehensive branding exercises. There is a particular emphasis on
promoting the 'transport' and 'logistics' aspects of the industry in
combination, underlining the interdependence between the two, and by
implication the possibilities of movement and skills development between the
sectors.[42]
Activities to develop an easily recognisable 'brand' are very important to
attracting new industry entrants and countering negative images. The committee
heard from Queensland Transport that:
In 2005, market research was undertaken between industry and
government in Queensland through the T&L Careers Forum. One of the
recommendations was for a transport and logistics brand for T&L. This brand
has been accepted by a number of peak associations and industry members, and we
note in particular the Australian Logistics Council's role in promoting this
brand. It is starting to and at career expos and in advertising in other areas.[43]
2.34
This idea was echoed by an official from the Queensland Trucking
Association, from whom the committee heard of the value in having an easily
identifiable acronym:
We are certainly pursuing branding of the industry. One of the
near things there that I should mention is that we were told that we needed to
come up with a two-letter acronym for the industry, the reason being that if I
tell you IT you know what industry we are talking about. If I say HR, you know
what industry we are talking about. But nobody knew logistics. We also needed a
two-letter acronym so that it could be texted as part of a text message on a
mobile phone with a thumb. We have settled on T&L as a branding – transport
and logistics.[44]
2.35
Similarly, Queensland Rail submitted that it has implemented a
successful image-changing employment campaign focused on the branding slogan
'More than I'd imagined'.[45]
The point was also made, however, that branding will only be effective if the
concept it portrays is reflected in the reality of industry and employment
experience. A professional brand must be supported by a professional approach,
and in this area the committee heard that while progress is being made, there
is still some work to be done, for example in industry-wide safety standards.
Labour hire
2.36
Despite some signs of positive results, efforts to promote the transport
industry to potential new entrants through branding and image change are still
at relatively early stages, and are not a solution to employers' immediate
needs for workers. As an alternative strategy for obtaining more workers, there
appears to be wide-spread use of labour hire companies, particularly in
trucking. The advantage offered by labour hire companies is the generally
constant availability of a pool of workers with various skills available on
flexible terms. The limitation is that this can only provide a short term
solution to what should be regarded as a long term problem. Use of labour hire
companies may be adding to the problem of worker shortages by discouraging
employers and companies from developing coherent recruitment strategies which
can withstand fluctuations in labour availability. This was highlighted by the
Transport Workers' Union, from whom the committee heard that:
We find very much in the workplace that, rather than perhaps
develop some sort of strategy around ongoing employment for young people, it is
simply a matter of getting a labour hire person to pick up the peaks and
troughs. It is simply counterproductive insofar as you find that a driver might
be engaged by three or four labour hire companies and will go to the highest
bidder...The people who constantly seem to have the problems are those companies
that have not made the effort to have some sort of rigorous employment practice
in place and have simply picked up the phone and sought additional labour at
odd hours of the day.[46]
2.37
Similarly, the Australian Rail, Tram and Bus Industry Union told the
committee that use of labour hire companies is common in the rail industry, and
that while it can serve as a useful temporary solution to unforseen worker
shortages, it may also reduce the sense of urgency employers and industry
groups should have to develop longer term attraction and retention strategies.[47]
2.38
The implications of the above comment for small employers working on
very tight profit margins is clear, given the substantial proportion of small
scale operators in the transport industry.[48]
The problems of recruitment and retention of workers in small enterprises is
dealt with more extensively later in the report. In regard to labour hire
companies, however, and their usefulness in alleviating the transport
industry's worker shortages, the committee believes that while such short term
remedies may be helpful in addressing immediate, urgent and unforseen
recruitment problems, reliance on labour hire companies is no substitute for
sustainable industry-wide workforce planning.
2.39
Therefore, the committee was very interested to note a submission from
the Transport Forum WA, indicating that labour hire approaches and longer term
training strategies need not be mutually exclusive concepts. Driver
Recruitment, a specialist labour hire company in Western Australia, has
implemented a training program for young people, although it will still be some
years before new drivers from this program will be ready to enter the industry.[49]
This is an interesting strategy which may merit further consideration, as a way
of simultaneously address both immediate and longer term workforce needs.
