To support the growth of Australia’s agriculture industry, Skills Insight is investigating how to strengthen the attraction of agriculture careers by mapping pathways for cross-functional careers with qualifications in the Agriculture, Horticulture and Conservation and Land Management Training Package. This project is also key to identifying a potential agricultural trade qualification pathway.
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Agriculture offers a wide range of exciting and dynamic career opportunities. Like many industries, the pathways people take within agriculture are not always linear. While two people may begin their journeys as farmhands, one might eventually become a farm owner, while the other moves on to teach agricultural skills in a registered training organisation (RTO). Along the way, they may have worked as farm managers, directors for agricultural organisations, farm equipment technicians, or in aquaponics or AgTech.
Understanding these varied career pathways is crucial to supporting industry recruitment, retention, and attraction strategies. It is also a key step in identifying the best option for an agricultural trade apprenticeship pathway that reflects the diversity and potential of the sector.
Skills Insight is building a workforce development framework for the agricultural industry. This initiative aims to overcome challenges in promoting and defining career pathways, aligning job roles with qualifications, and enhancing skills and training delivery.
Purpose
This project will explore and share insights into agricultural career pathways and provide valuable knowledge for the industry, particularly around job promotion. It will also play a pivotal role in shaping the development of an agricultural trade apprenticeship program.
Agricultural career pathway mapping aims to bolster the appeal of the agriculture industry in the eyes of job seekers, improving visibility and understanding of careers in agriculture. Career mapping also aims to provide clear, accessible pathways that attract diverse talent pools, supporting workplace diversity and inclusion.
Through stakeholder consultation and analysis of the agricultural aligned qualifications within the AHC Training Package and their alignment to various job titles, the project team will investigate the cross-functional skills that can carry workers across various job roles and sectors throughout their career.
Stakeholders will also be consulted on the potential to develop consistent and appealing job titles that accurately reflect the depth and variety of work, enhancing industry’s profile, bringing them in line with other VET workforce trades, such as plumber, carpenter, electrician or auto-mechanic.
Objectives
The project aligns with the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) 2030 Roadmap, which emphasises the need for clear career pathways to attract and develop skilled workers, and supports the objectives of the Jobs and Skills Councils (JSC) Program Guidelines, particularly in mapping, promoting, and monitoring career pathways across sectors.
Design
The project will investigate agricultural job titles and career pathways currently in place by reviewing the National Training Register with support from the National Careers Institute.
A project Steering Committee will be established to review the career maps for potential job title improvements. The committee will also identify where the industry can utilise this work. The committee will include representation from the National Farmer’s Federation and the Australian Worker’s Union, and other representatives that were involved in the Feasibility Study for an Ag Trade Apprenticeship. At least one First Nations organisation will be invited to the committee, as Indigenous enterprises and communities are also developing culturally appropriate agricultural occupation pathways.
From February to May 2025, stakeholders – including peak and industry bodies, unions, RTOs, First Nations peaks and other interested stakeholders – will be called upon to consult on mapping career pathways for agricultural occupations and associated qualifications. They will also help identify skills gaps and misalignments between on-site job practices and the skills within the national qualifications.
The mapping process will include all AQF level qualifications with job titles and transferability of skills from one job to another job relating to:
Career resources, such as those published by AgriFutures Australia, will also be assessed for their relevance to this project. Jobs and Skills Australia will be advised of activity progress. At the end of the project, Skills Insight will submit a report on the career mapping, observations and recommendations to the Department of Education and Workplace Relations.
Project Team
Fatma Kirney
Project Manager
Skills Insight
[email protected]
Andrew Horgan
Stakeholder Engagement Manager Skills Insight
[email protected]
Timeline
This stage has not yet commenced.
During the development stage, key stakeholders, including subject matter experts, are engaged and consulted to gather further information and begin investigating potential solutions.
This stage has not yet commenced.
At the broad consultation stage, we present and discuss potential solutions, collecting feedback from a wide range of stakeholder across the country. It follows consultation with various stakeholders that has already taken place throughout the project.
This stage has not yet commenced.
As part of consensus gathering, we check our work with stakeholders to confirm that solutions are in line with expectations.
This stage has not yet commenced.
At the finalisation stage, final checks are conducted and the outcomes of the project are submitted to the Department for consideration. Following this, outcomes are published or enacted.