Client:

  • Department of Education and Training – Skills Victoria

Timeframe:

2011 through to 2012

Project Overview:

BGA was engaged by Skills Victoria to conduct a comprehensive skills audit of the Victorian rail industry. This appointment recognised the extensive expertise and understanding that BGA has in rail industry issues. (BGA was extensively cited in the Education and Training committee of the Parliament of Victoria ‘Inquiry into Skills Shortages in the Rail Industry’ – report published in May 2010.)

The findings from the skills audit were to be used to develop an industry-wide workforce development plan.

The principle objective of the audit was to determine the scope and nature of workforce needs of the Victorian rail industry. More specifically, the project aimed to:

  • Provide intelligence and analysis to inform the Victorian rail industry workforce development plan
  • Provide demonstration to companies to improve the utilisation of their human resources, and developing and implementing workforce development plans (in the context of Skills Victoria’s broader market facilitation agenda).

The project was delivered in two Phases:

Phase 1 – Workforce Audit

Identification and investigation of company level data on employment and skills, and supplementing it with collection and analysis of qualitative intelligence from companies and other stakeholders involved in the Victorian rail industry.

Phase 2 – Skills Gap Audit

Involved a detailed skills and training needs assessment of critical specialist occupations identified in the first phase of the project taking account broader workforce development strategies.  This involved working closely with relevant companies to:

  • Compare skills already obtained with skills required to do the current job and those required for future development
  • Identify the types of courses or on-the-job experiences required, and the number of levels of people requiring training
  • Map the company’s current and desired training against accredited training in the Australian Qualifications Framework
  • Assist the company to identify potential employees for up-skilling, including mapping against eligibility criteria for the Victorian Training Guarantee

Assist companies in the process of identifying and engaging with the appropriate Registered Training Organisations.

Project Outcomes:

The audit enabled companies to:

  • Prepare detailed workforce development plans for critical specialised occupations, including training plans, and the identification of career pathways to increase attraction and retention
  • Learn from the process and use the outcomes from the audit to develop workforce development plans for other occupations
  • Familiarise themselves with the new skills system and the Government support available
  • Showcase their commitment to workforce development.

Contact:

For further information about this project, contact Steve Balzary on 0418 215 732