Page 6 - Climate Control News Magazine Feb 2020

News
THE CURRENT SHORTAGE OF SKILLED LABOUR IN AUSTRALIA’S HVACR INDUSTRY IS A CRITICAL ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED AS A MATTER OF URGENCY, ACCORDING TO DAN TOSH, THE NATIONAL MARKETING MANAGER FOR DAIKIN AUSTRALIA.
TOSH SAID IT is the reason why Daikin Aus- tralia has chosen to be platinum sponsor of the NextGen program.
He said a skilled workforce is the lifeblood of this industry and programs like NextGen serve as a great vehicle to promote the trade as a re- warding vocation.
“Daikin is committed to the development of technical capability through the Daikin Train- ing Academy and by also providing employment opportunities through a consistent intake of ap- prentices over many years,” he said.
“We feel that the NextGen program aligns with these key initiatives and to our objective to contribute to the progress of the industry.”
Tosh said the industry is continually evolving with a broad range of technologies being intro- duced to market to bring comfort, health and ef- ficiency to the buildings we work, live and play in.
“For the industry to thrive in this era, organisa- tions at all levels need to continue the develop- ment of technical capability and ensure the knowledge transfer between the more experi- enced professionals and the younger generation,” he said. WorldSkills Australia are the experts when it comes to recognising excellence, it is an organisation that has built a movement around changing the lives of young people through skills.
WorldSkills Australia general manager, Brigitte Collins, said the organisation is pleased to support CCN’s search for Australia’s top 20 under 25.
“WorldSkills Australia focus on skills excel- lence and we endorse any programme that high- lights the success of our young trades people to highlight the importance of vocational education and training and showcase where great training can take you which we see evident through our WorldSkills Australia programs,” Collins said.
CCN talks exclusively to Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Contractors Association (RACCA) president, Kevin O’Shea, about the challenges of making HVACR a sexy trade.
Turn to page 32.
ABOVE: NextGen is a great way to promote trade excellence.
Nominations open
The search for Australia’s top 20 refrigeration and air conditioning (RAC) technicians under 25 has begun with the official launch of the NextGen program.
NextGen aims to connect the industry with Australia’s next generation of RAC technicians.
The average age of the RAC workforce is 39 with 24 per cent aged over 50.
In a bid to address this critical skills shortage CCN has formed a partnership with WorldSkills Australia to promote trade excellence by publishing our annual Top 20 tunder 25. To nominate go to
https://www.climatecontrolnews.com.au/ nextgen
Skilled migration review
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT has com- menced a review of the skilled migration oc- cupation lists and is seeking feedback from stakeholders by February 12, 2020.
Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator Michaelia Cash, said the review was to ensure it remained re- sponsive to genuine skill needs and regional variations across Australia.
“As a Government, our role is to ensure that Australian employers can access workers with the skills needed to fill the jobs of today and tomorrow when they can’t be met by the do-
mestic workforce,” Cash said.
She said the government’s skilled migration
policies were underpinned by the principle that Australian workers are considered first for jobs. Minister for Immigration, David Coleman, said the government has allocated 23,000 re- gional migration places to attract migrants to regional areas to help towns grow. He said mi- gration will fill some of the 60,000 job vacan-
cies in regional Australia.
The next update to Australia’s skilled mi-
gration occupation list will be announced in March 2020.
ABOVE: Minister for Immigration, David Coleman and Skills Minister, Senator Michaelia Cash.
CLIMATECONTROLNEWS.COM.AU
Skilled workforce is lifeblood of HVACR industry
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