Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1697634416351.pdf (Australia)
Submission to the Senate Select Committee into COVID-19 Submitted by Career Development Association of Australia May 2020 Contact Details for inquiries: Mr Peter Mansfield National Manager Career Development Association of Australia Level 30, Westpac House, 91 King William Street, Adelaide SA 5000 COVID-19Submission 95 COVID-19Submission 95 Career Development Association of Australia About the Association The Career Development Association of Australia (CDAA) is Australia’s cross-sectoral community of career development practitioners, with members in every state and territory and across all sectors of the profession.
The CDAA is a member of the Career Industry Council of Australia (CICA), the National Peak Body for the Career Industry in Australia.

The CDAA is committed to the Professional Standards for Australian Career Development Practitioners and all CDAA members are bound by the CDAA Code of Ethics.
About career development Career development focuses on enabling people to understand and develop their skills and preferences to manage these challenges, make good decisions about their working lives, and maximise their contribution to the communities in which they live and work.

About Career Development Practitioners CDAA members are recognised career development practitioners who conform to a Professional Standards Framework and a Code of Practice.
Members are governed by ethical standards, require substantiated, industry-related qualifications, and are obliged to complete a minimum number of professional development hours every year.

Career practitioners work in a range of settings including schools, TAFEs, universities, corporate organisations, government agencies and private practice.
Job titles used by practitioners include - career educator, career counsellor, performance management consultant, rehabilitation consultant, researcher, human resources officer, work experience coordinator, employment services advisor, career coach and youth worker.
Career development practitioners may: contribute to building a career resilient workforce ▪ ▪ empower people to self-manage their careers ▪ pilot students through the maze of occupation-related data and resources ▪ ▪ support organisations to address labour and skill shortages facilitate understanding of how life’s jigsaw pieces fit together to reveal a fresh direction and purpose, and ▪ generally help people to explore, dream and discover opportunities.

More information is available at www.cdaa.org.au.


3 COVID-19Submission 95 Contents Executive Summary and Recommendations Supporting career-related decisions vital to our future How COVID-19 impacts people’s careers 1.

Australia needs a life-long career guidance system 2.

Increasing digital inclusion 3.

Producing up-to-date career information 4.

Reducing insecure work 5.

Supporting unemployed workers 6.

Supporting mental health 7.

Supporting people studying 8.


Jobs beyond COVID-19 A crucial skill: Adaptability Endnotes 5 9 10 10 11 11 12 13 15 16 17 19 20 4 COVID-19Submission 95 Summary and Recommendations Everyone living and working in Australia, regardless of citizenship, residency and visitor status, has been affected by the COVID-19 health crisis.

The social and economic impact has been sudden and dramatic.

No longer is life ‘normal’.


This Submission raises eight critical issues that impact people’s careers and offers recommendations for further action.

KEY POINTS ▪ High quality career services are delivered by qualified, impartial, highly skilled and knowledgeable professionals called career development practitioners.

▪ As Australia awakens from hibernation further ongoing government activity will be needed to reinvigorate the economy.
▪ The COVID-19 pandemic is highlighting the need for Australia to establish a highly visible, lifelong career guidance system that ensures that all people have access to career support across their lifespan, when they need it, and in for form that suits them.

▪ Eight critical issues that currently impact people’s careers highlight the need to: improve the visibility and number of, and access to, career services; and o o support and improve the quality of existing career services.
▪ One career management skill will be critical as we move into a future Australia−the ability to adapt.

Helping people to get their careers back on track will act like an insurance policy, giving people the ongoing career management skills to continue to make informed choices and decisions throughout their lives.
▪ We now have the opportunity to think about what sort of Australia we want, one that provides meaningful work for all who seek it, where opportunity is fairly distributed, and where the planet’s resources are protected for future generations.

LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS 1.


Australia needs a life-long career guidance system 1.1 Whenever government job, education, employment, and skills policies and programs are being considered, stakeholder consultations include representatives from career development professional associations that are members of CICA.
1.2 Governments across jurisdictions provide stimulus funding to career development professional associations who are members of CICA, to provide career development training programs to jobactive providers; to develop online career services grounded in evidence and professional standards; and to provide career services to employers who wish to 5 COVID-19Submission 95 provide transition programs for staff, including tailored career support, transferable skills recognition, and job search assistance.
1.3 The Australian Government changes taxation law to remove the link between career advice and earning income, in order to allow individual career support services, including career counselling, career coaching and career guidance, to be tax deductible.
1.4 The Australian Government, as a matter of urgency, develops and implements an education campaign, using the National Careers Ambassador Scott Cam, to encourage people interested in Vocational Education and Training (VET) to seek help with their careers from qualified career development professionals.

