Immediate growth in technical skills is critical for the future of the food and beverage manufacturing industry, according to a new government study.
The study reveals thousands of highly-skilled workers will be needed as New Zealand’s industry skills gap continues to widen by 38% to reach 40,000 workers by 2028, if left unchecked.
The research commissioned by Hanga-Aro-Rau, the Manufacturing, Engineering and Logistics Workforce Development Council, found widespread disruption caused by covid-19, immigration policy settings as well as constraints on supply chains and the international labour market collectively contribute to the widening gap.
Data from the study shows the food and beverage sector, which accounts for 40% of the manufacturing industry’s GDP, is placing a growing emphasis on numeric, quantitative and computer programming skills, all of which remain challenging to find in a post-pandemic labour market.
The report’s authors found an understanding of connecting equipment and industrial control software is currently the most difficult to find skill across the food and beverage industry and employers are calling for more collaboration to manage workforce development in the sector.
A growing need for cultural and language skills was also highlighted within food and beverage production.
Deputy chief executive Phil Alexander-Crawford of Hanga-Aro-Rau, one of six Government Workforce Development Councils tasked with aligning the vocational educational systems with industry needs and providing support for Māori businesses and iwi development, said more needs to be done to better support Māori and Pacific people into a higher level of vocational training.
The research showed Māori and Pacific people favour intergenerational learning and the disruption caused by the covid pandemic will have a legacy impact on the pipeline of new workers for years to come.
The study showed that Māori and Pacific peoples will not reach skills parity with other ethnic groups by 2028 without immediate intervention, including new targeted culturally relevant training programmes.
Alexander-Crawford said the pandemic has demonstrated industry needs to reduce its long-term reliance on migrant labour to remain sustainable.
“By 2028 we will need 463,000 workers in key regions around the country, however based on current trends, a skills shortfall of over 40,000 is set to constrain future manufacturing output.
“We need to begin work immediately to reduce barriers preventing the development of an equitable domestic workforce.
“The research has found this is a complex issue to address and will require a coordinated approach from industry stakeholders, the vocational education system and government support agencies.
The report will be presented to a summit later this month where employers, industry stakeholders, government and vocational education participants will collaborate on implementing solutions.
