1. Occupational identity in Australian traineeships: An initial exploration Erica Smith, University of Ballarat Australia

2. Apprenticeships and traineeships in Australia Approx 400,000 participants from 1.6 million VET participants and a labour force of 12 million; Participants are always employed and therefore ‘study’ part-time towards a qualification, usually at AQF level III or IV; Participants may be of any age and may work full- time or part-time; The government funds the training and also provides employment incentives; and ‘Study’ may be at a public (TAFE) college or a private college (‘RTOs’), or mainly on-the-job.

3. What’s different about traineeships? They are ‘new’ (approx 20 years) and more likely to be in newer industry areas and/or those which did not traditionally have any qualifications; They cover many jobs where the workforce is predominantly female eg aged care, retail; They suffered for many years from perceptions of low quality in delivery and a thin curriculum; They usually last for 12-18 months as opposed to a typical 3-year apprenticeship.

4. Occupational identity A “home” with psychological, social and ideological “anchors” (Brown, 2004); Often fixed through history but nevertheless offering scope for shaping either individually or collectively; Workers vary in their need and desire for occupational identity.

5. The research Two case studies from a study on quality in traineeships. Each involved 6-8 senior stakeholder interviews at industry and government level (State and National) and two company exemplars, involving interviews with workers, managers and training providers). Asset maintenance (cleaning) Certificate III and General construction Certificate II.

6. Asset maintenance (cleaning) An industry area that previously lacked qualifications.

7. Major issues: Cleaning An industry with low profit margins and many underqualified managers. Workers often had low literacy levels. High levels of technological advance and deep knowledge requirements. Snobbery exhibited by some stakeholders and training providers. Workers enjoyed training but were relatively unaware of qualification ladders and career prosects.

8. General Construction Certificate II An industry where apprenticeships are firmly entrenched, at Certificate III level.

9. Main issues: Construction Massive resistance by trade unions to traineeships. Has resulted in low levels of take-up and poor pathways into Cert III (Apprenticeship level). A new qualification with better pathways was being blocked by trade unions at the time of the study. Often used for disadvantaged groups eg indigenous workers in remote locations and for high-school- based workers. In most cases employers used apprentice-like training methods.

10. Discussion Individual level: Some workers may identify more closely with organisation than the occupation; they may not value their traineeship qualification very highly; some trainees don’t know they are on traineeships. Organisational level: Many employers are inexperienced in traineeship management. Unions have actively opposed traineeships. Society as a whole: The jobs covered by traineeships are of lower status than those covered by apprenticeships. This may change over time.

11. Find out more? Smith, E., Comyn, P., Brennan Kemmis, R. & Smith, A. (forthcoming). High quality traineeships: identifying what works. Adelaide: NCVER. www.ncver.edu.au Or email e.smith@ballarat.edu.au