The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.

 

The Regulations commence on the day after the instrument is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation.

 

Consultation

 

In accordance with section 17 of the Legislation Act 2003, consultation has taken place with the Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business.

 

A regulation impact statement is not required as the Regulations only apply to non-corporate Commonwealth entities and do not adversely affect the private sector.

Details of the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Amendment (Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business Measures No. 3) Regulations 2019

 

Section 1 - Name

 

This section provides that the title of the Regulations is the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Amendment (Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business Measures No. 3) Regulations 2019.

 

Section 2 - Commencement

 

This section provides that the Regulations commence on the day after the instrument is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation.

 

Section 3 - Authority

 

This section provides that the Regulations are made under the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Act 1997.

 

Section 4 - Schedules

 

This section provides that the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Regulations 1997 are amended as set out in the Schedule to the Regulations.

 

Schedule 1 - Amendments

 

Item 1 - In the appropriate position in Part 4 of Schedule 1AB (table)

 

This item adds two new table items to Part 4 of Schedule 1AB to establish legislative authority for government spending on two initiatives that will be administered by the Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business (the department).

 

New table item 359 establishes legislative authority for government spending on the Foundation Skills for Your Future Program (the Program).

 

The Government will provide funding to deliver the Program in response to the Expert Review of Australia's vocational education and training system (the Joyce Review), which made four recommendations in relation to foundation skills. The Program, announced by the Government on 2 April 2019, will address two of the recommendations in relation to supporting free foundation level education for all Australians and delivering these courses through intensive literacy and numeracy short courses and dedicated workplace delivery.

 

The objective of the spending is to support individuals with low language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills (LLND) to allow them to gain the skills they need to engage with further training and employment opportunities to participate, or more fully participate, in the workforce and the community.

 

The initiative will be delivered in two parts, they are the:

*         Foundation Skills for Your Future program, and

*         Foundation Skills for Your Future - Remote Community Pilot program.

 

Foundation Skills for Your Future

 

The Foundation Skills for Your Future program will allow eligible Australians to develop their LLND skills by engaging with training opportunities. The Foundation Skills for Your Future program will support eligible individuals to identify LLND skill deficits, and to address identified deficits through access to either accredited or non-accredited training.

Approved training providers will deliver the training, either in a traditional vocational education and training (VET) setting, or in partnership with employers in a workplace setting.

 

Participants will be eligible for the Foundation Skills for Your Future program if they: are an Australian citizen or permanent resident; have left secondary school education; have an educational attainment of year 12 or below; are employed or recently unemployed and not registered with an Australian Government employment services provider.

 

The department will undertake a procurement process to establish a panel of training providers able to assess LLND skills deficits and provide appropriate accredited or non-accredited training.

 

Participants will undertake a LLND skills assessment pre and post training to assess improvements to their LLND skills and, where possible, the department will seek information through a survey on whether participant training or employment outcomes improved as a result of the training. An assessment of the outcomes of the Foundation Skills for Your Future program will inform future national work on foundation skills program development.

 

Foundation Skills for Your Future - Remote Community Pilot

 

The Foundation Skills for Your Future - Remote Community Pilot program will explore flexible LLND delivery modes tailored to the needs and conditions of remote communities through the provision of accredited or non-accredited LLND skills training. The pilots will also identify systemic and effective approaches to the delivery of adult LLND training, and inform the future provision of services in remote communities.

 

The pilot will be delivered in four sites located in remote communities in Northern Queensland, Western Australia, Northern Territory and South Australia.

 

Participants will be eligible for the pilot if they: are aged 15 years and over; have left secondary school education; and are living in an identified remote community.

 

Training services providers must be Indigenous training service providers, and have experience delivering training in remote communities.

 

Communities will be eligible to participate in the pilot if they: are a remote community located in one of the four targeted areas; can demonstrate a community need for LLND skills development; and can demonstrate the capacity to take part in the pilot.

 

For each remote pilot, service providers will be selected through a limited tender, where funding will be provided to an entity identified through consultation with education bodies and remote communities, assessed as having the capacity and capability to operate in remote communities.

 

The pilot will be formally evaluated and the outcomes will provide input into future government policy.

