Peak industry bodies met last week to discuss ways to improve the collection and accuracy of agriculture workforce data as the sector battles against the twin issues of a crippling worker shortage and ageing workforce.
Most categories of agricultural labour are in short supply and the current approach to workforce data is failing to provide the information required to effectively respond to and plan for future workforce needs, including training.
Skills Impact stakeholder engagement executive manager Geoff Barbaro told the 2024 ABARES Outlook Conference that while data was able to dissect agriculture workers by region and occupation it was of limited value for mapping and providing information to support future workforce planning.
Stakeholders have previously said that the system of data collection and analysis is too fragmented as various organisations using different tools and methods that result in data gaps and inconsistencies.
"We would say that data is not necessarily working very well for these industries, the data is designed for other purposes. This is a problem that we often have, we can get you the data but it might not be as meaningful as you might hope," he said.
"And I will say that ABARES, ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics), Jobs and Skills Australia and Skills Insight, AgFutures had a meeting last week to work out how we can start to improve the data."
Last December, AgriFutures Australia and environmental and agricultural consultancy RMCG announced a joint project to help improve data collection "to foster the growth of Australian agriculture."
The conference was also told the data gap was just one issue blocking the creation of a sustainable pipeline of farm workers, with a lack of training opportunities in regional Australia and the need to better market career opportunities just two other issues needing to be overcome.
Central Queensland University associate professor Amy Cosby also flagged the creation of an agriculture specific apprenticeship and school-based programs to better sell the industry before young people made career decisions were also needed.
"We must try to get them to consider a career in agriculture from an early age," she said.
"Young people have strong beliefs about what they are not going to be and what they could be in primary school. If we don't start programs in primary school we are probably already losing quite a high proportion."
Meanwhile, ABARES economist Ben Slatter said the agricultural workforce continues to have a higher median age than the general workforce at 50 years old in comparison to about 40 years across all industries nationally.
"However, whilst the proportion of older workers is still growing we are also seeing an increase in the younger cohort as well, so there is some replacement underway, according to the Census data," he said.
"So it's not all doom and gloom. But, that said, there's obviously a structural shift that awaits and it's something that other economies are having to deal with as well.
"So Australia is by no means alone in this challenge ahead with age and agricultural workforce."
