5 April Maintaining the status quo is not an option April 5, 2022By ICI Administrator Aspire civil contractors, engineering workforce, Go8, productivity, workforce 0 A new approach to engineering education in Australia is urgently needed. Australia’s leading universities have released the first in a series of policy papers focussing on Securing the Future of Australia’s Engineering Workforce. Often cited by Civil Contractors as one of the key skills shortages, engineers are key in ensuring on time delivery of the current pipeline of works throughout Australia. Published via the ‘the Group of 8’(Go8) comprising representatives of Australia’s leading Universities, the report states that Australia will need to double its domestic production of Engineers to meet demand. To this end, the report makes 3 key recommendations: A new funding model, addressing unique Engineering costs of education. Priority places for Engineering, creating a larger pipeline of engineers in the education system. A Governing council composed of Industry, University and Government. Go8 Chief Executive Vicki Thomson said ‘the Australian model for the university education of engineers is broken and maintaining the status quo is not an option.’ ‘The implementation of our 3 recommendations is essential’ stated Ms Thomson ‘ they are critical for our national success and to address one of Australia’s most significant challenges – workforce capacity.' Skills demand for engineers is such that we are seeing cannibalisation of the workforce through poaching, resulting in a much higher staff turnover – impacting productivity, and the broader economy, as new staff are recruited and bought up to speed. The report states that while the solution requires targeted investment, this investment is dwarfed by the potential cost to Australia’s future economy if the status quo is maintained. The full report by the Group of 8 is available here: Securing the future of Australia’s Engineering Workforce By Lee Gabbett, General Manager, The Institute of Civil Infrastructure (ICI) Also, to stay up to date with Industry news, events and information, make sure you follow the ICI Australia Linkedin page. Related Posts The Single Most Important Element Of Any Professional Development You want to learn new skills, grow your capability and position yourself for more responsibility in a higher role. You seek professional development options, of which there is a myriad of options available to you. What is the key element in taking this step? What one single factor is the difference between development that will see you soar as opposed to sink? The Benefits Of On-Demand Entertainment Netflix, Stan, Disney Plus, Spotify, Foxtel etc. These are all on-demand streaming services with millions of users every day that we have all probably used, or heard of once or twice, or possibly more. In the present form, you can pay as little as $6.99 a month for thousands of tv shows and movies available at the tip of your finger. Festive Period Survival Guide Part Two The Christmas festivities are just around the corner, which means you should hopefully have your gifts sorted by now, right? Well technically, no, a modern age of technology brings us the gift of online shopping. Is It Time To Review Your Insurance? The current health crisis has put on a spotlight on the need for life and disability insurance. But with household budgets under pressure from the economic fallout, Australians are balancing the need versus affordability. Blended Families Whatever your marital status, your 40s can be a challenging time financially. Growing kids are costing more, especially if you have to factor in school fees. And on the other side of the equation, family income may be coming from only one working partner. What does the rise of AI mean for productivity in Engineering and Construction? The Engineering and Construction industry has seen slow productivity growth compared to others. Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to revolutionise the sector by streamlining processes and reducing errors. However, challenges like integrating new technology and replacing human leadership roles still exist. Comment (0) Comments are closed.