 

Funding for the Program and the pilot will be provided through a mixed procurement process with the Program likely to be an open competitive tender and the pilot likely to be conducted via a limited tender.

The process for, and the administration of the procurement, will be conducted in accordance with the Commonwealth Procurement Rules 2019, and will adhere to applicable approach to market and other procurement requirements.

 

Funding will also be expended in accordance with the department's Secretary Instructions and delegations on the expenditure of relevant monies, and in accordance with the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act).

 

A delegate of the Secretary of the department will be responsible for determining the successful recipients. Prior to a decision being made in relation to the procurement activity, guidelines will be established for approval by the Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business. Information on the tender and the resultant contract will be made available on AusTender (www.tenders.gov.au) once the agreements with providers are signed.

 

Decisions with respect to the procurement conducted for the Program will be subject to an independent complaints mechanism under the -overnment Procurement (Judicial Review) Act 2018 (the Act). The department will formally investigate complaints that are made in accordance with the Act.

 

If conducted as a limited tender, the pilot procurement will not be subject to the Act. In this instance, no merits review will be provided. In the context of the Administrative Review Council's document 'What decisions should be subject to merit review?', the characteristics of such decisions that support this conclusion is that the decision to procure the services of one provider involves the allocation of finite resources between competing applicants, and an allocation that has already been made to another party would be affected by overturning the original decision. As the funding is limited, any reversal of a decision on whether a party is successful or not will then cause the displacement of, and disadvantage to, another successful party. It would not be feasible for the department to make such decisions subject to independent merit review.

 

Delivery of the activities will be carried out in accordance with an agreement. At the completion of the work, the department will assess the work against the agreement.

For individuals accessing the Program a complaints mechanism will be in place with each service provider allowing a decision on eligibility and access to the Program to be reviewed. Should they not be satisfied, an individual would be able to lodge a complaint or request a review by an independent review officer of the department.

 

Additional information about the Program will be available on the Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business website.

 

Funding of $62.4 million was included in the 2019-20 Budget under the measure 'Skills Package - delivering skills for today and tomorrow' for a period of four years for the Program and three years for the pilot commencing in 2019-20. Details are set out in the Budget 2019-20, Budget Paper No. 2 Part 2: Expense Measures at page 69.

 

Noting that it is not a comprehensive statement of relevant constitutional considerations, the objective of table 359 references:

*         the external affairs power (section 51(xxix)) of the Constitution)

*         the territories power (s 122 of the Constitution).

 

External affairs power

 

In particular, the following treaties are relevant:

 

*         ILO Convention (No 122) concerning Employment Policy [1970] ATS 17 (ILO Convention 122), particularly Articles 1 and 2, which are about promoting full, productive and freely chosen employment.

 

Article 1(1) of the ILO Convention 122 requires Members to 'declare and pursue ... an active policy designed to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment.' Article 1(2) specifies that this policy shall aim to ensure that (among other things) 'there is work for all who are available for and seeking work'. Article 2 further requires Members 'decide on and keep under review ... the measures to be adopted for attaining the objectives specified in Article 1', and to 'take such steps as may be needed ... for the application of these measures'.

 

The objective of the Program is consistent with the intention of improving employment outcomes for individuals. In particular, the program intends to assist individuals whose low language, literacy, numeracy and digital literacy skills are preventing them from fully participating in the modern labour market. As higher educational attainment is associated with better employment outcomes, this will ultimately increase the opportunity for each worker to use their skills in a job for which they are well suited.

 

*         ILO Convention (No 142) concerning Vocational Guidance and Vocational Training in the Development of Human Resources [1986] ATS 2 (ILO Convention 142), particularly Articles 1, 2 and 4, which are about vocational guidance and training.

 

Article 1(1) of ILO Convention 142 obliges Members to 'adopt and develop comprehensive and co-ordinated policies and programmes of vocational guidance and vocational training, closely linked with employment'. Article 1(2) requires that the policies and programmes adopted for the purposes of Article 1(1) to take due account of matters including 'employment needs, opportunities and problems, both regional and national' (Article 1(2)(a)).

