Just over four years ago, the Certificate III qualifications in Civil Construction, Civil Construction Plant Operations and Trenchless Technology were gazetted as three-year apprenticeships in WA, replacing the previous two-year traineeship. A key aim for the new apprenticeships was to encourage more school leavers and young people to take up civil construction as a trade career, and I’m pleased to say the latest National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) data indicates that this is happening.
Last year, 80 Western Australians aged 15-19 enrolled in a civil construction apprenticeship, an impressive fourfold increase on the civil traineeship enrolments for that age group in 2019. Annual enrolments of under 25s jumped from 75 to 190 in the same period.
Overall, under-20s jumped from 9% to 20% of all civil apprenticeship enrolments and under-25s from 33% to 46%. It’s encouraging the outlook for the new apprenticeship is so promising.
Unfortunately, there’s also some disappointing news in the new NCVER data. The future of the apprenticeship, and the quality and reputation of trade level training in civil construction, is being seriously undermined by a rising flood of ‘institutional’ Certificate III civil construction qualifications delivered to jobseekers and students in a matter of weeks.
In 2024, a staggering 5375 Western Australian job seekers commenced an institutional Certificate III-level civil construction qualification – a 40% increase from 2023 and nearly triple the enrolments in 2019 (see chart at the bottom of the page).
These are exactly the same qualifications also delivered as a three-year apprenticeship. Unfortunately, the State Government also allows (and funds) the delivery of the Certificate III civil construction qualifications institutionally, typically over 11-12 weeks, based in a classroom/workshop with limited practical training on a simulated site.
The civil construction Cert IIIs were not designed for pre-employment training, and certainly not in such a compressed timeframe. These qualifications were designed to be delivered in the workplace, with apprentices developing genuine competency through repeated application on a real construction site, facing the real-world challenges of meeting quality and productivity standards. None of that is possible through short-term institutional delivery.
This is a problem unique to our sector. The civil construction Cert IIIs are the only trade-level construction qualifications that can be delivered as either a workplace apprenticeship, or institutionally in a fraction of the time. Imagine the uproar if trade-level Cert III qualifications in electrical, plumbing or carpentry could be completed in 11 weeks! But apparently, it’s OK in civil construction.
Apart from the dubious quality of the training, institutional delivery of a full Certificate III civil qualification to thousands of jobseekers is a massive waste of time and resources – and underlining this point, the NCVER data shows completion rates are poor at around 20%.
Of course, we appreciate the good intent and celebrate the obviously strong interest in civil construction careers. And yes, these institutional Cert IIIs sometimes lead to job outcomes. The point we make to government is, there are far more effective and efficient ways to provide work-ready training, that will deliver the same or better employment outcomes.
CCF WA advocates for more appropriate pre-employment training options, such as Job Ready Programs or the Certificate II in Resources and Infrastructure Work Preparation.
These courses are purpose-designed as pre-employment pathways, allowing jobseekers to progress to high-quality workplace training (such as the Civil Construction Apprenticeship) when they find employment.
Doing a true pathway qualification ensures job seekers are jobready while minimising their time commitment and ensuring meaningful, quality training.
For State and Federal Governments, which fund about 80% of institutional civil construction Cert IIIs, funding the appropriate pre-employment qualifications will mean more job-ready outcomes for less investment.
