Jenny Ware (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the Trade Support Loans Amendment Bill 2023 and the associated legislation, particularly because these bills provide additional financial support and other support to apprentices and trainees.

We are facing a significant skills shortage in our country and in my electorate of Hughes, and any financial or other support that can be provided to encourage people into apprenticeships and traineeships and to retain them must be supported. As I move through my electorate, there is a consistent cry from businesses and employers about jobs and skills shortages, from hairdressers to baristas, chefs, motor mechanics, fitters and turners, early childhood educators and aged-care workers. These bills will assist in addressing these shortages, increase workforce participation, increase productivity in the economy and foster greater diversity within our workforce. For all those reasons, I commend these bills to the House. It is noted that these bills reflect policy changes that were underway when the coalition was in government.

The key point to this legislation, the Trade Support Loans Amendment Bill 2023, is that it amends the Trade Support Loans Act 2014 to facilitate the expansion of the trade support loans program, which is currently available only to apprentices in priority trade occupations. It will be expanded to apprentices and trainees in a broader range of priority occupations, including non-trade occupations such as aged care, disability support and child care. The trade support loans program aims to increase completion rates among Australian apprentices in priority areas by providing financial support to eligible apprentices to assist them with the costs of living and learning while undertaking an apprenticeship. The way that this is stated to be achieved is by offering income-contingent loans up to a maximum of $22,890, which are then paid back when the taxable income of the apprentice or trainee reaches the repayment threshold, which is currently just over $48,000 per year. In this way, the bill will facilitate wider access to loans, which will be renamed Australian apprenticeship support loans.

I just want to take a moment to talk about the state of apprentices and traineeships within Australia. Apprentices face significant barriers to the uptake and completion of an apprenticeship, and this is demonstrated by the long-term decline in the number of commencements and completions by apprentices. In particular, since 2012 and prior to the introduction of the COVID-19 response measures, apprenticeship commencements were declining, dropping 65 per cent from June 2012 to the comparable period in June 2020. This is of concern, and it has now translated, of course, into the significant skills shortage that we have within this country. The annual number of completions of apprenticeships and traineeships also declined, decreasing by about 55 per cent over the period from 2012 to 2020. Again, we are facing difficulties getting students into apprenticeships and then also retaining them and encouraging them to complete those traineeships. Some recent research that's been undertaken said that the movement of young people away from apprenticeships into higher education and other work with higher rates of pay has probably been the leading contributor to a drop in commencements and, significantly, a drop in completions.

There are significant barriers faced by both employers and apprentices at the moment. I'll start by talking about some of the barriers that are faced by employers. Again, these are barriers that we really need to address, and I hear this from employers in my electorate of Hughes. There are several factors that at the moment hinder the hiring of apprentices, including the high upfront costs, the risk of noncompletion, difficulty in recruitment and needing to navigate what has been and still is a fairly complex system. I would call on the government to look at these reasons that have been cited by employers and to look at trying to make it significantly easier for employers, particularly small businesses, to employ apprentices and trainees.

Employers have cited high hiring costs, particularly upfront costs, as a key barrier, and wage costs and other expenses associated with running a business have obviously grown substantially over the past two decades, and particularly over the last 12 months. However, the total standard apprenticeship incentive available to employers has remained unchanged at around $4,000 since 1998, so that is something that I feel that the government does really need to look at.

There's also the time that's required by an employer to supervise and train an apprentice. This could be also seen as a barrier to employers. In the early years of an apprenticeship, supervision costs are high. It's demanding on their time. Often, the time spent supervising, for example, an apprentice or a trainee is time that is then taken away from that particular business. These are some of the barriers that have been cited by employers. It would be good if we could look at improving this situation for employers.

Apprentices also face significant barriers. Low wages and the corresponding concern of not being able to meet the ongoing costs of living are barriers that have been cited by young people and by people that were considering taking up apprenticeships. It's a particular constraint that, for longer term qualifications, it can be for up to four years. Where an apprenticeship may take up to four years, it is considered by many to be a significant barrier, where apprentices are struggling to balance work, study, a social life and other household commitments. That's a significant barrier.

The impact of low wages on apprenticeship commencements and completions is compounded when the market presents higher-paying alternatives. For example, an apprentice mechanic earns a lower wage than a casual hospitality worker or labourer. This is another reason that has been cited as to why many people are not taking up the opportunities of apprenticeships. Financial barriers lower commencement and completion rates by making apprenticeships an unappealing financial decision for many. This may both deter individuals from considering an apprenticeship and lower the completion rates for those who do begin. These financial barriers are strongest in the early years of an apprenticeship, where wages are at their lowest and apprentices can choose better paying alternatives such as retail or hospitality work. In all of those circumstances, this bill, which will provide additional financial support to those undergoing an apprenticeship or a traineeship, is to be commended.

I'll briefly mention women in apprenticeships. The number of women commencing apprenticeships has been steadily increasing over time, which is good news. However, women face a number of barriers to undertaking and successfully completing an apprenticeship, particularly in trade occupations, where there has traditionally been low take-up by women compared to men. Women in non-traditional trades account for only seven per cent of total trade apprenticeships. Women have traditionally gone into hairdressing and the caring industries: child care, disability services and aged care. So we really do need to look at whatever measures can be introduced to assist women into apprenticeships, and particularly into non-trade apprenticeships. The minister's explanatory memorandum on this bill said that it is expected that this legislation will boost support for women's continued participation in the workforce and provide equal support for apprenticeships traditionally undertaken by women in the traditional caring sectors of aged care, disability care and child care. All of those are areas where the country is experiencing significant shortages. That is another reason that I am supporting this legislation.

There are more than 10,000 tradespeople in my electorate of Hughes. These account for about 13 per cent of people employed within my electorate. We currently have 3,356 apprentices and trainees in training, as at the September quarter last year. That's composed of 2,190 in trade occupations and 1,166 engaged in non-trade occupations. I have a TAFE at Loftus, and there are TAFEs at Gymea and Liverpool, which are just outside of my electorate. All three of these serve Hughes's students. In terms of community colleges, we have the St George & Sutherland Community College in Jannali and the Australian Community Education College in Bangor, both of which provide quality education to a broad range of students, making them both skilled and job ready.

To my electorate of Hughes: I recently opened the Hughes Awards, and they include a specific category for the apprentice of the year. Anybody within or without my electorate can nominate somebody who either lives in or works in my electorate. It could be your child, your grandchild, your partner, your friend or your employee. Just go to my website, jenny.ware.com.au, and look for the award nomination form, or you can contact my office. I'm looking forward to reading all of the nominations for apprentice of the year.

To conclude, these bill support apprentices and trainees. They will increase productivity and diversity within the workplace, and for all of those reasons I commend the bills to the House.

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