The Australia government and trade unions policies of teaching skills shortage - Essay Example

The Australia Government and Trade Unions Policies of Teaching Skills Shortage In recent years, Australian government has experienced shortages in appropriately skilled labor as noted by ABC (2011). The shortages have been experienced in various industries and sectors of the economy thus raising concerns in the country. In education sector, the shortage has emerged as a significant and increasing problem to the country with a number of solutions being put in place to address the problem. These shortages have left most Australian states and territories with a great need for skilled and experienced teachers with those who are qualified in special education and secondary education being in high demand and those having qualifications in early childhood and primary education needed in some states.

Teaching skill shortages in Australia have arisen due to many different reasons including changes in technology and interest or attitude of students towards teaching as a profession itself. Changes in technology have greatly affected the education sector with most of the trained teachers leaving the profession to join other professions hence causing shortages in the sector. Most graduates who have trained as teachers have joined freelance employments such as online academic writing and research writing that are flexible and less restrictive in terms of qualification and experience and also pay well as compared to teaching.

New candidates joining the universities have also shied away from the profession as a result of technology. Although introduction of new technology and changes in the existing ones due to changes in industries in the country have contributed to shortages in teaching skills, changes in attitudes of the students towards teaching have been cited as the main cause of the shortages. Most candidates in Australia regard teaching as a professional that is not favorable in terms of income or social status thus have resorted to venture in other sectors hence causing shortages in teaching sector.

Both those who are joining colleges to train as teachers and those who have trained as teachers, shy away from the profession claiming that it pays less as compared to other professions and holds low social status in the society. Therefore, this has escalated the problem in the country and has made the government to initiate or put down solutions to curb the shortage. Due a lot of pressure from stakeholders in education sector, The Australian government has been forced to increase its level of immigration to help deal with the critical shortages in the teaching sector (Bbmlive 2011).

The government has embarked on a mission to recruit skilled teachers from foreign countries such as the UK and other European countries, United States of America and some African countries to reduce the shortage and increase the quality of education offered to its citizens. This move by the government has been welcomed by many and its success greatly felt in the country. The government has also increased the salaries of teachers (and those working in other sectors) so as to attract many young Australians into the profession and reduce the number of immigrants in the country (ACTU 2004).

Although the success of this initiative is yet to be felt by many, its impact has began to be seen. Some people who previously left the profession due to low pay have since got back to teaching. In addition, this initiative by the government has also changed the attitude of young Australians towards the profession and has since increased their number in the same thus reducing the shortage. References ABC (2011) Skilled migrants to tackle states skill shortages. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/03/23/3171711.

htm [Accessed 110 May, 2011] ACTU (2004) Australia’s looming skills shortage: ACTU Background Paper. http://www.actu.org.au/public/news/files/skill_shortage_paper.pdf [Accessed 110 May, 2011] Bbmlive (2011) The Great Australian Skills Shortage http://bbmlive.com/visa-information/the-great-australian-skills-shortage.html [Accessed 110 May, 2011]