 

Article 2 of the ILO Convention 142 obliges each Member to 'establish and develop open, flexible and complementary systems of general, technical and vocational education, educational and vocational guidance and vocational training, whether these activities take place within the system of formal education or outside it'.

 

Article 4 of the ILO Convention 142 obliges each Member party to 'gradually extend, adapt and harmonise its vocational training systems to meet the needs for vocational training throughout the life of both young persons and adults in all sectors of the economy and branches of economic activity and at all levels of skill and responsibility'.

 

The outcomes of the Program and the pilot in particular, will assist to inform the government on how to improve existing policies of vocational guidance and vocational training. This includes by trialling systemic delivery of language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills training in four pilot sites in remote communities in Northern Queensland, Western Australia, Northern Territory and South Australia, and collecting data from the pilots on completions, length of training and number of participants, in addition to participant satisfaction with training and improved ability. The Program and pilot will contribute to improvement and adaptation of the overall vocational training system, to meet the vocational training needs for all individuals.

 

*         International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights [1976] ATS 5 (ICESCR), particularly Articles 2 and 6, in particular, which concerns the right to work.

 

Article 2(1) of the ICESCR obliges each State Party to take steps 'to the maximum of its available resources, with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of the rights recognised in the present Covenant by all appropriate means, including particularly the adoption of legislative measures.' Article 6(1) of the ICESCR provides that State Parties recognise the 'right to work'.

 

The objective of the Program is to contribute to improved employment outcomes for individuals. The Program and pilot will assist in improving Australia's technical and vocational guidance and training programs.

 

The Program was announced in response to the Joyce Review. The Joyce Review conducted a far-reaching consultation, and ultimately received 192 public submissions from training organisations, employers, governments and individuals.

 

Territories power

 

Section 122 of the Constitution empowers the Parliament to 'make laws for the government of any territory'. The Program may involve funding activities in or in relation to a Territory (such as the proposed pilot in the Northern Territory).

 

New table item 360 establishes legislative authority for government spending on the
Incentives for Australian Apprenticeships (IAA) to encourage the continued training and development of a highly skilled Australian workforce through Australian Apprenticeships.

 

Funding for the IAA was announced by the Government in response to recommendations from the Expert Review of Australia's vocational education and training system (the Joyce Review) for a simplified and streamlined apprenticeships incentives program which was not met by the current Australian Apprenticeships Incentives Program (AAIP).

 

From 1 July 2020, the IAA will replace the AAIP, which was introduced in 1998 to provide a range of financial incentives to employers and training providers and payments to apprentices and trainees (Australian Apprentices).

 

The IAA will be a new apprenticeships incentives program with a streamlined payment structure and eligibility criteria. The streamlined payment structure will support employers to claim incentives. Employers receiving incentives for an Australian Apprentice who commenced prior to 1 July 2020 would have payments grandfathered under the AAIP.

 

The Government funding will enable payments to Australian Apprentices and payments and incentives to employers of Australian Apprentices and Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) to support the commencement and completion of Australian apprenticeships.

 

The IAA will be an uncapped and demand driven program to provide:

 

*         employer incentives and subsidies, including:

o   commencement incentives to encourage employers to offer Australian Apprenticeships;

o   recommencement incentives to encourage employers provide opportunities for out-of-trade, unemployed and transferring Australian Apprentices to complete their training;

o   completion incentives to encourage employers to retain an Australian Apprentice for the duration of the Australian Apprenticeship; and

o   additional targeted incentives to encourage employers to employ Australian Apprentices of targeted cohorts.

*         payments to Australian Apprentices, including:

o   commencement incentives to encourage individuals to take up an Australian Apprenticeship;

o   completion incentives to support individuals to complete an Australian Apprenticeship;

o   assistance to students to help meet the costs of undertaking an Apprenticeship and

o   support for the expenses for an individual to relocate from their parent or guardian's home to complete an Australian Apprenticeship.

 

*         payments to RTOs to support the provision of tutorial, mentor and interpreter assistance to Australian Apprentices with disability who are experiencing difficulty with the formal course work component of the Australian Apprenticeship.

