Workforce insights has been developed to inform government skills planning and to support employers and individuals to make informed workforce and skill development decisions. These reports bring together advice from South Australia's Industry Skills Councils (ISCs) and their networks, labour market and training data and industry research to explore the latest trends in skills and workforce development. The reports were developed prior to, and in the early stages of, the global outbreak of [Coronavirus Disease 2019] Coronavirus (COVID-19), and it is evident that significant disruption has sinc... Show more
Workforce insights has been developed to inform government skills planning and to support employers and individuals to make informed workforce and skill development decisions. These reports bring together advice from South Australia's Industry Skills Councils (ISCs) and their networks, labour market and training data and industry research to explore the latest trends in skills and workforce development. The reports were developed prior to, and in the early stages of, the global outbreak of [Coronavirus Disease 2019] Coronavirus (COVID-19), and it is evident that significant disruption has since occurred - impacting both industry and the demand for a skilled workforce, as well as the ability of employers to commence and retain apprentices and trainees. The need for further consideration of the impacts relevant to each industry is noted, and work in this regard has commenced.
The service sector includes retail and wholesale trade, personal services such as hair and beauty, and repair and maintenance services. The sector employs around 147,000 people in South Australia, or 17 per cent of the state's workforce. The key findings in this report are: Automation, scanning, facial recognition and video monitoring are reducing total labour demand while creating demand for higher level skills in the retail industry; Community engagement, employing staff with disabilities, and having diversity in the workforce are now standard expectations in the retail industry; Heightened youth expectations, reasonable employment levels and ongoing low wage growth are creating attraction and retention issues for the retail industry; There is a shortage of qualified trainers and assessors with current industry expertise across many of the services sectors; The number of registered training organisations (RTOs) delivering community pharmacy or retail training has declined over the last 10 years. The RTOs that remain have reduced the range of training they deliver, and many are struggling financially; People management and leadership training is a priority for the retail industry.
Edited excerpts from publication.
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