1.5 The Australian Government complements Mr Cam’s campaign with an education campaign that encourages people of all ages to seek help with their careers from qualified career development professionals.
2.

Increasing digital Inclusion 2.1 That the Australian Digital Council and the relevant COAG Councils consider the recommendations concerning digital exclusion set out in the Measuring Australia’s Digital Divide report, particularly as they relate to Disability, Skills, Education, Indigenous Affairs, and Closing the Gap.

3.
3.

Producing up-to-date career information 3.1 The Australian Government ensures continuing rapid collection and dissemination of Labour Market Information (LMI) on industries and sectors, and on occupations with growing opportunities forecasted, and highlighting the range of jobs available across Australia’s regions and cities.
3.2 The Australian Government continues to support the ABS’s production of new weekly statistics providing up-to-date information on the impact of COVID-19 on jobs and wages, labour market information and other statistical data.

3.3 The Australian Government, as a matter of urgency, directs the National Careers Institute to complete the design and development of a national careers-focused digital platform to streamline and strengthen the way careers information is delivered in Australia.
3.4 The Australian Government continues to fund essential career websites (Job Outlook, LMI Portal, Job Jumpstart, What’s Next, Study in Australia, Working in Australia, Australian Jobs) that help people make career decisions.

4.

Reducing insecure work 4.1 The Australian Government, as soon as pandemic restrictions allow, completes the Senate inquiry into Unlawful underpayment of employees' remuneration and acts on its recommendations.
6 COVID-19Submission 95 4.2 The Australian Government improves resources for education campaigns to ensure employers and employees know their rights and obligations.

5.

Supporting unemployed workers 5.1 As a matter of urgency, the Treasurer uses his broad powers to extend JobKeeper payments to unemployed workers who do not currently quality because they have not been employed by one entity on a regular basis during the last 12 months.
5.2 The Australian Government extends access to the JobSeeker COVID-19 supplement and the JobKeeper payments beyond the end of September for another six months to continue supporting unemployed people through the pandemic.
5.3 The Australian Government, when considering ceasing the JobSeeker COVID-19 supplement payments, adjusts the JobSeeker base rate to a payment that is equivalent to, as a minimum, a widely recognised standard such as the Minimum Income for Healthy Living, to ensure that all eligible recipients do not live in poverty.
5.4 The Australian Government introduces a requirement that jobactive providers employ qualified career development practitioners to provide tailored services that support unemployed people’s career goals.

5.5 The Australian Government assists job seekers by funding jobactive providers to supplement the digital-first model of self-directed online services with one-on-one services that meet the specific needs of the job seeker as determined by the job seeker.
5.6 The Australian Government reinstates Australian programming obligations (Australian drama, Australian documentary and Children’s and Preschool programs) for commercial television broadcasting licensees by the end of 2020.

5.7 The Australian Government reinstates the licence condition requiring minimum levels of expenditure by subscription television broadcasting licensees on new eligible drama programs by the end of 2020.

6.
6.

Supporting mental health 6.1 When the Productivity Commission completes its report on mental health, the Australian Government considers its recommendations, particularly those related to employment and vocational services.

7.

Supporting people studying 7.1 The Australian Government continues to implement, as a matter of urgency, the Future Ready: National Career Education Strategy.
7 COVID-19Submission 95 7.2 The Australian Government, through the COAG Education Council, supports State and Territory Governments to: ▪ provide funding and professional development time for public school teachers across the education system to enable them to redesign curriculum for an online environment, accommodate additional time for planning and implementation, and obtain technical support.

implement a targeted and coherent plan to support vulnerable students to physically attend school.
▪ ▪ ensure that educators have the resources to diagnose students’ learning loss and to support their mental health once school-based learning resumes.

7.3 The Australian Government, through the National Cabinet and/or the COAG Education Council, supports State and Territory Governments to ensure that all Year 12 students have access to professional career practitioners to support them in meeting university entrance requirements.
7.4 The Australian Government, in discussions with universities, asks universities to: ▪ provide career advice to students applying for entry, to assist them in making informed and appropriate course choices; ▪ provide support and assistance to commencing students by bridging gaps in academic skills that may have occurred as a result of the disruption to schooling during 2020; ▪ consider, longer term, offering appropriate enabling courses, and career advice, to support those wishing to reengage with education following disruption to, or premature disengagement from, education due to COVID-19.
8.