 

Like the AAIP, the IAA would support the continued training and development of a highly skilled Australian workforce of Australian Apprentices by providing:

 

*         opportunities for skills-based training and development of employees by providing incentives to employers who employ eligible Australian Apprentices;

*         payments to Australian Apprentices to support them entering into skills-based training through an Australian Apprenticeship; and

*         a link between industries and occupations where Australian Apprenticeships are a key pathway to developing skilled workers, specifically targeting occupations experiencing skills shortages.

 

Australian Apprenticeships under the IAA include formal training and on the job training. The State and Territory government funds the formal training component of an Australian Apprenticeship under contractual arrangements between the RTOs and the State and Territory Training Authorities. The RTO is an organisation that is registered by the appropriate registering body to deliver training, conduct assessments and issue national recognised qualifications in accordance with the vocational education and training (VET) Quality Framework.

 

The Australian Apprenticeship Support Network (AASN) will be responsible for assessing claimants' eligibility on behalf of the Government. AASN providers are engaged by the Commonwealth through an open tender procurement process to provide services to Australian Apprentices and their employers. Services would include providing advice about eligibility under the IAA.

 

The AASN will be guided by the IAA's guidelines. The guidelines will be consistent with the policies of the IAA and be developed in consultation with stakeholders. The guidelines will include the process for the review of decisions. The AASN will assess the eligibility of employers, RTOs and Australian Apprentices who are applying under the IAA against the IAA's guidelines. To be eligible under the IAA a number of eligibility criteria will have to be met.

 

There will be additional eligibility requirements for some payments, which require independent assessments or reports from professionals, such as medical practitioners or social workers. The decision maker would rely on these professional statements to make decisions.

 

Claimants will receive written notice of the assessment outcome and the basis for the outcome. The AASN provider will provide payment to eligible claimants through an information technology system hosted by the department. The assessment outcomes of

the IAA will not be made available to the public.

 

The guidelines will require the AASN providers to have an accessible and freely available complaints resolution process that provides for unsuccessful claimants to seek a review of the decision from the AASN provider. Reviews conducted by the AASN provider that uphold the original decision will be subsequently reviewed by the department. In cases where claimants can demonstrate exceptional circumstances that are unusual, uncommon, unexpected or unplanned a waiver will be considered by the department.

 

The decisions of AASN providers will not be subject to independent merits review. The Administrative Review Council provides that decisions which are automatic or mandatory are not subject to merits review. The decisions made under the IAA will require the decision maker to exercise limited discretion as the decisions will be automatic and mandatory. For example, the eligibility criteria for an employer incentive payment under the IAA would require evidence that an Australian Apprentice is enrolled to study in an accredited course that leads to a particular occupation. The decision maker would exercise limited or no discretion to make a determination of the Australian Apprentice's enrolment. The eligibility criteria for an Australian Apprentice will also largely be based on objective matters of fact. For example, all eligibility criteria require that the Australian Apprentice has a contract of training in place, which is approved by the relevant state or territory government authority.

 

An applicant who is unsatisfied with a decision outcome will be able to make a complaint to the Commonwealth Ombudsman.

 

Funding for the IAA will come from the Building Skills and Capability Program, which is part of the Department's Outcome 2, as set out in the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability (Section 75 Transfers) Determination 2019-20 made under section 75 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.

 

Noting that it is not a comprehensive statement of relevant constitutional considerations, the objective of table item 360 references the following powers of the Constitution:

*         the social welfare power (section 51(xxiiiA)); and

*         the external affairs power (section 51(xxix)).

 

Social welfare power

 

Section 51(xxiiiA) of the Constitution empowers the Parliament to make laws with respect to the provision of certain social welfare benefits, including 'sickness benefits' and 'benefits to students'.

 

The IAA will provide assistance to Australian Apprentices to assist with living expenses where they are required to move away from their parent's or guidance's home to take up or remain in an Australian Apprenticeship. The IAA will also provide assistance to encourage employers to provide Australian Apprenticeships to people with disabilities and provide assistance to RTOs to provide services to support Australian Apprentices with disabilities, including tutorial, mentoring and interpretation services.

 

External affairs power

 

Section 51(xxix) of the Constitution empowers the Parliament to make laws with respect to 'external affairs'. The external affairs power supports legislation implementing Australia's international obligations under treaties to which it is a party.

