Australia needs a much stronger vocational training pipeline to support the government’s Local Jobs First Commission legislation, Earlypay CEO, James Beeson, has warned.
NSW introduced the legislation to prioritise local workers, suppliers and SME businesses with government procurement in a bid to rebuild the stat’s skills base.
Under the legislation, major government contracts (typically valued at $25 million or more) require a minimum 30% weighting for local jobs, skills, content, and small-business participation.
Suppliers bidding for major contracts must submit detailed plans locking in specific commitments to local employment and apprenticeships.
Beeson supports the bill but warned business will struggle to meet the government’s ambitious policy plans without a much stronger vocational training pipeline.
“This is a good reform in principle because it backs local business and recognises the importance of building capability at home,” Beeson said.
“But the hard truth is Australia does not currently have enough skilled tradespeople coming through the system to support the scale of local industry ambition being talked about.”
While there has been a slight uptick in trade commencements in the last year according to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), the most recent figures indicate a broader decline in trade apprenticeship commencements.
According to the NCVER, trade apprenticeship commencements were down almost 10 per cent in the 12 months to September 2025.
Beeson said the figures exposed a serious mismatch between government policy and workforce reality.
Around 9,800 temporary skilled visas were granted in 2024–25 for workers in the top 25 apprenticeship occupations.
“The data proves Australia is more reliant on importing skilled workers while our own training pipeline continues to weaken,” he said.
“Skilled migration has an important role to play, but it cannot be a substitute for investing in the next generation of Australian tradespeople.
“If governments want more local jobs and stronger domestic manufacturing, they have to make it easier for businesses to train apprentices, not harder.”