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TAFE NSW: Figures Reveal Staff Losses

Shadow Minister for Skills and TAFE Tim Crakanthorp says papers provided to NSW Parliament show extent of full time job losses at Central West TAFE campuses

SOME Central West TAFE campuses lost up to half of their full time staff between 2012 and 2019, according to figures obtained by the NSW opposition.

The papers provided by TAFE NSW to NSW Parliament under a Standing Order 52 show Orange lost almost one-in-three full time staff – or 83 jobs.

At Bathurst, almost onein-five full-time TAFE jobs disappeared during the same seven year period.

At Forbes and Parkes TAF-Es, the number of full-time employees halved.

Shadow Minister for Skills and TAFE Tim Crakanthorp said statewide, TAFE had lost 4500 TAFE teachers and support staff since 2012, representing one third of the workforce.

In 2012 there were 15,080 full time staff. In 2019, that number had fallen to 10,537.

He said it was “ludicrous” to think TAFE could provide the same opportunities for young people, and for retraining, as it once did, given the job losses.

“There is a massive skills shortage at the momentwe’re talking 80 to 90,000 skilled positions that need to be filled and this government has cut a third of the workforce…they’re ramping TAFE down instead of ramping it up and now they can’t train those people”

“We need TAFE performing at its best and it can’t do it without teachers and it can’t do it without resources.”

But the government says Labor is wrong, labelling the figures as “inaccurate” and “misleading.

Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education Geoff Lee said the campus level data could not be used to draw these conclusions because many staff work at multiple campuses but are only counted once in data.

“Many positions also have their default location set at Ultimo campus regardless of where they are working from.

“This means some TAFE NSW Bathurst, Dubbo and Orange employees may be counted as Ultimo staff. As well as this, the data Labor refer to was collated from obsolete systems using different calculation methods.

“Labor has already been told the campus level data they are using is not accurate.”

Mr Lee said over the last year, the total number of employees at Bathurst, Dubbo and Orange had increased by 17.

He said since 2019, the NSW Government had invested around $4 million to fund scholarships to encourage industry professionals to become TAFE Teachers.

There were 10,599 full time equivalent employees at TAFE NSW across the state as of June 30 2021 and in the last 12 months, TAFE NSW has recruited 976 new teachers, he said.

Meanwhile, the Community and Public Sector Union has confirmed that 52 TAFE jobs it warned would be lost in the Central West this year, including 15 positions in Orange, 15 from Bathurst, and 12 in Dubbo – have been cut. Roles that were in in Lithgow, Parkes, Forbes, Mudgee, Coonabarabran, Coonamble and Lake Cargelligo had also gone, the union said.

CPSU NSW Branch Secretary Stewart Little said the cuts came without community consultation.

“They have just been lumped with job cuts with no say about how that will impact on the students.”