 

Australia has obligations relating to employment under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the ILO Convention (No. 142) concerning Vocational Guidance and Vocational Training in the Development of Human Resources (ILO Convention 142), the ILO Convention (No. 122) concerning Employment Policy (ILO Convention 122) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).

 

Article 4 of the CRPD sets out a general obligation for Member parties to implement the rights provided by the CRPD.

 

Article 27 of the CRPD obliges each Member party to enable persons with disabilities to have effective access to general technical and vocational guidance programmes, placement services and vocational and continuing training; promote employment opportunities and career advancement for persons with disabilities in the labour market, as well as assistance in finding, obtaining, maintaining and returning to employment; and promote vocational and professional rehabilitation, job retention and return-to-work programmes for persons with disabilities.

 

Article 1(1) of ILO Convention 142 obliges Members to 'adopt and develop comprehensive and co-ordinated policies and programmes of vocational guidance and vocational training, closely linked with employment'. Article 1(2) requires that the policies and programmes adopted for the purposes of Article 1(1) to take due account of matters including 'employment needs, opportunities and problems, both regional and national' (Article 1(2)(a)).

 

Article 2 of the ILO Convention 142 obliges each Member to 'establish and develop open, flexible and complementary systems of general, technical and vocational education, educational and vocational guidance and vocational training, whether these activities take place within the system of formal education or outside it'.

 

Article 3 of ILO Convention 142 obliges each Member to 'gradually extend its systems of vocational guidance, including continuing employment information, with a view to ensuring that comprehensive information and the broadest possible guidance are available to all ... adults' (Article 3(1)). Such information and guidance is required to cover matters including 'vocational training and related educational opportunities' (Article 3(2)).

 

Article 4 of the ILO Convention 142 obliges each Member party to 'gradually extend, adapt and harmonise its vocational training systems to meet the needs for vocational training throughout the life of both young persons and adults in all sectors of the economy and branches of economic activity and at all levels of skill and responsibility'.

 

Article 1(1) of the ILO Convention 122 requires Members to 'declare and pursue ... an active policy designed to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment.' Article 1(2) specifies that this policy shall aim to ensure that (among other things) 'there is work for all who are available for and seeking work'. Article 2 further requires Members 'decide on and keep under review ... the measures to be adopted for attaining the objectives specified in Article 1', and to 'take such steps as may be needed ... for the application of these measures'.

 

Article 2(1) of the ICESCR obliges each State Party to take steps 'to the maximum of its available resources, with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of the rights recognized in the present Covenant by all appropriate means, including particularly the adoption of legislative measures'. In particular, Article 6(1) of the ICESCR provides that States Parties recognise the 'right to work' and Article 6(2) provides that States Parties shall take steps to achieve full realization of this right' including 'technical and vocational guidance and training programmes, policies and techniques to achieve ... full and productive employment.'

 

The IAA contributes to the vocational guidance and vocational training program and is closely linked with employment. The incentives are designed to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment, in the form of Australian Apprenticeships, by encouraging employers to commence and retain Australian Apprentices until they successfully complete their Australian Apprenticeship.

 

Under the IAA, there are a range of incentives available to eligible employers who employ an Australian Apprentice. These incentives aim to broaden the employment opportunities for eligible individuals and help address employment needs and industry skills shortages, particularly occupations on the National Skills Priority List for Apprentices.

 

The IAA payments to Australian Apprentices with disabilities will enable access to VET training and promote employment opportunities. These incentives will also assist Australian Apprentices with disabilities in finding, obtaining, maintaining and returning to employment.

 

 

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

 

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

 

Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Amendment (Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business Measures No. 3) Regulations 2019

 

This disallowable legislative instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

 

Overview of the Legislative Instrument

 

Section 32B of the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Act 1997 (the FF(SP) Act) authorises the Commonwealth to make, vary and administer arrangements and grants specified in the Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Regulations 1997 (the FF(SP) Regulations) and to make, vary and administer arrangements and grants for the purposes of programs specified in the FF(SP) Regulations. Schedule 1AA and Schedule 1AB to the FF(SP) Regulations specify the arrangements, grants and programs. The FF(SP) Act applies to Ministers and the accountable authorities of non-corporate Commonwealth entities, as defined under section 12 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.

