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A Matter of Attitude - Howard Emanuel

Recent comments by the Prime Minister regarding the lack of skilled tradespersons in Australia has struck a poignant chord with me. Read More...

By Howard Emanuel - 3rd October 2004 - Back to News

Recent comments by the Prime Minister regarding the lack of skilled tradespersons in Australia has struck a poignant chord with me. In this instance I agree with the PM that it is indeed as much about community attitudes than any other reason why we now as a nation face a critical shortage of fully trained tradespeople.

Perhaps it all began in the late 1980s when we essentially closed down many of the purpose focused "Technical Schools" and integrated them into secondary colleges. This move I think sent a message to the community about the value of taking up a trade apprenticeship upon leaving school, a community it seemed increasingly wanting to be seen as a "white collar" society.

Now fast forward to today and we have a situation in some Victorian universities where the first year drop out rate is as high as 22% and a mean average rate of 18% across the sector.  Perhaps too many of our young are going on to university due to peer pressure and in one sense responding to the social dogma of the day. That is that a university education will allow you to work in the white collar mandate and essentially give you a higher social standing than would be the case if you were to become a lowly tradesperson, a member of the so called working class. Pretty sad parody this, but essentially true.

It has become noticeably obvious that in the minds of many it is more desirable to be office bound than to wear overalls and work boots. Yet a great many of our young struggle with the demands of university and one has to ask the question whether their unique abilities are best suited to long term tertiary education, or are more likely to gain full expression in one of the trades.

And of course without the trades where would we be when we are in need of such expertise around the home, the workplace, even the office, perhaps we just don’t ask that question of ourselves.

One thing is certain as the PM has said it is community attitudes that are making it difficult for many to feel free to access training for a trade, to indeed follow their natural instincts, instead only to languish at university desperately trying to keep up with those beholden of gifts of another kind and in the meantime suffering all manner of negative perceptions and feelings about their own worth.

Come on Australia, where’s that egalitarian attitude we so often speak of, that penchant for a fair go. Nothing to my mind is so misguided and ignorant as class attitudes, those insidious notions that somehow one particular mandate in life makes us the better of those not similar. Fortunately history is full of examples that fundamentally debunk this myth, if only we care to admit it to ourselves; what.

Of course the overriding contradiction I can’t but help notice in the Prime Ministers argument is that it is indeed often the attitudes of the political and social elite that percolate such misunderstandings in the community, but that is for another day.

Thank you.

Howard Emanuel.

Independent Candidate for the Federal Seat of McMillan.

Convener: Rural Social Justice Movement

Tele/Fax: (03)5684 1561

Mobile: 0400 158 896

E-mail:   howard@howardemanuel.com

Website: www.HowardEmanuel.com

"Bringing the People back into Policy!"

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: kris@howardemanuel.com

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