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Bid to push up trainee rates

THE poor image of blue-collar trades is fuelling a national skills shortage that threatens to hold back economic growth.
Blaming parents and schools for failing to encourage students to consider traditional trades, a Senate report warns that the shortage of qualified tradespeople represents a significant barrier to investment.
From pastry cook shortages on Queensland's Gold Coast to cabinet-makers specialising in kitchens in New South Wales, employers complained they could not find qualified staff.
Tool-makers, metal fabricators, motor mechanics, electricians, refrigeration mechanics and plumbers also are in short supply.
The skills shortage crisis has prompted Labor Senator, George Campbell to say that there was too much emphasis on university entrance scores as a mark of success.
"Only 30 per cent of all Year 12 kids actually finish up in tertiary education," committee chairman Senator Campbell said.
Queensland is set to face a shortage of 50,000 skilled workers in a decade, unions have said as they prepare to push for pay increases for apprentices and trainees.
Unions estimate the cost of the shortage over 10 years to Queensland will be ~1.7 billion and nation-wide. the loss would total $9 billion.
Queensland Council of Unions general secretary Grace Grace said the council's executive has resolved to pursue the salary rates that are paid to apprentices and trainees. "The kids are very poorly, paid at the moment," she said. "We need to do something to reverse the image problem of apprenticeships and traineeships."
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has released new analysis which showed that in the next five years, 170,000 tradespeople would walk out of trades while only 40,000 would enter them.
The ACTU also argues that an 18-year-old manufacturing apprentice earned $6.20 an hour whereas a fast food trainee could earn UP to $8.70 an hour.
ACTU Federal president Sharan Burrow said the skills shortage was being fuelled by an ageing workforce and a decline in apprentices in training.
Job vacancies in traditional trades rose 20 per cent in the past year and were now at their highest level for 15 years.
Mrs Burrow called on the Federal Government to review the New Apprenticeship Programme, to directly employ more apprentices and provide wage supplements to improve wages.
Queensland is no different to other States experiencing skilled shortages "across the board," industry groups have said.
Australian Industry Group Queensland director Andrew Craig said industries such as manufacturing and governments needed to tackle an incorrect image that trades were not desirable and to also accelerate training courses. "It's probably fair to say that the old-fashioned approach that requires almost four years for every trade on low pay hasn't moved with the times," Mr Craig said.
Commerce Queensland chief executive Joe Barnewell said careers advisers in schools could play a part in changing the image of the trades and encouraging students to consider them.
He also said many employers already paid above award wages to trainees.
Federal Education Minister Brendan Nelson said the Government was working to lift apprenticeship numbers but an image problem where people valued university degrees above apprenticeship was undermining its initiatives.