N E W S - I N D U S T R Y M A T T E R S
Vocational education budget package
crucial to COVID-19 recovery Industry training organisation Competenz
applauded the Government’s bold
investment in the vocational education
sector in the 2020 “Rebuilding Together”
Budget.
$1.6 billion will be made available in the
Trades and Apprenticeships Training
package to facilitate the rebuilding of
the economy in the aftermath of the
COVID-19 lockdown.
Competenz CEO Fiona Kingsford says:
“This is the most substantial Budget to
support vocational education in recent
times. Competenz relishes the opportunity
to ensure our industries, apprentices
and trainees take full advantage
of the incentives and support to enrol
new learners and keep existing ones in
training.”
Ms Kingsford says the government
spend is more important than ever, following
a forecast by economics consultancy
firm Infometrics, estimating that
in a post-COVID-19 economy, sectors
Competenz supports such as general
manufacturing and mechanical engineering
will see employment decline by
as much as 10% in the next 12 months.
Forestry employment could decline by
around five per cent.
Part of the announced package addresses
this, with $412 million in support
for employers to retain and keep
training their apprentices. This incentivises
businesses to retain younger and
more vulnerable staff members in the
recovery process.
A further $320 million targeted investment
will also make trades training free
in these critical industries, which will
make it easier for employers to train up
their existing people, help those who
have lost jobs to retrain and will be vital
to supporting these sectors.
A further $19 million has been set aside
for group training organisations (GTOs)
to retain apprentices.
“This funding will be critical to support
Apprentice Training New Zealand
(ATNZ), Competenz’s largest employer
of engineering apprentices, who currently
employ and second over 370
apprentices around New Zealand,” says
Ms Kingsford.
Additionally, the $50 million grant for
Māori apprentices will support at-risk
youth, especially in sectors like forestry.
These measures will also directly address
the skills shortage New Zealand
was facing before the pandemic began.
“Only two months ago, prior to the COVID
19 lockdown, our industries were
crying out for skilled employees as the
skills shortages impacted their businesses.
This was a consistent story in
the 37 sectors that we support.”
Infometrics estimates over 55% of metal
fabricators, over 40% of refrigeration
and air-conditioning mechanics, and
close to 30% of fitter-welders were
roles filled by skilled migrants in the
last three years. The domestic market
still has considerable labour demands
across Competenz sectors that will
continue to need to be met.
Now, Ms Kingsford says, acting quickly
to implement these initiatives is key.
“It is critical that we don’t pause the
momentum to bring young people with
new skills into our sectors, especially as
a number of these sectors have been
reliant on skilled migrant labour, and the
future of this labour flow is no longer
certain. We will communicate with our
employers, learners and industry when
we have additional information on how
they will be rolled out and the part Competenz
will play in that.”
Income Relief
Payment a
welcome boost
The government’s new temporary
payment to support New
Zealanders who lose their jobs
due to COVID-19 is a welcome
boost, BusinessNZ chief
executive Kirk Hope says.
A new COVID Income Relief
Payment has been introduced,
alongside a wider work
programme on possible future
employment insurance as New
Zealand begins to rebuild the
economy.
The payment will be available for
12-weeks from June 8 for anyone
who has lost their job due to
the impact of COVID-19. It will
pay $490 a week to those who
lost full-time work and $250 for
part-time.
"As we start to see the fallout
of COVID take hold of the
economy, we are glad to see
the government cushioning the
blow and protecting jobs where
possible and supporting workers
back into jobs where necessary,"
Mr Hope says.
"Providing this support will make
it easier for people to retrain
and upskill for their next job.
This means business can hit the
ground running with staff who
bring the skills that they need."
Mr Hope says the relief payment
is a great interim step towards
a more sustainable model, but
long-term thinking is critical.
"The Finance Minister announced
that work is underway on a
more permanent unemployment
insurance scheme in New
Zealand.
"The Future of Work Ministers
group commissioned the work
after a request from BusinessNZ
and the Council of Trade
Unions. We look forward to its
development."
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12 June 2020