The passing of Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) legislation through parliament today marks a major step towards addressing Australia’s workforce crisis.
Group of Eight Chief Executive Vicki Thomson said Australia’s research-intensive universities would collaborate with the new agency to help deliver the current and future skilled workforce the nation needs.
“Australia needs the advanced skills taught in our universities. Rapid technological change across all sectors of the economy has resulted in unprecedented demand for a highly skilled workforce,” she said.
“More than nine out of 10 jobs to be created will require post-secondary education – jobs in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) are predicted to grow by 14.2 per cent, twice as fast as non-STEM jobs at 7.4 per cent.
“Go8 universities educate 110,000 high quality graduates each year – doctors, engineers, lawyers, graduates in AI, Space, quantum computing and cyber security, all of whom are in high demand from existing and emerging industries.
“Australia’s workforce crisis is building to catastrophic levels in some sectors. JSA is a worthy vehicle with which to identify what needs to be done and how to address the crisis. Its pleasing to see that Government has recognised that Universities must be part of the forward agenda of JSA”.
“We are committed to working with the Albanese government, JSA, industry and business to deliver the skilled workforce we need and boost the nation’s productivity and economic prosperity.”