Friday, March 29, 2024

Big revamp for skills trainers

Neal Wallace
A complete shake-up of the vocational training sector will see redefined roles and the 16 industry training providers brought under the control of one centralised entity.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

Education Minister Chris Hipkins says it could also see the new governing entity create centres of vocational excellence for the primary sector and other industries.

“These powerhouses of expertise could cover key sectors and industries, which could be broad, for example agriculture, or specific, for example viticulture.

“Our proposals aim to ensure that the system is easier to navigate and provides the skills that employers and employees need.”

The wide-ranging proposals will strengthen vocational education and address the financial problems many institutions are facing, he said.

“At a time when we’re facing critical skill shortages too many of our polytechnics and institutes of technology are going broke. 

“The strong labour market is encouraging young people to move directly into the workforce rather than continue in formal education when it needs to be smarter and accommodate both.

“And our system isn’t geared up for the future economy where re-training and up-skilling will be a regular feature of everyone’s working life. 

“Instead of our institutes of technology retrenching, cutting programmes and closing campuses we need them to expand their course delivery in more locations around the country,” he said.

In the last year the Government spent $100 million bailing out three polytechnics and a week before Christmas the private primary sector training provider, Taratahi Agriculture Training Centre, went into liquidation.

The Government’s plan redefines roles for education providers and industry bodies and brings together 16 existing industry training providers into one entity under the working title of NZ Institute of Skills and Technology.

Hipkins also promises a unified vocational funding system, potentially addressing a contentious issue where providers say they are paid less per student than universities despite the higher cost of vocational training.

National’s tertiary education, skills and employment spokesman Shane Reti said the reforms will strip power from regional NZ and give it to Wellington-based bureaucrats.

“Businesses and the regions know what demand there is for skills in their own backyard. 

“But this Government wants all the decision-making to be done by a centralised body in Wellington,” he said. 

“Industry training organisations, which represent businesses and their needs, will be disestablished. These are the groups that know and understand the demand for the trades better than anyone else. 

“We believe that there is a need to address issues of quality, sustainability and more skilled people in trades but the idea that all this can be solved in Wellington is naive.”

Total
0
Shares
People are also reading