VET News

Developing Digital Skills is a Key Training Need

With around a third of employers adopting new technology, the search is on for training that supports the expansion of their businesses and the upskilling of current employees.

As we learn to live with COVID-19, Australian businesses are training their workforce to support financial recovery and post-pandemic growth.

The new research Upskilling and reskilling: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employers and their training choices released by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) reports on how Australian employers have been affected by the pandemic and their current and future training requirements.

The lockdowns and restrictions imposed from 2020 to mid-2021 to curb the spread of COVID-19 affected Australian business profoundly. Aside from experiencing economic disruptions, businesses had to change their operational activities and how they provided their products and services to cope with the decrease in demand and survive financially.

Developing digital skills is a key training need highlighted by the research. The increase in social restrictions, online shopping and more staff working from home have forced businesses to digitise their operations, with around a third adopting new technology. Other key training areas identified were on how to operate safely in the COVID-19 environment, health and safety, and infection control.

The research found that in the next 12 months, nearly a third of employers expect to increase the amount of training they provide to their staff. They are looking for training to support the planned expansion of their businesses, upskill current employees, and adapt to changes in the workplace brought by COVID-19.

For the VET sector to meet these and other longstanding training needs, programs that enable employers to operate in a COVID-19 safe way, support adoption and use of new digital technologies, and allow the optimum delivery of blended training (online and face-to-face) will be critical.

Date posted Feb 10, 2022