The role of vocational education and training in welfare to work

The Welfare to Work initiative is responding to: an ageing population and the economic impact of this, particularly in relation to skills and employment; a perception that a significant number of very long-term unemployed people have the capacity to work; steep increases over the long term in the number of government benefit recipients; and significant and sustained skills shortages in some occupations. This report investigates the role that vocational education and training (VET) can play in this transition, using a mixed methods approach, combining case study techniques, numerical data and empirical observations. The study found that people with disabilities are relatively under-represented, with their participation in the labour force, their participation in VET and their qualification levels all lower than might be expected in the general population; mature-aged people are well represented in terms of vocational qualifications but it is not known how relevant or up to date their qualifications are, and it is difficult to say whether more training is a priority for this group; and lone parents are well represented among students though this group is more likely to achieve certificate I and II qualifications. Show less