Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss whether the availability of qualifications through work-based traineeships in Australia assists social inclusion. Design/methodology/approach: Industry case studies, of the finance and cleaning industries, were undertaken as part of a national research project on quality in traineeships. The two…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyse what retail and hospitality industry employers want from training and trainers. Design/methodology/approach: The research project was undertaken for Service Skills Australia, the Australian Industry Skills Council that oversees formal training for a range of service industries in…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a reflection on the growth in qualifications available through work, over the 50 years of Education + Training. Design/methodology/approach: The approach adopted is that of providing a viewpoint, reflecting back on the availability of qualifications today compared with the 1950s. Findings: The…

Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to examine the ways in which Australian companies can achieve high quality apprenticeship and traineeship systems in a time of labour shortage through close attention to the recruitment and development of apprentices and trainees. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is based on six qualitative case studies…

In Australia, as in many other countries, initiatives are constantly being developed which aim to assist school students' transition into work. One such initiative, which was introduced towards the end of the 1990s, was the introduction of school-based apprenticeships and traineeships, often referred to by the umbrella term "school-based new…

Little has been published in the Australian vocational education and training (VET) literature on the topic of pre-apprenticeships, which are a loose type of preparatory courses for apprenticeships available in some trades. Nevertheless, pre-apprenticeships have been in existence for several decades. With continuing concern over skill shortages in…

Traineeships are apprenticeship-like training arrangements that were initiated in Australia in 1985. They were designed to introduce apprenticeship training to a broader range of industries, occupations and individuals; they are available in occupations outside the traditional trades and crafts. Many companies use them on a large scale, some…

This paper examines the Australian phenomenon of Enterprise Registered Training Organizations (RTOs). These are organizations that do not have training as their main business but that are accredited to deliver training and award qualifications, primarily to their own workers. Although Enterprise RTOs have been in existence in one form or another…

Case studies of four Australian apprentices and four trainees illustrate the following: their growing appreciation for the value of off-the-job training; preference for face-to-face training; centrality of relationships with off-the-job trainers; the implicit contract of expectations of the parties to the training contract; and dissatisfaction…

This article examines the increased incidence of work-related qualifications for women in areas of work served by the vocational education and training (VET) system in Australia. Until 20 years ago, qualifications were generally available only for areas of work usually undertaken by men, apart from a few specific "women's occupations" such as…

This article is a critical review of policy and literature relating to vocational education and training (VET) in schools in Australia. Over the past decade in Australia, VET in schools has grown considerably so that not only are nearly half of senior school students now involved, but also VET in schools represents around 10% of total VET…

In Australia, apprentices and trainees can choose training providers using public funds to finance training. User choice raises policy issues in several areas: access in remote locations, impact on equity groups, competitiveness of training markets, and tensions among stakeholders (government, employers, providers, apprentices). (SK)