Submission to the inquiry into student pathways to in-demand industries

The community sector is an in-demand industry.

Victorian Government modelling predicts the healthcare and social assistance workforce will need a further 86,482 workers by 2027, increasing to 335,464 new workers by 2034. Currently, community sector workforce growth is not on the right trajectory to meet that target.

Gender-based undervaluation is the biggest obstacle to student pathways into the community sector. The historical perception that care-related professions are “women’s work” and are less skilled has led to many roles in the industry being undervalued relative to other sectors, creating the conditions for low-paid and insecure work. The Fair Work Commission’s Gender-based Undervaluation Review has recognised this issue by giving priority consideration to awards that cover roles within community and social services.

Current government reforms to senior secondary education – for example, VET in schools – are helping to position the community sector as a priority industry to schools, students, families and carers. However, without addressing the root causes of gender undervaluation of the sector, we will struggle to attract enough students to commence or continue a community services pathway.

To do this, we need to first address the underlying economic conditions. For workers, this means we need to lift the rates of pay. While we are aware that the Fair Work Commission has work underway to address gender undervaluation of various community sector awards, this is only one part of the issue. We also need to provide workers with security of employment by offering longer term employment contracts. Workers need access to the certainty of reliable hours of work, to avoid underemployment, and many also require workplace flexibility to balance their paid work with other (including unpaid) care roles.

Community sector organisations need to be funded adequately, not only to deliver safe, high quality services, but also to be able to offer fair, flexible and secure employment. This means ensuring that community sector roles are appropriately paid and encompass all regulatory requirements and entitlements (such as award requirements, the Superannuation Guarantee, portable long service leave contributions and WorkCover premiums), as well as providing opportunities for upskilling and career development. We need to create the conditions for the community sector to become an industry of choice.

The care economy, of which the community sector is a huge part, is a significant contributor to employment, economic growth and societal wellbeing in Australia . It is capturing the attention of policymakers in productivity conversations across the country for these reasons. We need to continue to improve awareness and understanding of the substantial impact that community sector careers have on society and shift perceptions about the sector’s contribution and its value.

Along with addressing the economic factors, creating the conditions to enable the community sector to become an industry of choice, and changing perceptions of the sectors contribution and value, we also need to ensure that there is increased awareness and understanding of what the community sector offers and promote the pathways to a community sector career. One of the many consequences of historic gender undervaluation of the sector has been less curiosity and therefore less awareness of what the community sector offers in terms of roles, opportunities for career progression and qualifications required to enter the sector. The result is that pathways into the sector are not necessarily well understood by students and those who influence them.

Recommendations

To address gender-based undervaluation as a primary barrier for student pathways into the community sector, the Victorian Government should address the following economic conditions for community services organisations:
1. Adjust base funding to the community sector to reflect the full cost of delivering services.  
2. Increase default contract terms to seven years for government-funded community service organisations and optimise government contracting practices.  

To increase awareness and elevate perceptions about student pathways into in demand roles in the community sector, the Victorian Government should:
3. Support engagement in career education and exploration with students from late primary school onwards.  
4. Educate young people and those who hold influence – including (but not limited to) parents, carers and school career advisors – about pathways into the community sector and VET study options, building on:
* Reforms to careers education, senior secondary certificates and VET in schools. The Department of Education should expand current investment in training and resources to enable more school staff to be able to speak to students about community sector careers
* The Job that Matter and Your World, Your VCE marketing and communications campaigns. The Victorian Government should provide sustained, scaled investment in integrated marketing communications campaigns that generate measurable improvements in awareness, knowledge and interest of community sector career pathways.   
5. Maintain appropriate funding, multi-year contracts and pay what it takes to all 31 Local Learning and Employment Networks (LLENs) to ensure continuation of place-based support and coverage across all areas of Victoria.    

To strengthen pathways into the community sector for early school leavers and learners requiring additional support, the Victorian Government should:  
6. Improve the delivery of trauma-informed, wrap-around supports for students across the education and training systems.
7. Provide funding for mainstream and specialist schools to address identified gaps in transition support for students with disability who are pursuing VET and higher education.  
8. Introduce a new, sustainable funding model for Learn Local providers to cover the full cost of course development, promotion, delivery, administration and student support.  

To ensure that students undertaking community sector qualifications can complete mandatory workplace placements and progress to employment, the Victorian Government should:  
9. Introduce support for students undertaking key community sector TAFE qualifications (such as the Diploma of Community Services), that are currently ineligible for the Commonwealth Government’s Prac Payment, building off the success of the Inclusion Scholarships program.  
10. Advocate to the Commonwealth Government to:    
a) extend the Prac Payment to all community services qualifications (including key TAFE qualifications)         
b) raise the rate of Youth Allowance and other Commonwealth income support payments for students and apprentices, to at least $80 a day.  
11. Introduce a funding model for community sector organisations hosting mandatory workplace placements, based on a ‘per placement day’ fee.  

VCOSS is the peak body for Victoria’s social and community sector, and the state’s premier social advocacy body. We work towards a Victoria free from poverty and disadvantage, where every person and community experiences genuine wellbeing. Read more.

We welcome the opportunity to provide this input.

This work is authorised by VCOSS CEO Juanita Pope.

PRIMARY AUTHOR

Georgia Robenstone

VCOSS acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country, and we pay respect to Elders and Ancestors. Our business is conducted on sovereign, unceded Aboriginal land. The VCOSS offices are located on Wurundjeri Woiwurrung land in central Naarm.