Eight “microskill” short courses are being launched by TAFE in NSW to prepare workers for jobs in renewable power and technology, the state government says.
The move was enabled by the approval of a five-year national skills deal worth $3.8 billion, Premier Chris Minns said in a statement on Monday.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese this month signed off on the landmark skill deal with state premiers and territory chief ministers.
Mr Minns said given the National Skills Agreement (NSA) was now in place, NSW had funding security to boost skills training in renewable energy and tech.
The premier said the “microskills” learning was short, self-directed online courses aimed at developing a specific skill. They would be rolled out over the next six months.
Subjects include emergency responder electric vehicle incident and emergency response, introduction to fuel-cell electric vehicles and contextualised fuel-cell electric vehicles, he said.
Other courses would be hydrogen energy fundamentals, electric vehicle charging station baseline knowledge, refuelling fuel-cell electric vehicles, preparing to work in the renewable energy sector, and introduction to wind farms.
Speaking to reporters, Mr Minns said the courses would make a major difference to fast and evolving parts of the state economy, such as emergency response where different standards and procedures need to be followed for incidents involving electric vehicles.
“These courses are an example of where funding from the NSA can be utilised to ensure TAFE NSW accelerates skills training in renewable energy through collaboration with industry and government,” he said.
Sam McKeith
(Australian Associated Press)
