8 October 2018 – The WA Government last week announced that it had signed up to the Federal Government’s Skilling Australians Fund National Partnership, unlocking $126 million to help create apprenticeships and traineeships.
According to the State Government the initiative will be funded from changes to payroll tax exemptions for traineeships and the national partnership, and will enable the Government to target assistance to better meet the State’s workforce priorities.
Industry will be consulted throughout the development of the incentive scheme to ensure it meets the sector’s needs and encourages high-quality, on-the-job training.
WA Education and Training Minister Sue Ellery said the Government’s focus is “WA jobs – maximising training opportunities and increasing our skills base.”
“This injection of funds will help the State create thousands of new opportunities for apprentices and trainees by providing incentives to employers, making it more attractive for them to commit to training.
“The partnership with the Federal Government will help ensure we are ahead of the game in skilling Western Australians to take up the jobs of the future, especially as the economy starts to recover and activity picks up,” Minister Ellery said.