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The Australian government recognises that a strong Australian Apprenticeship system is essential to sustain a strong economy. Accordingly, an Expert Panel was appointed to provide recommendations to the government on possible ways to reform the system to ensure that it can meet Australia's skills needs into the 21st century. The panel examined apprenticeship training arrangements, including current incentives, and suggested principles and evidence to improve outcomes for both apprentices and industry. The work of the panel was underpinned by a study on related economic costs and benefits, including research undertaken by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER). This is one of four reports prepared by NCVER as part of this study. The report aims to bring together some of the more important economic considerations: some theory; evidence on costs and benefits; and sustainability, by which is meant whether there are issues that might impact on the long-term future of the apprenticeship and traineeship system. Show less

Training and development of employees increases the value and breadth of employee capabilities and knowledge, although this improvement, we suggest, cannot drive improved competitive performance in the absence of effective commercialisation of these capabilities. We propose and test a model of training and organisational performance, mediated by effective market engagement and transformation by firms. We find, as we anticipate, no direct link between training and performance, although there is a significant and positive path between training and performance when mediated through effective and contemporaneous market engagement.

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Purpose - The aim of this paper is to compare the performance of area-based vs individual-level measures of socioeconomic status (SES). Design/methodology/approach - Using data from the longitudinal surveys of Australian youth (LSAY), a multidimensional measure of individual SES is created. This individual measure is used to benchmark the relative usefulness of socio-economic indexes for areas (SEIFA), a geographic set of measures often used in Australia to assess the SES of individuals. Both measures are compared in terms of classification bias. The effects of using the different SES measures on participation in post-compulsory education are examined. Findings - SEIFA measures perform satisfactorily with regard to the aggregate measurement of SES. However, they perform poorly when their use is aimed at channelling resources toward disadvantaged individuals. It is at the individual level that the analysis reveals the shortcomings of area-based SES measures. Research limitations/implications - While region based measures are relatively easy to collect and utilise, we suggest that they hide significant SES heterogeneity within regional districts. Hence, the misclassification resulting from the use of regional measures to direct support for low SES groups creates a risk for resource misallocations. Originality/value - The finding that region-based measures are subject to significant misclassification has important research and policy implications. Given the increasing availability of individual-level administrative data, the paper suggests that such data be used as a substitute for geographic SES measures in categorising the SES of individuals.

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Twenty-two opinion pieces were released in 2011: (1) 'Impact of the downturn on apprentice commencements and the long term implications for the number of tradespersons' by Tom Karmel (released 24 January); (2) 'Training: it makes dollars and sense to check on course outcomes' by Tom Karmel (released 26 March); (3) 'Australia and China: linking industry with VET' by Josie Misko (released 27 March); (4) 'No country for straw men' by Tom Karmel (released 28 March); (5) 'Measuring SES: less can be more...' by John Rice (released 11 April); (6) 'A question of degrees: launch of the VOCEDplus database' by Stephen Parker (released 19 April); (7) 'A portrait of initial teacher training' by Hugh Guthrie (released 5 May); (8) 'India cries out for an all-encompassing vocational training system' by Francesca Beddie (released 12 May); (9) 'As clear as mud: defining vocational education and training' by Tom Karmel (released 12 May); (10) 'New contributors to adult education' by Bridget Wibrow (released 15 May); (11) 'Young people in an economic downturn' (released 1 June); (12) 'Apprenticeships pave path to success' by Tom Karmel (released 4 June); (13) 'Pre-apprenticeships in need of a renovation' by Damian Oliver (released 18 July); (14) 'Learner persistence, it's the journey that's important' by Lisa Nechvoglod (released 25 July); (15) 'Land of opportunity: scholarship in tertiary education' by Francesca Beddie (released 7 September); (16) 'By degrees and trades: more and better job prospects for young people' by Tom Karmel (released 10 September); (17) 'Putting the jigsaw together: work, life, VET and low-pay' by Barbara Pocock (released 12 September); (18) 'Which paths work for post-school success?' by Tom Karmel (released 15 September); (19) 'Apprenticeships and traineeships in Australia' by Brian Knight and Tom Karmel (released 11 October); (20) 'Age matters: a profile of young people and study' by Davinia Blomberg (released 18 October); (21) 'Socioeconomic status and the allocation of government resources in Australia: how well do geographic measures perform?' by Patrick Lim, Sinan Gemici, John Rice and Tom Karmel (released 9 November); (22) 'Vocational education and skills policy in Australia' by Tom Karmel (released 6 December). Show less