12 Jul Vocational Education and Training Action Plan Campaign
At the end of 2009 NVEAC was finalising a new model for ‘equity’, in what appeared to be a gender neutral context. This new model will set the scene for the foreseeable future, for how ‘equity’ is enacted through national and state VET policies. It will impact directly on women and girls. There are nearly 800,000 women enrolled in VET across Australia, mostly in traditional female areas of study. About five million women are in the workforce. Over 2.2 million work part-time and these are 72% approximately of the part-time workforce. Their earnings capacity can only improve dramatically if they train or retrain into higher paying jobs or work longer hours. All the pay equity and work life balance arguments cut across this scenario. Vocational training in areas of high skill demand or in the emerging green economy is essential for women into the future. (Sobski/WEL November 2009)