VACC says this new bill gives employers another reason to say no to apprentices
The Victorian Automotive Chamber of Commerce says proposed changes to Victoria’s apprenticeship system will make employers less likely to take on apprentices at a time when skills shortages are already biting across the economy.
The Education and Training Reform Amendment (Apprenticeships, Traineeships, Schools and Other Matters) Bill 2026, now before the Victorian Parliament, would introduce a new employer licensing regime, requiring annual renewals, additional compliance obligations and expanded enforcement powers.
VACC CEO Peter Jones said the reforms address the wrong problem. “You do not solve a skills shortage by making it harder for employers to employ apprentices,” he said. “While Victoria faces challenges attracting more young people into trades and apprenticeship pathways, industry’s immediate challenge is finding more employers willing to take apprentices on. Industry struggles every day to convince employers that taking on an apprentice is worth the cost, risk and responsibility. The Government’s solution is to make that decision even harder. The issue is not a shortage of regulation. It is a shortage of employers willing to invest in training.”
Victoria already has the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority, Apprenticeships Victoria, WorkSafe Victoria, the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Fair Work Commission overseeing different parts of the apprenticeship system. Jones said the Bill’s answer was to add another licensing regime and more powers for Workforce Inspectorate Victoria on top of that. “If the existing framework is falling short, Government should properly resource and enforce the framework we already have, not create another layer of bureaucracy. This is red tape piled on red tape,” he said.
At its core, the Bill brings a labour hire style licensing model into the apprenticeship system. Employers would need a licence to take on an apprentice, would have to renew it annually and would remain subject to ongoing regulatory scrutiny and enforcement. “An apprenticeship can run for four years, yet employers may need to repeatedly renew their licence throughout that period,” Jones said. “At a time when Government should be reducing barriers to participation, this Bill institutionalises them.”
VACC also flagged that many of the Bill’s most significant obligations sit in future employer standards that have not yet been released. “Employers are effectively being asked to sign a blank cheque and accept penalties for breaching standards that do not yet exist,” Jones said.
Jones said the fix was straightforward. “Every apprenticeship starts with an employer saying yes. This Bill gives employers another reason to say no. If Victoria is serious about addressing its skills shortage, the answer is simple, more employers employing more apprentices, not more regulators and more red tape.”
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