Jobs beyond covid-19 8.1 The Australian Government gives priority to creating jobs in sectors and industries that use resources more sustainably and in ways that do not further degrade the environment.

8 COVID-19Submission 95 Supporting career-related decisions vital for our future Everyone living and working in Australia, regardless of citizenship, residency and visitor status, has been affected by the COVID-19 health crisis.

The social and economic impact has been sudden and dramatic.
No longer is life ‘normal’.

National Cabinet’s three-step plan to end restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of coronavirus will start to slowly reopen the economy and society.

As Australia awakens from hibernation further ongoing government activity will be needed to reinvigorate the economy.

The widespread impact of the pandemic means supporting people in their search for training and work.
As Tristram Hooley, Professor of Career Education at the University of Derby writes, career is a thread that runs through a person’s life joining paid work, with unpaid work, education, family time, leisure, citizenship and everything else.i Supporting people with making career-related decisions (education, training, and job choices) is going to be vital during the next 12 – 24 months as people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic face an uncertain future.
We now have the opportunity to think about what sort of Australia we want, one that provides meaningful work for all who seek it, where opportunity is fairly distributed, and where the planet’s resources are protected for future generations.

9 COVID-19Submission 95 How COVID-19 impacts people’s careers The economy that comes out of hibernation is unlikely to look exactly like the one that was put to sleep.
Australia now needs policies and programs that address identified, interrelated impacts of health measures on people’s careers.

1.

AUSTRALIA NEEDS A LIFE-LONG CAREER GUIDANCE SYSTEM The work of career development professionals is far more complex than some people imagine.
People do not give much thought to the careers ‘system’−vocational courses, job searching, pay entitlements, resumes and job applications, upskilling, unemployment benefits, work changes−until they wish to enter, re-enter or move within the workforce.

They may explore the mountain of career information and advice online but much of it is generic, and some of it is inaccurate, out-of-date, and unsuited to people’s circumstances.
When people need career help, they need to source career development professionals.

These professionals know how the careers ‘system’ works, where to find credible information, and most importantly, have the specialised skills to adapt information to a person’s interests, skills, ambitions, age and circumstances.
The COVID-19 pandemic is highlighting the need for Australia to establish a highly visible, lifelong career guidance system that ensures that all people have access to career support across their lifespan, when they need it, and in for form that suits them.
RECOMMENDATIONS 1.1 Whenever government job, education, employment, and skills policies and programs are being considered, stakeholder consultations include representatives from career development professional associations that are members of CICA.ii 1.2 Governments across jurisdictions provide stimulus funding to career development professional associations who are members of CICA, to provide career development training programs to jobactive providers; to develop online career services grounded in evidence and professional standards; and to provide career services to employers who wish to provide transition programs for staff, including tailored career support, transferable skills recognition, and job search assistance.
1.3 The Australian Government changes taxation law to remove the link between career advice and earning income, in order to allow individual career support services, including career counselling, career coaching and career guidance, to be tax deductible.
1.4 The Australian Government, as a matter of urgency, develops and implements an education campaign, using the National Careers Ambassador Scott Cam, to encourage people interested in Vocational Education and Training (VET) to seek help with their careers from qualified career development professionals.iii 10 COVID-19Submission 95 1.5 The Australian Government complements Mr Cam’s campaign with an education campaign that encourages people of all ages to seek help with their careers from qualified career development professionals.
2.

INCREASING DIGITAL INCLUSION Researchers have identified how digitisation, artificial intelligence and automation are affecting skills and jobs.

They have also explored the range of digital skills needed by workers.

These skills include the ability to operate devices, software and systems, as well as knowing how to work with data, attend to security issues and resolve problems.iv Digital skills are essential for daily living and for managing careers.
For example, they are needed for: online courses, job search strategies and using online resources; keeping up-to- date with emerging jobs and innovations; and effectively self-promoting using social media.

But not everyone has the necessary digital skills or access to online participation.
The report Measuring Australia’s Digital Divide report identifies that gaps between digitally included and excluded Australians are substantial and widening for some groups, particularly people in low-income households, mobile-only users, people aged 65+, and people who did not complete secondary school.

