National Apprenticeships, Employment & Training Provider | VERTO Skill to Transform
VERTO is an award winning, not-for-profit organisation assisting businesses and individuals with all their apprenticeship, employment and training needs. Our expertise covers a range of areas including Aboriginal services, Australian apprenticeships services, disability services, employment services and vocational training to help businesses, individuals and local industry to thrive. Our mission is to positively impact the lives of individuals and communities and we’ve built a track record of exemplary customer service over 30 years, built around an ethical approach.You'll find the team in 26 locations across New South Wales.
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VERTO Jobseekers Successful in Indigenous Placement Program with Diversity Dimensions
In April, VERTO put forward three Indigenous jobseekers to take part in the Diversity Dimensions Indigenous Job Placement Program. The program matches potential employers and job seekers, allowing the two to work together for a period of time, with the aim of securing ongoing employment if there is a match. Indigenous jobseekers can be limited in their employment opportunities and programs like this offer specific structures to support them on this journey.
For these three young people, participation in the program formed part of their job and activity plans. VERTO partners with each client to create an individual plan that takes into account their existing skills and their goals. “In the case of these three jobseekers, the Diversity Dimensions program was a great fit in offering the opportunity to trial working for local employers” says Stacey Callan, Team Leader, Employment Services at VERTO.
VERTO is committed to supporting all their clients, and that support goes beyond finding the right programs. The jobseekers were able to access a range of formal and informal support during the program. “We are on hand to help our clients make the most of the opportunities. In the case of these three jobseekers that additional support included individual coaching sessions, organising uniforms and providing transport to the location,” Stacey says.
With VERTO’s support, combined with their own tenacity and determination to find employment, all three were successful in finishing the program and were offered ongoing employment. For two of the jobseekers, the opportunities were right for them and they are now in permanent part-time roles with local Woolworths branches in Central West NSW.
“This employment can be life-changing for young people, particularly in regional areas, where it can be harder to come by. Programs like Diversity Dimensions provide indigenous people with opportunities to connect with employers and remove barriers to employment, such as lack of confidence and past mistakes,” Stacey says. “In the case of these jobseekers, they have overcome significant challenges to secure employment, that can break generational cycles and offer financial stability, and we couldn’t be more proud of them,” she concludes.
Millennials and apprenticeships: Removing stereotypes and making it work for all
By Ron Maxwell - CEO
As an organisation that deals heavily with helping our youth into employment, we’ve become reasonably adept at working with the Millennial generation. As more of the Gen Y cohort enters the workforce, it’s clear that within a short period of time they will become the dominant demographic across all industry sectors.
That’s seen a dramatic change to the way employer’s structure “work.” The Millennial generation is the first true ‘digital native’ group to enter the job market, bringing a fresh approach to the way many roles are completed.
So it was with interest that I read a recent article on the challenges that our younger workers (both the Millennial and the following Generation ‘Z’ demographics) face in entering the workforce today. Some of the challenges I can understand, however, with a skills shortage facing the Australian job market, I certainly feel there’s a need to show the value of apprenticeships to those entering the workforce.
Apprenticeships need to be seen as a viable option
As I’ve said in previous posts, I often feel that apprenticeships are undervalued. Given our looming skills shortage across so many industries, encouraging school leavers to seriously consider apprenticeships needs to be a core priority for both government and private organisations.
The role of apprenticeships is changing, as new industries and job types evolve. With technology changing so rapidly, new careers are emerging that only a few years ago we may never have even considered. Organisations like ours are working hard to evolve our programs to meet this demand, however, the common challenge is that demand for apprentices is far outstripping supply.
What encourages me is the fact that the demand is there. Without apprenticeships I’m of the firm view that youth unemployment would be a far greater challenge for our nation.
Engaging the younger generations
Like most in the Baby Boomer and Generation X groups, we’ve all heard stories about the Millennial generation being ‘lazy.’ I think that is a stereotype that we need to ignore and challenge. It’s my belief that this generation is simply changing the way we approach work. They’re still hard workers, they just approach work differently to their predecessors.
As I mentioned above, they’re the first true digital natives. Using technology is completely the norm for this generation; rapid technological change is not a challenge, but an opportunity in their eyes. This will provide employers with the opportunity to engage apprentices that are already technology literate, which I see as a massive advantage for forward thinking businesses. Technology is rapidly changing so many industries, being able to adapt is a huge benefit.
The new generations joining the workforce are also far more aware of, and engaged by, the social programs that businesses run. Commonly called ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’, or CSR, it’s important for employers to think about the causes that they support when looking to attract the best talent. That’s no different with apprenticeships.
