This final report from a three-year research program puts the focus on the ability of vocational education and training (VET) to respond to workforce development challenges, particularly in industries characterised as low-skill entry points to the labour market. The key question guiding this research program is: how can VET contribute to enhancing productivity and increasing workforce participation? The research has sought to explore this question from both supply and demand standpoints. This paper first identifies that workforce development studies are enhanced by broader, comparative... [+] Show more
This final report from a three-year research program puts the focus on the ability of vocational education and training (VET) to respond to workforce development challenges, particularly in industries characterised as low-skill entry points to the labour market. The key question guiding this research program is: how can VET contribute to enhancing productivity and increasing workforce participation? The research has sought to explore this question from both supply and demand standpoints. This paper first identifies that workforce development studies are enhanced by broader, comparative modes of analysis. In the early stages of the research program, four domains were identified as critical to the form and trajectory of workforce development at the sectoral level. These four domains are: product or service of interest; deployment; labour supply; and VET. These domains have been explored in two case study sectors of interest: meat processing and child care. The four-domain approach is important because it broadens the focus and purview of workforce development analysis beyond qualification and skill alone. The paper then suggests that possible VET responses to common workforce development challenges are constrained by conflicting expectations. The paper concludes with a discussion of alternative ways whereby skill development and conceptual frameworks for understanding skill might be utilised by both of the sectors in this study. In particular, the notion of a vocation, with a supporting 'continuum of skill', is raised as a possible alternative structure.
Download