KPMG has predicted that in a post-COVID-19 world there will be large-scale acceleration of digital transformation across industries.
They suggest that: “Our new digital and increasingly mobile-first behaviour will be sustained.

This accelerated growth in digital interactions will play out at scale across all industries – impacting both large and small enterprises.”v Should this be the case, building the digital skills of existing and future workers should be a priority.
RECOMMENDATION 2.1 That the Australian Digital Council and the relevant COAG Councils consider the recommendations concerning digital exclusion set out in the Measuring Australia’s Digital Divide report, particularly as they relate to Disability, Skills, Education, Indigenous Affairs, and Closing the Gap.

3.

PRODUCING UP-TO-DATE CAREER INFORMATION Part of managing a career is to know where to look for career information and how to interpret it.
Career development practitioners know where to find reliable and current information, and how to interpret information as it relates to a person’s circumstances.
During the National Careers Institute co-design consultations one of the most consistent themes about what stakeholders thought a national body could do within the careers sector is to: 11 COVID-19Submission 95 “Improve the quality of and access to career information, advice and guidance by providing impartial, comprehensive labour market and pathway data to help individuals develop and manage their own careers at all ages and stages.”vi Governments play a central role in funding the collection, organisation, linking, and distribution of career information.
It is essential that the Australian Government continues to support career-related websites and the production and distribution of up-to-date career-related information, including Labour Market Information (LMI).

During the next 12 to 24 months in particular, people will need reliable, accurate and current career information at all ages, and across all stages of life.
RECOMMENDATIONS 3.1 The Australian Government ensures continuing rapid collection and dissemination of LMI on industries and sectors, and on occupations with growing opportunities forecasted, and highlighting the range of jobs available across Australia’s regions and cities.
3.2 The Australian Government continues to support the ABS’s production of new weekly statistics providing up-to-date information on the impact of COVID-19 on jobs and wages, labour market information and other statistical data.vii 3.3 The Australian Government, as a matter of urgency, directs the National Careers Institute to complete the design and development of a national careers-focused digital platform to streamline and strengthen the way careers information is delivered in Australia.viii 3.4 The Australian Government continues to fund essential career websites (Job Outlook, LMI Portal, Job Jumpstart, What’s Next, Study in Australia, Working in Australia, Australian Jobs) that help people make career decisions.
4.

REDUCING INSECURE WORK Recent research commissioned by CDAA confirms that meaningful work is associated with crucial outcomes.

Regardless of the work people do, meaningfulness in work is a driver of workers’ aspirations and satisfaction.

People who have meaningful work are more committed to their work, more engaged, and have greater job satisfaction and life meaning.
Also, those with higher levels of meaningful work were associated with lower levels of intentions to leave the job.ix One measure of a healthy economy is the number of people who can find meaningful work.

Reports have described the increase in the gig economy and its impact.

While casual, gig work suits some people, it does not suit everyone, particularly when insecure work has negative financial impacts.x Australian governments can reduce the impact of job insecurity in Australia.
One action is to help people, including vulnerable groups, to understand their employment rights to ensure 12 COVID-19Submission 95 that they are paid correctly.

During the pandemic, understanding this information is increasingly difficult with the many changes being made to rights, entitlements, and benefits.
RECOMMENDATIONS 4.1 The Australian Government, as soon as pandemic restrictions allow, completes the Senate inquiry into Unlawful underpayment of employees' remuneration and acts on its recommendations.xi 4.2 The Australian Government improves resources for education campaigns to ensure employers and employees know their rights and obligations.

5.