There are still some barriers we need to remove
In saying that, I’m not going to suggest that all apprenticeship experiences are completely smooth sailing. I’ve seen some examples, such as those raised in the ABC article, that haven’t shone a great light on the sector. However, these are the outliers in terms of the experience, we see far more positive experiences that lead to great careers. Organisations like VERTO have amazing programs designed to support both employers and apprentices through the entire journey.
Making it work
As we invest in helping our school leavers with training that improves their soft skills as well as their ability to learn a trade or skills set, I think the overall opportunity through apprenticeships is one that can be so rewarding.
For our youth, it provides long-term employment opportunities, as the skills shortage provides strong demand for a wide variety of roles. For employers, it gives the opportunity to engage an employee at the beginning of their career and to guide them into becoming a long-term employee.
Making it work for all parties, and adapting to generational differences, is a role that all of us, from employers and apprentices, through to support networks such as ours, need to play.
How investment in Australia’s regional areas can provide a brighter future for us all.
By Ron Maxwell - CEO
Regional Australia offers numerous benefits as a place to live; natural beauty and a strong sense of community coupled with affordable housing proving drawcards to keep locals around and attract ‘treechangers’ alike. But the challenge for many of our regional communities comes in the form of employment.
We know that long-term and intergenerational unemployment have long been key challenges in some of our regional areas, but with recent increases in government investment, the fortunes of some of our communities may be about to change.
In the recent budget, an additional $24.5 billion was pledged to regional infrastructure and transport projects as well as significant funding for healthcare training schools in these areas. Coupled with projects already announced such as the Parkes Inland Rail, which is set to commence later this year, we can expect to see a jump in job vacancies in many NSW Regional Areas.
Benefits can be long-term
It’s sometimes argued that these projects bring a short-term win to a community, but don’t benefit them in the long term. It’s true that these projects provide a great short-term boost to the local economy, by way of both local employment opportunities and bringing in workers from other areas who live in the community and spend money at local businesses. But if our governments can invest wisely in the right infrastructure projects, the long-term benefits are there too.
Commercial vacancies in our regional areas are quite high, but in areas with low property costs and an abundant workforce, this often doesn’t make sense. The missing piece for many of our regional centres is the infrastructure, the roads and transport links that would enable businesses to move products (and people!) to and from metropolitan centres quickly and cost-effectively.
Projects such as the upgrade of Dubbo City Regional Airport have the potential to make an area more attractive to a range of markets; tourism and commercial industry chief among them.
Transport projects work.
Over the last decade, amid ongoing debate and daydreaming about high-speed rail in NSW, regional Victoria has successfully invested $4.5 billion in medium speed rail upgrades to cut times between Melbourne and regional centres. As a result of these upgrades, the time between Ballarat and Melbourne has been reduced from two hours to just 65 minutes and there has been a significant uplift in the number of passengers travelling on the line.
Reducing the travel time between a regional area and a metropolitan centre by almost half offers so many opportunities. It encourages people who work in cities to consider living in our regions, and stops the attrition of our rural communities, as locals no longer have to move to the city for work.
As the population grows, new services are required – more infrastructure projects bring more jobs and encourage businesses, large and small, to set up shop in the area - and the cycle is changed to a positive one.
We need to prepare our communities for new opportunities
Of course, infrastructure is only one part of the solution for our regional communities, albeit a big one. Investment in regional areas needs to sit hand-in-hand with the support services that ensure a community can take full advantage of the opportunities on offer. This includes things like education and training opportunities to build the skills required for the jobs being created and encouraging and growing entrepreneurial pursuits and small businesses to service a growing population.
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), for example, is currently rolling out across the country, expanding the job opportunities in our healthcare sector, particularly in Disability Care and Aged Care. Aged Care offers significant economic opportunities for our regional areas, where a greater proportion of Australia’s ageing population are based. Yet the number of people employed in the industry is in rapid decline; with the Australian Nursing and Midwife Foundation (ANMF) reporting a 13% decline in the number of nursing staff employed full time in aged care between 2003 – 2016, during which time the number of Australians needing high care increased by 40%.
There has been discussion in the media recently of encouraging more skilled migrants to settle in our rural areas, and this will certainly help, but providing locals with access to training and upskilling opportunities has a role to play too.
Along with supporting traditional industries, new industries such as clean energy and in particular, solar farming, can play a role in reversing the decline in our regions. I’ve talked before about the abundance of open space and sunshine in the NSW Central West and we need to take a look at how we can reskill and develop regional workers to take advantage of these emerging industries.
