Ms Ms BADGER question to MINISTER for SKILLS and TRAINING, Mr ELLIS
TasTAFE is falling apart on your watch. VET student numbers are down, the statutory 30‑month TAFE review has not commenced, the Campbell St automotive department has been flooded, and you have not bothered to future-proof the industry with an alternative southern facility. Workplace morale is at an all-time low, with many on stress leave. We have heard directly about bullying complaints and allegations of unfair dismissal.
In recent days, we have heard teachers will be made redundant. Yesterday, it was revealed the CEO has quit. What role have you had in all of this? Did you provide any direction or instruction to the TAFE CEO or board to reduce staff numbers? If so, what size reduction? What was the board and CEO’s response? Did clashes with you over this issue contribute to the CEO’s departure?
The SPEAKER – I am still writing down the question, minister.
Mr Ellis – There are quite a few in there, Speaker.
The SPEAKER – Actually no, the roles and what direction you took, what size, their response and – can I just get the last part of the question?
Ms BADGER – Did clashes with you over this issue contribute to the CEO’s departure?
ANSWER
Honourable Speaker, the short answer is no. We have had a wonderful working relationship with the CEO of TasTAFE. He has done an incredible job guiding TAFE through the journey that it has been on so that we can put the learner at the centre of everything –
Members interjecting.
The SPEAKER – Order, members on my left. I need to hear the answer to see if it is relevant.
Mr ELLIS – that we do at TasTAFE and that we can ensure that TAFE looks more like the businesses that it serves.
Mr Dreher has resigned and taken up an opportunity interstate. We wish him really well. We left on great terms and he has been a phenomenal servant of the learners of Tasmania over this journey. I reject any characterisation of that and thank him from the bottom of my heart for all the work that he has done.
On the specifics of TasTAFE Automotive, you are right, we have had an unfortunate issue with a burst TasWater main that has flooded the lower levels of the Campbell Street campus. That is no one’s fault, but it is something we need to work through diligently so that we can continue to provide the services for apprentices and learners in the automotive sector in the south. We are standing up significant short-term and long-term support for those learners so that we can continue to get them through their apprenticeships.
Regarding short-term support, we are providing important new, innovative training in workplaces. So training and assessment that can be done in the workplaces that we have in the south so that learners are assessed in their everyday work site. That is really important. It is an innovative delivery model that we want to move to more broadly and provide those opportunities for people. Out of what is a really unfortunate situation, there are some good opportunities.
We thank our partners in the Department of Education, Children and Young People for making available trades training centres in the south at Huonville and Bridgewater for our learners in automotive. There may be other opportunities with other partners too. For some learners in automotive in the south, they will be learning closer to home in some of those areas, which is really encouraging. It also shows that there are good opportunities when we work across government to provide services to those learners.
In certain circumstances, learners may need to travel. Travel and transport subsidies are available just as they are for learners from the north and north‑west who need to come down –
Dr Woodruff – Sixteen-year-olds going to Launceston to do automotive.
The SPEAKER – Order, Leader of the Greens. The question was from Ms Badger.
Mr ELLIS – to the south to learn in some of our facilities, noting that the majority of automotive apprentices are in the north and north-west.
Members interjecting.
Mr ELLIS – More broadly, in the long term – it is true. The long-term work that we are doing, we are working closely with the Tasmania Automotive Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TACC) on futureproofing the regional southern training facility and opportunities for learners. Obviously, we have been very focused on delivering the short-term solutions so that we can back in those learners. We always have an eye to the long term.
The SPEAKER – The minister’s time for answering the question has expired.
SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION
Ms BADGER – A supplementary question, Speaker?
The SPEAKER – I will take the supplementary question from the member for Lyons.
Ms BADGER – When TasTAFE was transitioned to its new operating model, your government promised ‘no existing TasTAFE employee will be worse off and that there will be no forced redundancies’. We understand that they are happening as of today.
My question was: did you provide any direction or instruction to the TasTAFE CEO or board to reduce staff numbers?
The SPEAKER – I will call the minister to the question as it was the original question.
Mr ELLIS – My answer was no. More broadly, in terms of the work that TasTAFE is doing with staff in the automotive space in the south, we are working through a process and the facility closure is a difficult one. I understand that voluntary redundancies have been an offer that has been made, but with other options available, including redeployment, for staff. I understand that TasTAFE will continue to work with staff in this difficult circumstance so that we can get the right outcome for staff and learners as part of it.
More broadly, our government has been hugely committed to increasing the workforce at TasTAFE. It was the Labor-Greens opposition that blew up TasTAFE. It was our government that put it back together and delivered more than 70 new teachers for TasTAFE.
Members interjecting.
The SPEAKER – Order, members on my left, including the member who asked the question.
Mr ELLIS – We back in tradies. Many of us have worked in that industry. Many of us have gone to TasTAFE. One of us has even taught at TasTAFE. We support our vocational education learners and the Greens do not.
The SPEAKER – The minister’s time for answering the question has expired. The minister will resume his seat.