SUPPORTING UNEMPLOYED WORKERS The Australian Government’s economic response to COVID-19 included measures to assist employers and newly unemployed people.
These measures, due to cease at the end of September 2020, exclude many unemployed people who do not meet the eligibility requirements−casual employees who haven't been employed by one entity on a regular basis during the last 12 months—including teachers, researchers, academics, builders, people working in tourism, fishing and agriculture, and many working in the arts and culture sector.
The RBA recently noted: “The longer someone is unemployed, the more difficult it is for them to find employment because of a loss (or a perceived loss) in skills or because they become discouraged and exit the labour force.
Past experience also suggests that workers who first enter the labour market during a downturn are especially affected and can suffer long-term income and employment consequences.”xii Career development professionals have direct experience of how unemployment negatively impacts people’s careers.
They know that there is a lack of entry level jobs for the unemployed, that low rates of income support have negative impacts on people’s physical and mental health, and that the costs of seeking employment, such as clothing, hygiene, transport costs and digital access, stop many people from seeking work.
Research has identified problems with the help unemployed people receive from jobactive providers, including a lack of qualifications and specialised skills.xiii Per Capita’s Discussion Paper, Redesigning Employment Services After COVID-19, argues there is a need to redesign employment services to better meet the needs of people experiencing unemployment after the COVID-19 economic shock.
With evidence that providers already have excessive workloads, they are unlikely to handle the demands of up to one million or more unemployed people.
As Per Capita’s Discussion Paper concludes: “There is a need to ensure that post-COVID employment services are fit for newly unemployed workers and that they can adapt to the long-term challenges of the economic recovery over the years ahead.”xiv 13 COVID-19Submission 95 Recent research commissioned by CDAA confirms that one-on-one support is particularly effective.

Clients are 2.67 times more likely to secure a job with the support of a qualified career development practitioner.
A crucial finding in the evidence on the effectiveness of career practitioners’ work is that computer-based interventions alone have the least effect, but their effect is enhanced by the presence of a practitioner.
“These findings have implications for striking the balance between resource- intensive but most effective (e.g., one-on-one service) and resource-low but least effective (e.g., self-directed online) services.”xv When people lack the necessary digital skills or access and have specific needs, in-person, tailored career services are essential.
RECOMMENDATIONS 5.1 As a matter of urgency, the Treasurer uses his broad powers to extend JobKeeper payments to unemployed workers who do not currently quality because they have not been employed by one entity on a regular basis during the last 12 months.

5.2 The Australian Government extends access to the JobSeeker COVID-19 supplement and the JobKeeper payments beyond the end of September for another six months to continue supporting unemployed people through the pandemic.
5.3 The Australian Government, when considering ceasing the JobSeeker COVID-19 supplement payments, adjusts the JobSeeker base rate to a payment that is equivalent to, as a minimum, a widely recognised standard such as the Minimum Income for Healthy Living, to ensure that all eligible recipients do not live in poverty.
5.4 The Australian Government introduces a requirement that jobactive providers employ qualified career development practitioners to provide tailored services that support unemployed people’s career goals.

5.5 The Australian Government assists job seekers by funding jobactive providers to supplement the digital-first model of self-directed online services with one-on-one services that meet the specific needs of the job seeker as determined by the job seeker.
5.6 The Australian Government reinstates Australian programming obligations (Australian drama, Australian documentary and Children’s and Preschool programs) for commercial television broadcasting licensees by the end of 2020.xvi 5.7 The Australian Government reinstates the licence condition requiring minimum levels of expenditure by subscription television broadcasting licensees on new eligible drama programs by the end of 2020.xvii 14 COVID-19Submission 95 6.
SUPPORTING MENTAL HEALTH Career development professionals not only support the effective functioning of the labour market, and the education system, they also contribute to a range of social goals.

There is clear evidence of links among quality employment and mental health, unemployment and mental illness.

CDAA’s research provides evidence that: ▪ When workers feel under threat depression and anxiety increase and psychological health decreases.
▪ Organisations are negatively impacted when workers feel under threat, with a decrease in job satisfaction and an increase in intention to resign.xviii Much media attention has been given to emotional responses during the pandemic, including stress, grief, uncertainty, social isolation, and fear.

Mental health support groups have received record numbers of calls.
CERIC, a Canadian career organisation, points out in their publication Strengthening Mental Health Through Effective Career Development, that there is evidence that career development activities contribute to positive mental health.xix Mental health is a serious concern for young people.
Mission Australia’s 2019 Youth Survey Report found mental health, the environment and equity and discrimination are the three most important issues, with mental health identified as the top national issue for the third year running.xx The Australian Government has provided additional funding for mental health and family violence services to deal with increased demand due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The National Health Plan includes support for headspace to expand its digital work and study service, to help younger Australians stay on track in their education and training and prepare them for the workforce.xxi The Productivity Commission has conducted an inquiry into mental health.

