The AMWU has branded Tony Abbott’s plan to force young people to work in the mines of WA and QLD as simplistic and lazy, and a disaster for young people.

The Australian newspaper today reported that Mr Abbott floated a plan to ban unemployment payments to Australians under 30 as a way to address the skills shortage with business leaders on Monday night.

AMWU National Secretary Dave Oliver, who is in Canberra today attending the government’s National Resource Sector Employment Taskforce (NRSET) with other industry representatives, said that skills shortages needed to be addressed with increased training opportunities, not forced labour.

“Young people are desperate for job opportunities and deserve more respect than Mr Abbott’s juvenile proposal gives them. This plan sounds like it comes straight out of Charles Dickens, but it might just be another crazy idea dreamed up by Barnaby Joyce.

“There are already significant issues for mine workers who spend weeks away from their families in remote areas. Forcing school-leavers to move to interstate without any other plan for improving apprenticeships is a recipe for disaster.

“There is no change in tune from the Coalition who cut funding to apprentice programs and allowed business investment in training to fall significantly last time they were in government.

“The AMWU has identified issues contributing to the record low completion rates currently affecting apprenticeships and will raise these issues at the NRSET.

“It is crucial that employers invest more in training if they want to increase the amount of young people taking up skilled trades.

Apprentices have told the AMWU that they are affected by:

Lack of proper mentoring
Poor quality training
Low apprentice pay rates
Ratio of tradespeople to apprentices
Working conditions