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As Western Australia (WA) emerges from international and State border restrictions, access to workers continues to be a challenge. The removal of border restrictions will not resolve the problem quickly, as this research reveals. To fuel WA's future growth, a WA workforce strategy is needed. This report focuses on four areas: (1) the role of education and skills transferability for the future workforce; (2) access, equality and challenges for the latent workforce; (3) a framework for industry engagement with education providers to train the future generation; and (4) the role of migration for WA.

The challenges identified and discussed in the report are wide-ranging, arising from increased demand, occupational bias, skills mismatch, a handbrake on skilled migration and a lack of long-term planning. To address the critical skilled labour shortages and prepare the WA workforce for the future, the report makes 14 recommendations for implementation between now and 2024. The recommendations focus on three key outcomes: (1) removing the barriers to labour supply; (2) attracting workers to WA; and (3) implementing an integrated approach to workforce planning.

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