Government modelling provided to The Daily Telegraph has revealed a critical shortage of qualified workers in Sydney and NSW regions.

The stark modelling from Skills Australia warned NSW would need at least 180,000 workers with a trade qualification of certificate III or IV by 2015 to fill the jobs required by business and industry.

It will also need an additional 144,000 people with diploma qualifications.

The modelling also revealed about 1.3 million people in NSW are missing out on better paid jobs because of a lack of qualifications.

Shortages are emerging among motor mechanics, plumbers, electricians, fitters, building and construction estimators, sheet metal workers, machinists and chefs.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.

Recommended Coverage

Better future for Australia’s poorest

THE rich are getting richer – but the plight of the poor is improving more quickly, according to Reserve Bank research.

Little shops of job horror

THE closure of more than 200 shops and the loss of thousands of jobs from some of Australia’s best-known brands including Colorado, Katies, Just Jeans, Sleep City and Dick Smiths, is just the tip of the iceberg, retailers fear.

End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.

The research shows that, with increased skills, the average workers could earn $10,000 more a year, or $400,000 over a lifetime. This would add an extra $2 billion a year to the economy.

Research to be released ahead of the next Council of Australian Governments meeting will show nearly 4.1 million Australians still do not have the minimum qualification for entry to the growth sectors of the economy.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard is expected to announce a “sweeping overhaul” of the trade and training system in the coming weeks to try to fill the gaps being experienced by business and industry.

At the forefront of the reforms will be putting vocational and trade students on an equal pegging with university students in receiving assistance and incentives to increase their skills.

Writing exclusively in The Daily Telegraph today, Ms Gillard said: “Sydney businesses face shortages for all kinds of skilled work, from motor mechanics to plumbers (while) at the same time thousands of workers in Sydney are missing out on high-paid jobs because they don’t have the right skills.

“We must make it easier and cheaper for our kids to go on to tertiary education or learn a trade.

“I will be announcing a sweeping overhaul of the vocational training system in Australia later this month – because kids who do trades should get the same rights as those at university.”

The skills statement is expected to show 70 per cent of new jobs created over the next five years will require at least a certificate III qualification, and out of these, four in every five will require a diploma level qualification or higher.

Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show that employees with just a year 12 qualification earn $180 less a week than those holding a certificate III qualification.

Ms Gillard said the government had scrapped upfront fees for training students in vital industries such as engineering, building, IT and computing. Other diploma students would get subsidies of up to $7800 a year.