Increasing the number of women in engineering is just one of the ways to help Australia meet the engineering skills demands of the future, according to a new study.
The Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency made the point in its
Engineering Workforce Study June 2014. The study claimed that while there is not currently an engineering skills shortage in Australia, more needs to be done to maintain a steady stream of skilled workers in the profession.
According to the study, women constituted only 10.4 per cent of engineering managers in 2013.
Australian National Engineering Taskforce (ANET) NSW Director Paul Davies said that the lack of women in the profession is not one of supply, but is a demand-side problem.
“Women over 35 do not stay in the profession suggesting that there are cultural, workplace issues with getting women back to work after having children,” he said.
Encouraging women to stay in the workforce was just one of the issues highlighted by the study. It claimed that the engineering skills shortage in Australia is cyclical and that the profession must prepare itself for the next change in cycle.
However, Mr Davies disagreed with the report’s claim that the skills shortage in Australia is cyclical.
“Asset owners, constructors and consultants agree that procurement models drive under investment in engineering skills,” he said.
“This means asset owners become uninformed purchasers of engineering services and constructors and consultants struggle to meet aggregate skills demands in the medium to long-term because of competitive disadvantage built into a lowest prices contracting model.”
The report also identified that mature-aged engineering workers face challenges in retaining a technical focus as they progress through a company as career advancement is usually through management roles.
It claimed that the mentoring capabilities of these workers are often under-utilised.
Engineering workforce Study June 2014