National Jobs and Skills Summit

JCU’s Allan Dale, Professor of Tropical Development at The Cairns Institute (TCI), was one of 146 participants invited to the Federal Government’s Jobs and Skills Summit, held September 1-2 in Canberra. The summit brought prominent Australians together to agree on immediate actions to help build a stronger economy and a stronger Australia. Allan attended in his capacity as the Chief Scientists for the CRC for Developing Northern Australia.
Allan informed Summit participants that “Our foundational research has identified vast employment and economic opportunities across key Northern Australian economic sectors, including agriculture, aquaculture and health and the steps needed to attract and retain skilled workers and their families.

“As an example, we will need more than 2,000 workers to fill employment gaps in aquaculture in Northern Australia alone, and there are another 600 jobs in sustainable forestry just waiting for the right people. We know the health service delivery and aged care sectors are employment growth areas as well, especially on the back of the COVID 19 pandemic,” he said. In the lead up to the summit, Allan helped to facilitate the Cairns Jobs and Skills Regional Roundtables chaired by Senator Nita Green (pictured below). Workforce shortages, heath care, liveability and the skills crisis were just some of the topics discussed amongst participants. The roundtables sought to ensure that regional voices are heard in the national discussion.

Government representatives indicated that many of the ideas and suggestions raised at the Summit will be explored further over the next 12 months as part of the Employment White Paper, designed to help shape the future of Australia’s labour market. A full list of the outcomes for the Canberra Jobs and Skill Summit can be found at https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/inline-files/Jobs-and-Skills-Summit-Outcomes-Document.pdf
There will be a range of further opportunities to contribute to this important discussion and inform the development of the Government’s White Paper over the next 12 months. The Summit was the first step in the process, not the last. Further information will be made available on the Treasury website at https://treasury.gov.au/review/employment-whitepaper