The final report is to be handed to the Australian Government in June 2020.
The draft report sets out some of the problems with employment support for people with mental illness.xxii The report recognises the importance of face-to-face services and recommends a staged rollout of the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model.
The IPS model, trialled by headspace,xxiii is an evidence-based approach that integrates employment and vocational services with clinical mental health and non-vocational support, and focuses on the individual needs of people with mental illness who are seeking to enter, or remain in, education and/or employment.
RECOMMENDATIONS 6.1 When the Productivity Commission completes its report on mental health, the Australian Government considers its recommendations, particularly those related to employment and vocational services.

15 COVID-19Submission 95 7.

SUPPORTING PEOPLE STUDYING People across all ages who are studying have had their education disrupted to varying degrees.

This disruption applies to students across the education system, both school and tertiary education.
There are many issues impacting people studying, including digital inclusion, insecure work, and mental health.

Of particular concern is the uneven availability of career services to students across the education system.

While excellent career services are provided by many organisations, elsewhere services can range from being non-existent, to being provided by unqualified staff, through to being erratic, and poorly understood, supported and funded.
In 2019 the Australian Government established a strategy, endorsed by the COAG Education Council, titled Future Ready: National Career Education Strategy.

This strategy was designed to improve career education in schools.

Recent disruptions mean accessing high-quality career services by all school students in public, private and independent schools, is now critical to their future, particularly students with additional or complex needs.
(These include poverty, unemployment, ill health, substance abuse, experiences of trauma, poor educational outcomes, and disability.)

TAFE colleges and private VET providers need funding and support to deliver high-quality, accessible career services to all those who need them, including apprentices, mature age students, and students with additional or complex needs.
Several reports have outlined the impact of school closures during the pandemic, and the educational outcomes, particularly for disadvantaged children.

For example, Professor Stephen Lamb’s report sets out five challenges with home learning, including gaps in digital skills and resources and students not being personally suited to home learning.xxiv During the shutdown there have been discussions about university entrance requirements and possible changes to admission schemes.
Some universities, like ANUxxv, take a more holistic approach to entry requirements.

Negotiating these requirements demands career guidance expertise which will be even more critical in 2020 with the added stress of completing Year 12 curriculum requirements.

Universities have a role to play in ensuring students have a reasonable chance of successfully engaging with tertiary study.
RECOMMENDATIONS 7.1 The Australian Government continues to implement, as a matter of urgency, the Future Ready: National Career Education Strategy.
7.2 The Australian Government, through the COAG Education Council, supports State and Territory Governments to: ▪ provide funding and professional development time for public school teachers across the education system to enable them to redesign curriculum for an online 16 COVID-19Submission 95 environment, accommodate additional time for planning and implementation, and obtain technical support.

implement a targeted and coherent plan to support vulnerable students to physically attend school.
▪ ▪ ensure that educators have the resources to diagnose students’ learning loss and to support their mental health once school-based learning resumes.

7.3 The Australian Government, through the National Cabinet and/or the COAG Education Council, supports State and Territory Governments to ensure that all Year 12 students have access to professional career practitioners to support them in meeting university entrance requirements.
7.4 The Australian Government, in discussions with universities, asks universities to: ▪ provide career advice to students applying for entry, to assist them in making informed and appropriate course choices; ▪ provide support and assistance to commencing students by bridging gaps in academic skills that may have occurred as a result of the disruption to schooling during 2020; ▪ consider, longer term, offering appropriate enabling courses, and career advice, to support those wishing to reengage with education following disruption to, or premature disengagement from, education due to COVID-19.
8.

JOBS BEYOND COVID-19 As Australia emerges from hibernation, some people may need to upskill or reskill to retain their jobs, some people will need help with identifying their transferable skills so they can find work in different sectors or industries, and some people will look for opportunities in new roles and industries.

While attention is focused on this current pandemic, issues impacting the economy before COVID-19 will still need attention post-pandemic.
Climate change continues to pose major economic risks.xxvi KPMG predicts that in the medium-to-long term, climate change and sustainability will return to front of mind.xxvii Some sectors, like tourismxxviii and coal-fired electricity, are particularly exposed to these economic risks.
The ACTU has written a discussion paper on a transition process for the coal-fired electricity sector, identifying three key elements of a fair and just transition framework.xxix We already know a lot about structural adjustment from the work of the Productivity Commission.

Multiple Senate inquiries, such as those into the closure of coal-fired power stationsxxx (which are to close in the next two or three decades), and jobs for the future in regional areasxxxi, provide a wealth of useful information.
A government report on the transition of the car manufacturing sector confirmed people need to be skilled in managing their careers.

