A survey released today by the national employer association Ai Group's Centre for Education and Training (CET) has found that one in five businesses (21%) had identified an 'emerging need' for new skills related to the transition to the clean economy. This has tripled from the 7% of those surveyed in 2022.
Ai Group Chief Executive Innes Willox said: "As the transition to a clean economy progresses many businesses can see how they need to adapt and are now turning their minds to the skills and workforce they need to get there.
"Businesses are recognising they need new skills and capabilities to successfully navigate the clean economy transition. This research tells us they are increasingly looking to the market to find experienced people to fill that gap as well as up-skilling their own people," Mr Willox said.
Among the businesses surveyed this year, those in the Services sector were the most likely to report their skills needs had increased due to the clean economy transition (24%), while businesses in Manufacturing and Construction were more likely to report an emerging need for new skills.
When asked about actions they planned to take to find or develop the clean economy skills needed, 75% of businesses surveyed said they planned to reskill existing staff on the job – up significantly from 36% two years ago. 57% said they planned to employ experienced people – up from 19% in 2022.
These findings are from Ai Group's CET survey, Listening to Australian businesses on workforce and skills 2024. The survey is run every two years.
The survey asked businesses about their skills needs in relation to the transition to the clean economy for the first time in 2022. This year the survey asked the same questions to see what's changed and find out more about the skills and capabilities companies are looking for as they navigate this transition.
The survey Listening to Australian businesses on workforce and skills 2024 had responses from 251 individual businesses, collectively employing a total of 291,232 FTE employees.
For the full Research Insight see: Skills for a clean economy
A further data release to come next week: Skills in demand in 2024
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