Fixing the pipeline from training to good local jobs
Whether you’re a young person looking to get started, a tradie who’s been through the system, or a parent trying to help your kids find their way – you’ve probably seen the cracks.
Wide Bay is facing a double bind: a housing crisis and a tradie shortage.
Our kids want to learn skills that lead to real work – but the training system is stretched thin. TAFE campuses have been gutted. Private providers are doing their best, but the system doesn’t set them up to succeed. Trade training centres like the one in Gympie can’t even meet demand – meaning young people ready to learn a trade are being turned away.
And even when they do get in, it’s a tough road: 1 in 2 apprentices don’t make it through. That’s not because they’re lazy – it’s because they’re not getting the support they need to stay the course.
If I’m elected, I’ll fight to:
- Make it easier for apprentices to access support, especially in rural areas
- Ensure TAFE and private providers are on a level playing field
- Make sure trade training centres can meet demand, so young people who want to learn a trade don’t miss out
- Push for real investment in local skills and training
This is grassroots supply-side policy — helping train the people we need to build the homes, businesses, and infrastructure of tomorrow.
Meanwhile, both Labor and the LNP are still focused on boosting demand — dropping deposits, fiddling with taxes — while ignoring the real issue: we haven’t built the workforce we need. That’s what got us into this mess in the first place.
Even mainstream economists are sounding the alarm — saying the major parties are throwing fuel on the fire without fixing the pipeline.
Let’s build a future where young people don’t have to leave Wide Bay to build a life.
Casey for Wide Bay 