Edition 80, July 2010

New industry commission to lead skills investment in Queensland

The Queensland skills commission, to be known as Skills Queensland, will bring together key industry leaders to direct government investment in skills, plan training and employment programs and undertake reform of the vocational education and training system.

"We need to ensure Queensland is able to keep pace with the demands of a growing economy," Mr Wilson said.

"No government can achieve this without a genuine partnership with industry that supports industry investment and aligns training and employment programs with real skills and real jobs.

"The creation of Skills Queensland sends a clear signal to industry that they will have a greater say in the direction of skills development in our state."

"We are already seeing the benefits of this type of partnership through the Coal Seam Gas-Liquefied Natural Gas Industry Training Program announced in March where industry will match the government's contribution dollar for dollar to train workers."

Skills Queensland will also develop vocational training and labour market programs and plan skilled migration.

"During periods of growth the vocational education and training system needs to respond quickly to deliver skilled workers into the jobs that are needed.

"Skills Queensland will draw on high-level industry intelligence to deliver more effective state-wide investment in training and employment programs, better targeted skilled migration, training for emerging industries and effective responses to critical events such as the closure of major employers."

Skills Queensland will be a strategic group of industry leaders and will include the Directors-General from the training and employment departments.

An interim group will be immediately set up to assist with transitional matters and to ensure Skills Queensland can hit the decks running when it commences operations in late 2010

For more information visit http://www.training.qld.gov.au/industry/qsc/index.html

This page was generated on 21 July, 2010