Best practice support includes: 17 COVID-19Submission 95 ▪ “Early notification to workers allowing support to be communicated early and often.

▪ Tailored career advice and local labour market information via case managers.

▪ Transferable skills recognition and training support including funding.

▪ Resume, interview and digital job search assistance.
▪ Health and wellbeing support, financial counselling.

▪ Dedicated transition hubs or information centres.”xxxii These services are largely the domain of qualified career development practitioners.

As the closure of car manufacturers showed, workers may have difficulty identifying and naming the skills they have, and struggle to see how those skills could be applied in other jobs.
The training and education sectors are complex, and people may need help with navigating the available options in order to find suitable upskilling or reskilling courses.

Career development practitioners have the expertise to support people through these transition processes.

8.
8.

RECOMMENDATIONS 8.1 The Australian Government gives priority to creating jobs in sectors and industries that use resources more sustainably and in ways that do not further degrade the environment.xxxiii 18 COVID-19Submission 95 A crucial skill: Adaptability One skill will be critical as we move into a future Australia.

That skill is the ability to adapt.


In relation to careers, people are more likely to succeed if they show concern about their working future, believe they have some control over it, set about dealing with tasks like job searching and managing transitions, are curious about themselves and work possibilities, and feel confident about their ability to work towards their goals.

In short, their readiness and resources for dealing with their situation.
Researchers have found that this ability to adapt is linked to increased work fulfilment for those employed, and to increased belief in one’s ability to achieve goals for those searching for work.xxxiv The work of career development professionals is, in part, directed to building people’s ability to adapt.
Yet many people, but particularly young people, affected by COVID-19 will not be in a position to easily adapt, due to their social, educational and financial circumstances, and mental and/or physical health.

Inaction will exacerbate these circumstances.

Helping people to get their careers back on track will act like an insurance policy, giving people the ongoing career management skills to continue to make informed choices and decisions throughout their lives.
19 COVID-19Submission 95 ENDNOTES i https://careerguidancesocialjustice.wordpress.com/2020/03/23/why-a-social-justice-informed- approach-to-career-guidance-matters-in-the-time-of-coronavirus/ ii https://cica.org.au/about-us/ iii https://www.nci.employment.gov.au/nationalcareersambassador iv Gekara, V, Snell, D, Molla, A, Karanasios, S & Thomas, A 2019, Skilling the Australian workforce for the digital economy, NCVER, Adelaide.
https://www.ncver.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0026/5744123/Skilling-the-Australian-workforce- for-the-digital-economy.pdf v KPMG, Our New Reality: Predictions after COVID-19.
https://home.kpmg/au/en/home/insights/2020/05/predictions-after-covid-19/traditional-business- models-not-enough-in-digital-commerce-era.html vi https://docs.employment.gov.au/documents/nci-what-we-heard vii https://www.abs.gov.au/COVID-19 viii https://www.nci.employment.gov.au/digitalplatform ix CDAA, Career Development Works: Research Evidence and Case Examples https://www.cdaa.org.au/documents/item/749: Kate Morton, The Career Development Works Report - The key recommendation and where we go from here, https://www.cdaa.org.au/blog/the- career-development-works-report-the-key-recommendation-and-where-we-go-from-here x The McKell Institute Queensland, Understanding Insecure Work in Australia, By Lillian Alexander, https://mckellinstitute.org.au/app/uploads/McKell-Institute-Queensland-Understanding-Insecure- Work-in-Australia-1-2.pdf xi https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Economics/Underpaymentofwages xii Reserve Bank of Australia, Statement on Monetary Policy, MAY 2020, p. 84. https://www.rba.gov.au/publications/smp/2020/may/pdf/statement-on-monetary-policy-2020- 05.pdf xiii https://www.smartcompany.com.au/people-human-resources/recruitment-hiring/employment- services-arent-working-for-older-jobseekers-jobactive-staff-or-employers/; http://library.bsl.org.au/jspui/bitstream/1/10838/1/Bowman_etal_Working_for_everyone_research _summary_2018.pdf; Per Capita, Redesigning Employment Services After COVID-19, Simone Casey and Abigail Lewis, April 2020,
 https://percapita.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Redesigning-employment-services- after-COVID-19_FINAL.pdf xiv Per Capita, Redesigning Employment Services After COVID-19, Simone Casey and Abigail Lewis, April 2020 https://percapita.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Redesigning-employment-services-after- COVID-19_FINAL.pdf xv CDAA, Career Development Works: Research Evidence and Case Examples https://www.cdaa.org.au/documents/item/749 xvi https://www.communications.gov.au/what-we-do/television/relief-australian-media-during- covid-19 xvii Ibid.
xviii CDAA, Career Development Works: Research Evidence and Case Examples https://www.cdaa.org.au/documents/item/749 xix Dave E. Redekopp and Michael Huston, Strengthening Mental Health Through Effective Career Development: A Practitioner’s Guide, CERIC, 2020 https://ceric.ca/publications/strengthening-mental-health-through-effective-career-development-a- practitioners-guide/ xx Carlisle E., Fildes, J., Hall, S., Perrens, B., Perdriau, A., and Plummer, J.
2019, Youth Survey Report 2019, Sydney, NSW: Mission Australia 20 COVID-19Submission 95 https://www.missionaustralia.com.au/what-we-do/research-impact-policy-advocacy/youth-survey xxi https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2020/03/covid-19-national-health- plan-supporting-the-mental-health-of-australians-through-the-coronavirus-pandemic.pdf xxii Productivity Commission, Mental Health, Draft Report, October 2019. https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/current/mental-health/draft/mental-health-draft-volume1.pdf xxiii https://www.dss.gov.au/mental-health-programs-services/individual-placement-and-support-ips- trial xxiv Professor Stephen Lamb, Impact of learning from home on educational outcomes for disadvantaged children.
Centre for International Research on Education Systems, Victoria University.

