FOUNDATION SKILLS IN SEASONAL WORKPLACES Phase II Report December 2006
Discussions With Industry Association Personnel And Agencies
Workbase personnel asked representatives of industry associations to comment from an industry perspective. They discussed critical issues for each industry sector, skill demands, barriers to training and strategies to overcome these barriers. A list of responses for each sector on the industry is included as Appendix Respondents agreed that a number of issues are common across the three industry sectors. Others are specific to particular industries and these are identified below.
8.Critical issues for the industry as a whole
- Supply of good quality workforce who want to commit to the industry.
- Supply of sufficient numbers of permanent workers with practical skills.
- Supply of appropriate numbers of seasonal workers with basic horticulture skills and a good work ethic.
- Retaining experienced people.
- Developing opportunities for new groups of workers to move into permanent supervisory positions.
- Need for training resources and methods to suit diverse workforce.
- Communication issues - especially with people from non-English speaking backgrounds.
8.Critical issues for particular industries
8.2.Pipfruit industry
- Need to find different ways to work with and motivate different ethnic groups.
- Impact of exchange rate.
8.2.Viticulture industry
- The effect of bad pruning on the productivity of grapevines.
- Infrastructure - especially housing and transport.
8.2.Kiwifruit industry
- Compliance with quality standard requirements.
- Late harvest in 2006 resulting in high cost of quality through fruit loss at harvest.
- Employee motivation and lack of "life skills".
- Alcohol and drug use.
8.Future skill demands for the industry as a whole
- Changing business models leading to increasing demand for people skills (e.g. move from owner operated to larger consolidated corporate structures or small niche operators).
- Increasing need for cross cultural understanding and communication.
- Increased quality compliance requirements.
- Impact of technology, including computer-based technology.
- Increasing requirement for business skills e.g. strategic thinking, planning, marketing, management skills.
- Supervisors will need increased range of skills to meet needs of workforce.
8.Future skill demands for particular industries
8.4.Viticulture industry
- Preferred pruning methods will change over time and as vines age.
- Cell phone based camera technology beginning to be used to keep track of workers.
8.4.Kiwifruit industry
- Quality requirements will continue to change.
- Computer-based technology will increase in packhouses - grading, track and trace technology will remove some jobs.
8.Most important foundation skills across the industry
- Understanding oral instructions and explanations given by growers and employers.
- English language skills for NESB people.
- Making correct decisions in relation to picking and pruning.
- Critical thinking and decision-making skills for picking and pruning.
8.Understanding of importance of foundation skills across the industry
- These are not seen as a priority.
- Employers assume that people will have these skills.
- Industry needs to develop a training and education culture across the horticulture sector.
8.Key barriers to foundation skills training across the industry
- Urgency of work in industry, leaving no time for additional training during peak work periods.
- Cost of this type of training - concerns about who will pay for it.
- Little incentive to invest in development of people who will only be with the company for a short time.
- Employers are not sure that seasonal workers want foundation skills training.
- Logistics of how it would take place.
8.How barriers could be overcome
- Develop good resources to support training - simple, visual, practical resources.
- Develop foundation skills through other training such as the Kiwifruit Orchard Skills Certificate.
- Train the trainers in the workplace to increase the ability of employers to do good training.
- Raise awareness of the issue among employers.
- Demonstrate the cost benefit from training in these skills.
- Find ways to do training around harvest requirements.
- Fully fund pilot foundation skills programme to build understanding/ownership with associated employers.
- Deal with other issues that impact on seasonal workforce (e.g. security of employment, accommodation, transport).
- Consider packhouses as a learning environment.
Other comments included the need to improve employees' "life skills", including hygiene, poor clothing choices for working outdoors in wet conditions, and lack of personal fitness, which makes working on ladders a risk.
8.Activities of various agencies
Government agencies, industry associations, ITOs and economic development agencies are engaged in a range of activities in each region. These are set out in Appendix The activities are dynamic and change over time in response to industry needs.
Kiwifruit Growers Incorporated (KGI) were particularly positive about the impact of the Kiwifruit Contractors' Liaison positions that have recently been established. These liaison roles are breaking new ground in upskilling contractors in the kiwifruit industry. KGI sees much potential in continuing to develop these roles.
The Department of Labour's initiative in the Nelson/Marlborough region to upskill contractors has similar potential in terms of its impact on contractors' employment health and safety, and contracting practices in the region.
The Ministry of Social Development, because of its role in supplying seasonal workers, has lead and/or funded many regional initiatives identified in this project. As a result they have developed significant knowledge of regional networks and what different employers require. This knowledge is a largely untapped source of information at a national level.