 

The Financial Framework (Supplementary Powers) Amendment (Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business Measures No. 3) Regulations 2019 amend Schedule 1AB to the FF(SP) Regulations to add two new table items to establish legislative authority for government spending on initiatives that are administered by the Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business (the department).

 

This instrument adds the following table items to Part 4 of Schedule 1AB:

• table item 359 for the Foundation Skills for Your Future; and
• table item 360 for the Incentives for Australian Apprenticeships.

 

Table item 359 Foundation Skills for Your Future  

 

The department will undertake a procurement process to establish a two-part foundation skills training programs:

*         The Foundation Skills for Your Future (FSFYF) program will deliver language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills (LLND) training to employed and recently unemployed individuals; and

*         The FSFYF - Remote Community Pilot program will trial systemic delivery of language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills training in four pilot sites in remote communities in Northern Queensland, Western Australia, Northern Territory and South Australia.

 

 

 

 

 

Human rights implications

 

Table item 359 engages the following human rights:

*         the right to education – Article 13 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and;

*         the right to work - Article 6 of the ICESCR.

Right to education

 

Table item 359 engages the right to education, contained in Article 13 of the ICESCR. Article 13 provides that vocational education is a part of secondary education (Article 13(2)(b)), and secondary education must be available and accessible to all on the basis of capacity, by every appropriate means, and in particular by the progressive introduction of free education (Article 13(2)(b)).

 

FSFYF program and Remote Community Pilot will promote the right of eligible people to education by assisting individuals to develop language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills through the vocational education and training system in Australia.

 

The outcomes of the FSFYF, in particular the Remote Community Pilot will also assist to inform the government on how to improve existing policies of vocational guidance and vocational training.

 

Table item 359 is compatible with and promotes the right to education.

 

Right to work

 

Table item 359 engages the right to work set out in Article 6 of the ICESCR. Article 6 recognises the right to work which includes the right of everyone to have the opportunity to earn their living by work which they freely choose or accept. Article 6(2) provides the steps to be taken by States Parties to achieve the full realisation of this right including providing technical and vocational education and training programmes, policies and techniques to achieve steady economic, social and cultural development and full and productive employment under conditions safeguarding political and economic freedom to the individual.

 

The objective of the FSFYF is consistent with the intention of improving employment outcomes for individuals. In particular, the program will assist individuals to develop language, literacy, numeracy and digital literacy skills through the vocational education and training systems in Australia to improve their opportunity to engage with employment in the modern and future workplaces. As such, it may be seen as contributing to full, productive and freely chosen employment.

 

Table item 359 is compatible with and promotes the right to work.

 

Conclusion

 

Table item 359 is compatible with human rights because it promotes the right to education and the right to work under the ICESCR

Table item 360 Incentives for Australian Apprenticeships

 

The Incentives for Australian Apprenticeships (IAA) will provide a range of financial incentives and personal benefits to encourage the continued training and development of apprentices and trainees (Australian Apprentices).

 

The IAA will be an uncapped and demand-driven program, which will encourage genuine opportunities for skills-based training and development of Australian Apprentices by providing:

*         incentives to employers who engage eligible Australian Apprentices, including base incentives paid at commencement, recommencement and completion of an Australian Apprenticeship as well as a range of additional incentives where an employer engages an eligible Australian Apprentice from a targeted group (for example, Australian Apprentices with a disability and Indigenous Australians) or a targeted occupation or qualification;

*         registered training organisations (RTOs) with a financial incentive to provide additional support and assistance for off-the-job training to eligible Australian Apprentices with a disability; and

*         payments to Australian Apprentices including commencement incentives to encourage individuals to take up an Australian Apprenticeship, completion incentives to support individuals to complete an Australian Apprenticeship and support for the expenses for an individual to relocate from their parent or guardian's home to complete an Australian Apprenticeship.

