Essential Automotive Trades Retained On Core Skills Occupation List
AAAA welcomes the announcement that many essential trades in the automotive aftermarket will remain on the Core Skills Occupation List.
In May 2024, the AAAA submitted a detailed response to Jobs and Skills Australia’s consultation of the Draft Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL). During this period there was a significant concern that essential automotive trades might be removed from the list.
The AAAA’s submission, supported by key research from Fifth Quadrant, underscored the importance of CSOL in facilitating the recruitment of highly skilled migrants into the aftermarket workforce. It also highlighted the potentially catastrophic consequences for the industry if key trades were excluded.
“This is a significant win for the automotive aftermarket industry. When the government announced potential limits to skilled migration earlier in the year many of our members feared that key trades would be removed from the CSOL,” said Stuart Charity, CEO of the AAAA.
“While migration alone cannot resolve the labour shortages the automotive industry faces, maintaining access to skilled migration is crucial. Removing these critical pathways would have further constrained many small businesses already grappling with workforce challenges.
“Our submission forecasted the substantial impact this could have had on workforce capacity. In 2023, our members completed approximately 24 million service and repair jobs on Australian vehicles—a number expected to rise to 40 million by 2030 as vehicle sales continue to grow.
“While we are committed to encouraging more Australians to pursue careers in the automotive industry, the reality is that domestic training alone cannot meet this increasing demand. A multifaceted approach, including skilled migration, is essential to sustaining our industry’s growth and to meet the growing demand of Australian vehicle owners,” said Stuart.
The AAAA extends its appreciation to the Department of Jobs and Skills for recognising the value of skilled migrants and ensuring the automotive aftermarket workforce can continue to thrive.