The NTC, alongside the ARA, is hosting a Melbourne forum to look at ways of getting more women into the rail industry
The National Transport Commission (NTC) has announced it is joining with international experts and leaders from government, transport, education, skills and unions to tackle a chronic workforce shortage in Australia’s rail industry.
It’ll do it through its first Future Rail Skills Forum in Melbourne, with attendees set to hear that a $155 billion national pipeline of rail modernisation projects over the next 15 years requires another 70,000 people.
To do so, the NTC says rail needs more women and young people to fill this gap.
The NTC says rail will also need more people with digital skills – with key digital roles expected to grow in the rail sector by 54 per cent over the next five years, as the technology pivots from mechanical to digital.
Identifying how to attract diverse and younger workers, and develop the digital skills needed now and into the future, is a key topic for the forum, hosted by the NTC and the Australasian Railway Association.
The forum will hear that long hours, high stress and a chronic lack of diversity would not work with prospective employees, who are looking for more flexibility and positive work cultures.
Internationally, efforts to address skills gaps have helped avoid significant cost over-runs on major infrastructure projects and deliver efficiencies of between 10 and 40 per cent.
While female participation in rail is increasing in Australia, numbers are still low with women making up just 24 per cent of the rail workforce (and only 11 per cent in rail freight). The rail industry also remains highly fragmented with the skills of the existing 165,000 people working in rail not recognised across borders.
The NTC’s research through its National Rail Skills Hub has found that only 11 per cent of current enrolments in rail-related training are women; but there are positive signs that rail organisations who take diversity seriously are getting much better results.
Jacobs, for example, has lifted female leadership in its Australian operations through piloting programs for emerging women leaders, introducing flexible working toolkits and continuing to analyse and remedy the gender pay gap annually.
Women in rail who have shared their experience with the National Rail Skills Hub say they were attracted by the flexibility their jobs provide, the opportunities they get to use and grow their skills.
“Rail cannot run on an old business model that starts with locking out half the workforce. Rail needs more young people, women, people of diverse backgrounds, and a diversity of thinking,” federal skills and training minister Brendan O’Connor says.
“Collaboration across industry, government and unions is key to creating a rail workforce for the future, which must include more women, young people and people from diverse backgrounds.
“We have established Jobs and Skills Councils to help address skills shortage and other workforce challenges, including a Jobs and Skills Council for the Transport & Logistics sector.”
NTC CEO Michael Hopkins says governments around the world are recognising the need to invest in rail to help decarbonise the economy and support population growth and greater productivity.
“To do that, we need to attract 70,000 more people into rewarding careers in rail and recognise people’s skills from all backgrounds,” Hopkins says.
ARA CEO Caroline Wilkie says developing the skills of new workers will remain key.
“As we face the combined challenges of a significant skills gap and changing workforce needs, strong collaboration between industry and government will be essential to develop a sustainable skills pipeline that meets rail’s current and future requirements,” Wilkie says.
“The ARA looks forward to working closely with the NTC to continue to support a strong and diverse rail workforce for the future.”