Foreign-sourced labour
2.40
Another option which was brought to the committee's attention as a
possibility for attracting and securing more transport workers was migrant
labour, and in particular the use of 457 visas, as well as a range of other
employer-sponsored temporary and permanent migration arrangements. Importantly,
the committee notes that while there is some provision under the concessional
regional temporary migration arrangement for regional employers to recruit
foreign workers to fill vacancies in less-skilled occupations (including some
transport-related occupations), current migration arrangements do not generally
provide for engagement of foreign workers in these areas. The extent to which
non-sponsored temporary visa holders with work rights seek or engage in
employment in the transport industry is difficult to assess with any certainty.[50]
2.41
A number of witnesses and submissions favoured the recruitment of
foreign labour, explaining that the shortage of workers, and the economic and
business consequences of failing to meet those needs, is so serious that every
option for recruitment should be considered and facilitated. Other witnesses
also recounted positive experiences with migrant workers. For example, Mr Ron Finemore
told the committee that:
This is where I saw some benefit with recruitment from overseas
with the use of 457 visas. If someone gets a 457 visa, they are committed to
work for you if they are to stay in Australia. Then hopefully they will get a
permanent visa and stay working for you afterwards if you have treated them
properly. I have found great loyalty in the past from immigrants I have
employed as both drivers and subcontractors and therefore thought that this may
be a way of getting additional longer term drivers with experience.[51]
2.42
Similarly, other witnesses told the committee that there is an
international skills base available which could profitably be drawn on by
Australian employers with particular worker needs.[52]
On the other hand, there was also concern that any use of 457 visas and similar
arrangements to address skills shortages would have minimal effect on the
overall number of workers required,[53]
and, perhaps more importantly, that use of migrant labour to fill current
skills shortages will once again do nothing to address the longer term issue of
preparing a stable, well-skilled future workforce. The Victorian Transport and
Logistics Industry Government Partnership expressed the view that:
We will not meet the freight task unless both road and rail
improve their productivity...But 457 visas are not the answer, in our view. At the
margins they may have a place, but it is still to be proven and I think the
industry has to address the fact that it is going to have to find its future
employees within this country and train them appropriately. There is no doubt
about that.[54]
2.43
Similarly, the Maritime Union of Australia submitted that:
...the industry has a primary obligation to maximise Australian
labour force participation in Australian projects, and by deduction, minimise
the use of foreign labour. We accept that there will always be a need for some
foreign labour in this industry – for specialist skills, for technology
transfer reasons, to meet unforseen peak demands or contingencies. However, the
industry, notwithstanding the heavy participation by non-Australian companies,
must commit to an Australians first policy and practice.[55]
2.44
Further, the committee heard from some witnesses that better management
of the existing labour market may lessen the need for foreign workers in any
case. For example, Queensland Rail told the committee that:
We currently believe that, apart from engineers, you can still
get the skills you need in Australia. We firmly believe that. The opportunity
is there to look in other states as other industries close or move on,
particularly in Tasmania or Victoria around Geelong.[56]
2.45
These points underpin the importance of future-planning and industry
workforce sustainability, which was a recurring theme throughout the inquiry.
Concerns were also raised from time to time about the skill level of transport
workers coming from overseas, particularly in relation to English language
skills, and familiarity with left-hand drive rules in relation to road
transport employees.[57]
The committee recognises that, while there may be some special circumstances in
which the use of migrant labour may alleviate severe and unforseen worker
shortages, it is not a suitable alternative to coherent, longer-term attraction
and recruitment strategies.
An integrated approach: examples
from Western Australia, Queensland, and Victoria
2.46
While the points mentioned above indicate that a number of avenues are
being investigated by transport industry employers in seeking to obtain more
workers, the committee is not confident that, even without the shortcomings
described, any one strategy can provide the solution. Rather, there appears to
be a need for a multi-faceted, integrated approach which aims both at
satisfying immediate shortages, and building a sustainable future workforce.
This idea is reflected in submissions from the Department of Employment and Workplace
Relations, which suggested that improving motivation and enthusiasm of current
job applicants, as well as addressing underlying demand for skills and
qualifications, must both be taken into account.[58]
2.47
Given the need to engage young people, the committee sees much merit in
policies and programs designed to introduce schools and school students to
transport industry employers, and it was interesting and encouraging to hear of
a number of emerging and developed initiatives in several jurisdictions. Many
programs focus on practical exposure of students to the transport industry
environment, and it is here that training programs appear to have achieved some
success. For example, Mr Bill Noonan expressed the view that:
Given the right set of circumstances, young people will come
into our industry. We have proven it. We have actually taken young people
inside the grey box, if you like, and shown them what the job is about...if you
gave me a group of young people today and said 'Take them out and get them employed
or actually talk to them about the industry,' you would find that a lot of them
would be attracted to work in the industry. That is the killer – to make the
connection.[59]
2.48
More will be said about training in the chapter of this report devoted
to that issue, but a couple of examples of strategies to attract new industry
entrants, and particularly young entrants, are outlined below.
