Australia’s federal government has extended its wage subsidy scheme for apprentices and trainees for another year, ending 30 September 2021. The scheme, said to have helped create around 100,000 apprenticeships to date, was introduced in 2020 as part of the economic response to COVID-19 and subsidises 50 per cent of the wages of apprentices and trainees. In total, … Continue reading Extension for Australian apprenticeship subsidy
The VASA Board has taken the tough decision to further postpone Wire & Gas until 2022 due to ongoing uncertainty caused by regular state border closures and snap lockdowns that will likely continue well into this year. Light is visible at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel with the first shipment of vaccines rolling out … Continue reading Wire & Gas postponed until July 2022
Australian employers, employees, business owners, learners, apprentices, job seekers, peak bodies, unions, employer associations and registered training organisations are invited to have their say on vocational education and training (VET) reform. The deadline for submissions is 12 pm AEDT on Monday 1 March 2021. A discussion paper has been released with topics to be covered … Continue reading Call for feedback on how to improve vocational education and training in Australia
ASA welcomes the upcoming replacement of controversial Unit of Competency AURETU005 “Retrofit and modify air conditioning and HVAC systems” as part of a broader update to the Automotive Retail, Service and Repair (AUR) Training Package due to concerns raised by this organisation and other industry groups. Continue reading Common sense prevails in change to HC retrofit requirements within AUR Training Package
Being able to quickly identify, diagnose and resolve problems is vital for workshops so they can promptly fix the vehicle in question – helping cut downtime and maximise profit. One modern way to alleviate the oft-problematic and time-consuming fault identification and disassembly process is through the use of augmented reality – an approach that has … Continue reading Augmented reality could expedite servicing and training
Judging by the frequent gasps from members of the audience during Rachael Sheldrick’s presentation at Wire & Gas 2018, a number of delegates were having several ‘aha’ moments as the lady known as Workshop Whisperer led them through ways of collaborating with non-competitive businesses and using social media to get new customers through the door. … Continue reading Whispers of success
Long haul to ready 15-litre diesel engine for Wire & Gas 2018 Delegates at Wire & Gas 2018 got a lot out of the session centred on a 15-litre Cummins heavy-duty diesel truck engine delivered by VASA director Darrel Hursey, and here is the story of just how much work went into making that session … Continue reading Project Cummins
The Motor Trades Association of Queensland (MTAQ) has launched a ‘pre-vocational’ nine-week course designed to give youngsters aspiring to an automotive career the basic knowledge, technical and life skills to boost their confidence and ready them for the job market. A five-week practical element includes safe work practices, the use and maintenance of tools and … Continue reading MTAQ’s Auto Initiation training program
Australia’s automotive skills shortage has shrunk from almost 22,000 unfilled jobs in 2013 to 16,359 in 2014, according to the 2015 Automotive Environmental Scan report from Auto Skills Australia (ASA). The report also says 40.6 per cent of 500 survey respondents were experiencing a skills shortage, eight per cent down on 2013 and the lowest … Continue reading Skills shortage shrinks but fewer businesses hire apprentices
On August 24, 2015, the deadline elapsed for expressions of interest to form the Skills Service Organisations (SSO) that will replace Industry Skills Councils (ISC) such as Auto Skills Australia (ASA) under the Abbott Government’s vocational education and training (VET) reforms. Regardless of the outcome of the tender process that will create a set of … Continue reading VET reform gathers momentum as contestable model kicks in
