Budget offers little to TCF sector
Unveiling the budget last week, the Government promised to provide a $4 billion investment in education, science and training, with a $3.5 billion vocational training package a centrepiece of this year's bundle of packages, together with $5 billion in capital investment for higher education. Measures to increase the take home pay of apprentices would also encourage careers in trades, while a range of new initiatives had been implemented to support fast track apprenticeships.
However not-for-profit organisation Manufacturing Skills Australia said the Budget's trades measures would have very little impact on the TCF sector, with CEO Bob Paton claiming the incentives were targeted more clearly at the mechanical arena.
"The nearest role that might be relevant to these measures would be someone like a textile mechanic," he said.
With the TCF sector experiencing equal measures of decline and expansion Paton described growth as "fairly static", adding budget funding ploughed into tertiary education was more likely to be directed towards mainstream areas of study such as law, medicine, engineering and science.
The Council of Textile and Fashion Industries of Australia (TFIA) sounded a marginally more optimistic note, stating that while the budget was not aimed directly at the TCF sector, it did offer potential opportunities.
"The TFIA has yet to implement a full analysis of how the measures could work for industry, but I think the main thing is that TCF companies need to have a clear understanding of the programs available to them," said TFIA executive director Ashley Van Krieken.
Responding to the Budget on May 10, opposition leader Kevin Rudd gave some indication of the Labor Party's view of TCF's global relevance, promising increased resources for Asian language education to enhance the trading power of TCF professionals.