The New England North West Regional Jobs Summit held in Narrabri’s Crossing Theatre on Friday has been described as a positive and constructive success by organisers, AgriFood Skills Australia and the Northern Inland Regional Development Board (NIRDB). That assessment was universally supported by the broad cross-section of local employment stakeholders in attendance.
“The Summit brought together people with vested interests in job creation, skills development and employee retention across the region. They worked to solve problems that will continue unless action is taken by Governments and industries. One key outcome was the need for a means to ensure that employees with specific skills are aware of opportunities that exist at a local level, and that employers are aware of local employment options. A recurring theme was a need for employers to invest in the future of their employees. Communities can help in areas such as childcare,” NIRDB Executive Officer, Don Tydd said.
Almost 100 representatives of industry, regional communities, government, employment, education and training sectors from throughout northern inland NSW participated in a range of strategic discussions, with a different four-member panel fronting the Summit for each topic, with open discussion achieved through Facilitator, Ralph Leutton.
According to the event’s organisers, the Jobs Summit was industry driven and will have real results. It was a pilot event, which will help to set the agenda for a National Jobs Summit in Melbourne in early August. This national summit will bring national industry and employer leaders, along with Federal and State bodies together to focus on identifying and addressing operational and policy impediments to employment. With Narrabri to be used as a blueprint, the National Jobs Summit will spawn regional job summits around the country. “This region took the initiative to look at problems currently faced by much of rural and regional Australia, along with local issues. The findings from this Summit will have national implications. I think those involved in the Narrabri event should feel proud of that,” Mr. Tydd said.
AgriFood Skills Australia is the Industry Skills Council for agriculture, food processing, meat, seafood and racing. CEO of AgriFood Skills Australia, Arthur Blewitt said he was delighted with the strong turn-out of locals, committed to improving employment outcomes for their communities. “The Summit worked to identify the full range of employment opportunities and seasonal worker demand, from all industries across the northern inland region of NSW. We also highlighted the primary impediments that impact upon industries and communities in the area. Insights were shared and solutions were tabled and recorded,” he said.
“People were passionate about how to attract and retain workers in their areas. We’ve got a much better understanding of their needs now,” Mr. Blewitt said. “We are trying to get Governments to invest more funds directly into skills and workforce development in the regions. This Summit not only enhanced our understanding of the New England North West region’s specific needs, but also gave us evidence to take to Governments to assist them in better targeting their employment training investments. Yet, above all, this Summit was about industry taking control of its own future. Industries have their obligations. They need to help us by creating and providing decent jobs, to have the capacity to employ people long term and to invest in those people, by making sure they are well paid, with a career path. Employers need to communicate the issues they are facing and they did just that in Narrabri.”
“Our research suggests that Australia’s agrifood industry is well placed to facilitate the uptake of displaced workers from other industries due to the economic downturn into the agriculture, horticulture and food and meat processing industries,” he said.
“I think this Summit was fantastic for Narrabri and the entire region. Governments and training providers needs to understand the needs of regional communities, rather than sit in city offices, deciding what is best for us,” Narrabri Shire Mayor, Robyn Faber said.
With rural and regional communities losing skilled workers to higher salaries in sectors such as mining, the issue of local workforce retention was a focal point at the Summit.
Sally Taylor is the Gunnedah Branch Manager for TESA Mining, a leader in the provision of managed workforce services, particularly in black coal mining. “Our company has found that there are shortages in terms of skilled people in this area,” she said. “All industries need to work harder to look at overall approaches for attracting and retaining skilled workers in the region for the long-term. Up-skilling, rewarding career pathways and lifestyle can be more significant than money - people want to be valued, as an employee and as a person.”
Another New England North West Jobs Summit attendee was Barbara Grey. A cotton farmer and employer in Mungindi, in the region’s northern extremity, Mrs. Grey is a past Cotton Innovative Grower of the Year and is in the second half of a two-year Australian Rural Leadership Program, with a cotton scholarship. “I am concerned about the human resource issues in agriculture, as well as rural and regional Australia. We need to address the negative misconceptions a lot of Australians have in regards to living and working in rural and regional areas. Recruiting and retaining people are one thing but we first have to get people to want to live in our local communities in the first place,” she said.
Mrs. Grey also said there is a widespread need for greater respect of the professionalism found in agricultural industries, which would assist in recruitment. “These days, saying you are a ‘farmer’ really undersells agricultural positions. It’s not about turning up for work and driving a tractor, you’ve got to be abreast of scientific and economic issues - water policy issues, carbon footprints, technology adaptation such as GPS usage, it’s always about working smarter. In Australia, we are very smart farmers and resource managers,” she said. “I appreciated the opportunity to talk to different training providers and stakeholders at this Summit.”
Chair of the Northern Inland Regional Development Board, Meryl Dillon said the Summit served to focus diverse employment stakeholders on the best way forward, towards addressing skills shortages and promoting the growth, rather than accepting the decline of rural communities. “Our Regional Development Board has been looking at skills development in a host of industries, including indigenous employment, rural leadership and skilled migration where it meets industry needs,” she said.