https://bsllibrary.org.au/covid19-update-articles-rpc/new-research-to-examine-the-potential- impact-of-remote-learning-dese-110166/ xxv https://www.anu.edu.au/study/apply/domestic-applications-anu-undergraduate/applying-to- anu-application-details/co xxvi Will Steffen, Karl Mallon, Tom Kompas, Annika Dean and Martin Rice.

Compound Costs: How climate change is damaging Australia’s economy.
Climate Council of Australia Limited 2019 https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/compound-costs-how-climate-change-damages- australias-economy/ xxvii KPMG, Our New Reality: Predictions after COVID-19.

https://home.kpmg/au/en/home/insights/2020/05/predictions-after-covid-19/capital-investment- greater-emphasis-on-esg-criteria.html xxviii Professor Lesley Hughes, Petra Stock, Louis Brailsford and Dr David Alexander.
Icons At Risk: Climate Change Threatening Australian Tourism, Climate Council of Australia Limited, https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/uploads/964cb874391d33dfd85ec959aa4141ff.pdf xxix Australian Council of Trade Unions, Sharing the challenges and opportunities of a clean energy economy: A Just Transition for coal-ﬁred electricity sector workers and communities, Policy discussion paper.
https://www.actu.org.au/media/1032953/actu-policy-discussion-paper-a-just- transition-for-coal-fired-electricity-sector-workers-and-communities.pdf xxx The Senate, Environment and Communications References Committee, Retirement of coal fired power stations, 2017 https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communi cations/Coal_fired_power_stations/Final_Report xxxi The Senate Select Committee.
Jobs for the Future in Regional Areas, 2019 https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Jobs_for_the_Future_in_Regi onal_Areas/JobsRegionalAreas xxxii Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, The Transition of the Australian Car Manufacturing Sector, 2019. https://docs.employment.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/summary_report_- _transition_of_the_australian_car_manufacturing_sector_final_0.pdf xxxiii For example, Clean Energy Council, A Clean Recovery, Using Australia’s enormous renewable energy potential to create jobs and jumpstart the economy, May 2020 https://www.cleanenergycouncil.org.au/advocacy-initiatives/a-clean-recovery Victoria’s circular economy strategy which includes overhauling the recycling sector to create new jobs.
https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/creating-jobs-driving-investment-and-reducing-waste/ xxxiv Dr Catherine Hughes, Career Adaptability: An Essential Construct for Career Development Practice.

https://asiapacificcda.org/Career-Trends#Adaptability Ryan D. Duffy, David L. Blustein, Matthew A. Diemer, Kelsey L. Autin, The Psychology of Working Theory, Journal of Counseling Psychology.

American Psychological Association 2016, Vol.

63, No.

2, 127–148.


https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/features/cou-cou0000140.pdf 21 COVID-19Submission 95