We can all benefit
If we can prepare our regional communities to make the most of the opportunities that infrastructure investments present, we all stand to benefit. Creating job opportunities will reduce welfare, housing and healthcare costs typically associated with long-term unemployment - the savings over the term of a person’s unemployment can be significant.
We also stand to gain significantly by increasing access to our regional areas, which can reduce congestion in major cities and open up new affordable housing markets.
We’re off to a really positive start, and if successive governments can keep the momentum, we have an opportunity to reverse population decline and give regional Australia a sustainable future.
Why collaboration is key to the future of Australia’s higher education sector
By Ron Maxwell - CEO
Collaboration: It’s a buzzword across many industries, as both physical barriers and competitive ones are broken down in a bid to grow and innovate. Our business education programs teach the importance of it, yet it’s an area where our tertiary education sector seems to be lagging.
This sector plays a key role in our economy, and in many ways, determines the future for all of us. It’s long been argued, by both industry and education experts, that a collaborative higher education sector might just be the key Australia needs to navigate a digital future.
Currently, our schools, vocational education and training (VET) providers and universities are siloed, operating on entirely different public funding models, and this can exacerbate competition and stifle collaboration and innovation.
Recently, the Business Council of Australia called for an overhaul of the sector, that ultimately boils down to ensuring that the core focus returns to the learner. Moving toward a shared funding model could see institutions actively seek out collaboration opportunities, from the sharing of facilities to course pathways that increase opportunities for both students and industry.
Inconsistent funding can influence choice
As the focus becomes more and more about increasing student numbers to increase funding, rather than attracting the right students to the right courses, the perfect storm is brewing for our higher education sector.
I’ve talked before about how VET qualifications have long been viewed as the poor cousin, with parents and schools driving students towards university degrees under the misconception that this leads to higher incomes and more opportunity. In fact, in many industries, the opposite is true.
As universities lower entrance requirements to attract more students, and hence more funding, the number of graduates far outstrips job opportunities in many degree-qualified professions. Meanwhile, many of our key industries and trades are facing skill shortages as apprentice numbers decline, while funding to the VET sector is being cut to critical levels.
In a 2015 report on the VET sector around the globe, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) found that inconsistent funding was an issue for the Australian sector, and noted that consistent funding is key to ensuring student choices are not distorted by the availability of funds.
This issue is highlighted with nursing studies, where prospective students have a choice of degree and VET qualification pathways. The best pathway should be driven by the student’s career interests and aspirations; however, students completing the university qualification can access up to six times the funding of a VET student, enticing students into the wrong courses and leaving skill gaps across our healthcare sector.
In my opinion, introducing a single tertiary funding model to replace the various models currently at play would both encourage collaboration and level the playing field. Enabling institutions to see past the funding battle would allow the focus to shift back to the learner and ensure we are doing the best for our students, industries, and the economy.
It doesn’t have to be either/or
Building nested courses and clearer articulation pathways between school, VET qualifications and university degrees could also benefit individual students and our industries. Under the current system, school leavers are typically asked to make a choice between VET or university, but for some qualifications, a clear pathway between the two could be the answer.
Students could start with a VET qualification, which prepares them immediately for the workforce. Once qualified, students would have the option to continue on to a degree with some articulation credits for subjects completed. This way, there are both clear exit points and opportunities for further study. Imagine the benefits of our uni students already being qualified to work in certain areas of their chosen industry, earning money and building real-world experience while studying. For industries like healthcare, which is facing significant skill shortages, this would be a massive win.
Physical resources could be shared too
At many of our large institutions, publicly-funded facilities – training spaces, technology etc. - are sitting empty while students and faculty are on semester breaks. Meanwhile, we have community-based training providers scrounging for affordable space and quality resources.
A collaborative, shared funding model could see these resources allocated better across communities, giving community organisations access to these facilities when they aren’t in use by the institution. This would enrich community learning, while also maximising the return on investment for Australian tax payers.
It can be done
Taking collaboration from theory to practice is a challenge for every industry, and higher education is no exception. Integrating the different models into a single tertiary funding model is a key step in driving collaboration across the sector. It will take dedication from providers, who will need to shift from a win/loss mindset to a truly collaborative one, and considerable political foresight from our federal and state governments, but I believe it can be done.
Our schools, VET providers, and universities working together could be a win for us all, maximizing public investment in education and ensuring we maintain a strong, healthy economy into the future.
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