There is an article posted on insideretailing.com.au commenting on the lack of knowledge amongst retailers of the training funds available to them. In my view this is not surprising considering the complexity of the vocation training system. During my time in the VET sector in varied roles, there were three scenarios that generally presented when talking with employers.

They were aware of the government funding and embraced the culture of training their staff, they never heard of any funds available to access and the reply was "whats the catch?" or they were very familiar with the system of funding but were against any further participation due to the complexity of the paperwork that goes with administering staff training under the program and the lack of support promised by the training provider or the Apprenticeship Centre in that regard. Read the full article

The role of informing employers about these programs is manged by the network of Australian Apprenticeship Centres(AAC) around the country. To add fuel to the fire each state implements the traineeship/apprenticeship scheme differently in each state so if you're a national company it become a real headache to organise the delivery of the same qualification in each state/territory of the county.

To be balanced and fair there are some great stories out there where employers have successfully implemented a government funded training program and achieved the desire outcomes for their business, but you wont hear about them all too often unless your in the industry circles.

I am a believer of the system as I participated in a traineeship program and achieved a qualification that helped my gain employment. Better partnerships between employers and training providers / AACs and more positive promotion will be a start in the right direction.