Western Australia
2.49
Concerns about workforce ageing have led to work being undertaken in Western
Australia to find better ways of engaging young people in the transport
industry. In an attempt to remedy school leavers' ignorance of transport career
prospects, a focused VET in schools programme, funded and run by the Transport
Forum WA, is being progressively developed and implemented.
2.50
Under this program, students in years 11 and 12 spend one day a week in
a paid transport company position, while still being able to complete their
high school graduation requirements on the other four days. These students are
able to move to full time employment on completing year 12, a transition which
all participants in the program's first year of operation made successfully.[60]
There is an industry target of 100 participants by January 2008.
2.51
The committee further notes programs being developed to facilitate
pathways for entry level workers to engage with the industry, and to accelerate
manager and possibly driver training.[61]
Queensland
2.52
The committee was very interested in the proactive and collaborative
approach taken by the Queensland Government, together with employers, to
attract young people and address workforce challenges more generally. Mr Phil
Reeves MP, Queensland Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Transport,
explained that while various industry sectors have in the past tended to
operate separately, including where workforce issues are concerned, there is
now recognition that skills shortages across all industries need to be tackled
coherently. The Queensland Skills Plan, released in March 2006, creates
a new government/industry engagement model to look specifically at skills and
labour shortages in transport and logistics.[62]
2.53
This model provides a firm foundation on which transport operators like
Queensland Rail (also a registered training organisation) are able to provide a
comprehensive package of programs for young people, some of which are specific
to the rail industry, and others with broader applications. For example, rail
specific training includes programs for drivers, as well as technical and
points system training. More general trade and technical programs include
apprenticeships, a Civil Infrastructure Development Program, a Management
Performance Program and a Commercial Imperatives Financial Program.[63]
Victoria
2.54
Victorian authorities are also taking an integrated approach to training
in the state transport and logistics industry. The Victorian Transport and
Logistics Industry Government Partnership was established in 2001 with a view
to ensuring industry groups, government and government agencies would work in
cooperation to realise the seamless functioning of all aspects of the supply
chain.
2.55
A wide range of networks are therefore able to operate under the
auspices of the Partnership, some with a specific focus on attracting and
recruiting workers. For example, a Labour and Recruitment Partner Reference
Group is being established to provide advice on recruitment and retention
programs, and to investigate creative solutions to expanding the labour pool.
These may include employing farmers who are currently unemployed due to the
drought; attracting mature-age and existing part-time employees back to the
workforce; providing part-time regional work for mothers; and attracting
indigenous and disadvantaged groups into the workforce.
2.56
In regard to young people, the Partnership is engaged, among other
things, in sponsoring career forums which showcase opportunities in transport
and logistics. These include the biannual Freight Week and the
associated Careers In Freight day, and The Victorian Supply Chain
Excellence Summit and Careers Forum.[64]
2.57
It is worth noting that in general these forums target not so much young
people, but those who are in a position to influence young peoples' career
choices, such as career advisers, teachers, new apprenticeship program managers
and job network personnel. This approach may be helpful in addressing the
problem mentioned above of school staff not encouraging suitable students to
consider transport careers due to a lack of understanding and information about
the possibilities available.
Recommendations
Recommendation 1
The committee recommends that industry bodies in each
jurisdiction agree to a national branding image for adoption by transport and
logistics operators in all sectors of the industry, to be used consistently in
promotional activity. The brand should be attractive to both young people and
to women, and underpinned by consistent professional workplace standards.
Recommendation 2
The committee recommends that transport and logistics
industry operators engage with state and territory education authorities to
find ways to raise the profile of transport and logistics in school-based
career preparation activities, including exploring possibilities for more
school-based apprenticeship programs and increasing industry presence at
careers expos and similar events.
The committee further recommends that industry operators
work with state and territory education authorities to increase opportunities
for school-based apprenticeships in skills demanded by the industry, with a
focus on secondary schools located near major transport hubs.
Recommendation 3
The committee recognises that the expansion of the subclass
457 visa to the transport industry is not an appropriate solution to the
industry workforce challenges and recommends that this option is not considered
by the industry.
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