If we want more Australian-made jobs, here’s what we need
Jesse Adams Stein, University of Technology, Sydney Labor has promised to make Australia “a country that makes things again”. It has emphasised locally-made transport, NBN infrastructure, apprenticeships and defence-related production. The Coalition has spruiked the federal government’s modern manufacturing strategy. It highlights technology investment and six priority areas (minerals, food, medical, clean energy, defence and space). But despite the seemingly endless announcements, Australian manufacturing remains a problem for the major parties. Whoever wins the federal election will need to do things very differently if they genuinely want to boost local production. Another way forward for manufacturing In the mid-1960s, Australian manufacturing employed around 25% of the working population; it’s now down around 6.4%. Manufacturing’s share of GDP is also in decline, now sitting at around 6%. Jobs continue to drift offshore. Leaving things to the “free market” clearly isn’t working for Australian manufacturing. But patriotic argument we must get back to the “good old days” where everything was supposedly made in Australia is also unrealistic. There is another way: a coordinated and targeted national industry policy that favours long-term planning over a short-term, scattergun approach. Tapping into the global green economy What Australia needs is coordinated national industry policy supporting niche, specialist manufacturing. This policy would drive an ecosystem of industries and sectors geared towards emissions reduction and skills development. It would help Australia take its place in the booming global “green” technology economy. For example, policy cleverly targeting gaps in national and international supply chains could support expansion of renewable energy technology manufacturing. This targeted approach requires manufacturing policy to be developed in step with policy on education, energy, mining, research and development, and emissions reduction. Done right, the international evidence shows tailored support for niche industries can be very successful. Germany, for example, has a coordinated policy emphasising technical skills, generous funding for research and development, and energy sector decarbonisation. This […]