 

Human rights implications

 

Table item 360 engages the following rights:

*         the right to education - Article 13 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and Articles 4, 6 and 28 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC);

*         the right of equality and non-discrimination - Article 1, 2, 5 and 7 of the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD);

*         the right to work - Article 6 of the ICESCR; and

*         the rights of people with disability - Articles 4, 5, 8, 24 and 27 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

 

Right to education

 

Table item 360 engages:

• the right to education in Article 13 of the ICESCR. Article 13 recognises the right of everyone to education. Article 13 provides that vocational education is a part of secondary education (Article 13(2)(b)), and secondary education must be available and accessible to all on the basis of capacity, by every appropriate means, and in particular by the progressive introduction of free education (Article 13(2)(c)); and

• the right of children to education in Articles 4, 6 and 28 of the CRC. Article 28 encourages:

-          the development of different forms of secondary education, including general and vocational education;

-          making vocational education information and guidance available and accessible to all children; and

-          taking appropriate measures such as the introduction of free education and offering financial assistance in case of need.

 

Table item 360 promotes the right of all people (including children) to education through the provision of financial assistance to:

• employers to assist with the cost of employing an Australian Apprentice in their organisation;
• employers to employ and retain secondary school students participating in an Australian school-based apprenticeship;
• employers to encourage the commencement and completion of Australian apprenticeships from targeted groups including job seekers with severe barriers to employment, adult and mature aged Australian Apprentices, Australian Apprentices working in rural and regional areas, or Australian Apprentices with disability;
• apprentices to assist with the expenses for an individual to relocate from their parent or guardian's home to complete an Australian Apprenticeship; and
• RTOs so that they can provide additional support and assistance to Australian Apprentices with disability to complete the off-the-job component of their Australian Apprenticeship.

 

Table item 360 is compatible with and promotes the right to education.

 

Right of equality and non-discrimination

 

Table item 360 engages the right of equality and non-discrimination through special measures recognised in Articles 1 and 2 of the CERD. This item supports Australian Apprentices from nominated equity groups, including Indigenous Australians, to commence an Australian apprenticeship. This item promotes the rights outlined in Articles 5 and 7 of the CERD for Indigenous Australians by providing employers with a financial incentive to employ Indigenous Australians undertaking Certificate II qualifications. More generally, these incentives are restricted to Certificate III or IV, and Diploma or Advanced Diploma qualifications.  

 

Table item 360 is compatible with and promotes the right of equality and non-discrimination.

 

Right to work

 

Table item 360 engages the right to work in Article 6 of the ICESCR. Article 6 recognises the right to work which includes the right of everyone to have the opportunity to gain their living by work which they freely choose or accept. Article 6(2) provides that the steps to be taken by States Parties to achieve the full realisation of this right include providing technical and vocational guidance and training programs, policies and techniques to achieve steady economic, social and cultural development and full and productive employment under conditions safeguarding fundamental political and economic freedom to the individual.

 

Table item 360 promotes the right to work by financially supporting employers to engage and support Australian Apprentices in the workplace while the Australian Apprentice undertakes vocational education and training, which is freely chosen by the Australian Apprentice, meets workplace needs, and improves the Australian Apprentice's employment opportunities and outcomes. This contributes to the development of a highly skilled and relevant Australian workforce that supports economic, social and cultural development.

 

Table item 360 is compatible with and promotes the right to work.

 

Rights of people with disability

 

Table item 360 engages the rights of persons with disability in Article 4 of the CRPD. Article 4 seeks the promotion and full realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all persons with disabilities without discrimination of any kind on the basis of disability. The rights of people with disability are also found in Articles 5, 8, 24 and 27 of the CRPD.

 

Table item 360 promotes the rights of persons with disability by:

• providing employers with wage support incentives where those employers provide Australian Apprenticeships to people with disabilities; and
• providing RTOs with financial assistance so that they can provide additional tutorial, mentoring and interpreter assistance to Australian Apprentices with a disability.

 

Table item 360 is compatible with and promotes the rights of people with disability.

 

Conclusion

 

Table item 360 is compatible with human rights because it promotes the right to education under the ICESCR and the CRC; the rights of equality and non-discrimination under the CERD; the right to work under the ICESCR; and the rights of people with disability under the CRPD.

 

Senator the Hon Mathias Cormann

Minister for Finance