The state government has announced a $3.9 million package to fund tourism and hospitality workforce initiatives over the next two years.

The funding will support a series of job-ready skills training courses with StudyPerth for international students and initiatives targeting working holiday makers to leverage the returning pool of workers in these markets.

Tourism and hospitality will be promoted as a rewarding career through activity such as the Chef Ambassador in-school hospitality demonstration program delivered by Hospitality Group Training, and an annual program of in-school tourism career information sessions will also support longer-term initiatives aimed at encouraging young people to consider careers in tourism and hospitality and creating a sustainable pipeline of local skilled workers.
Read the media release here

In addition, a new hospitality and tourism recruitment campaign, called Discover the Other Side, will launch in coming weeks. The campaign will aim to help attract hospitality and tourism workers from interstate and New Zealand to work and live in WA.
More information about: Discover the Other Side

The formal ‘Industry Summary’ document has been guided by the sector’s Industry Reference Committee, comprising stakeholders from various industry organisations such as Restaurant Catering Australia, the Caravan Industry Association, AHA, training bodies, tourism groups and the Australian Travel Careers Council.

The draft summary gives an overview of the interconnected nature of travel, tourism and hospitality, as well as the crippling effect of COVID-19 and the expected industry recovery supported by the Government’s THRIVE 2030 strategy targeting $230 billion in visitor spending.

All the relevant qualifications have been reviewed and the only new proposed qualification is a Certificate IV in Travel qualification to be reviewed 2023-24 .

​To download a copy of the draft Tourism, Travel and Hospitality IRC Industry Summary, please Click Here

To provide feedback on the document: Click Here  (closes 5.00pm, Friday 29 July 2022)

Training Package Products including qualifications, skill sets and units of competency for the Events, Travel, Tourism and Hospitality sectors, Cookery and Kitchen Operations and the Responsible Service of Alcohol have been updated in order to meet the current and future needs of industry.

The updated Training Package SIT - Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Training Package (Release 2.0) has been published on the national register and can be accessed here.

Apprentices
Apprentices in high-demand industries (including Chefs) will get up to $5000 in cash payments for the first two years of their training but wage subsidies will be scaled back for employers.
The renamed Australian Apprenticeships Incentives Scheme has been re targeted so that apprentices, as well as employers, receive financial incentives.
Under the scheme, from July 1 employers in “priority occupations” will receive 10 per cent wage subsidy for first and second-year apprentices and 5 per cent for third years. The subsidy caps out at $15,000. Employers in regional areas will receive an additional 5 per cent wage subsidy for each of the three years of an apprentice’s training.
In a measure aimed at tackling dropout rates among young tradies, those aged between 15 and 20 will receive a follow-up call within three months of starting their apprenticeships to iron out any early issues and the government will fund 2500 more in-training support places.
Tourism Research
The Budget allocates $2 million for a new “visitor economy online employment and skills platform” as well as $4.8 million for Tourism Research Australia “to capture and analyse more tourism and visitor data to help businesses operating in the visitor economy make improved business decisions,”
Working Holiday makers
To help address skills shortages, the current caps on Working Holiday Makers will have a one off 30% increase in 2022/23.
Training
With the aim of encouraging small businesses to train new staff and upskill existing employees, small businesses that invest in training new employees will receive a $120 tax deduction for every $100 spent on training employees.
Read the budget papers here

On the 1st of December the state government announced several new marketing campaigns to attract overseas visitors and workers to the state:

• A campaign tailored to specifically address the skills shortage by attracting workers, such as backpackers for hospitality.
• A student attraction scheme will be in place to help international students choose WA as their place to study, including up to $1,500 in accommodation support for the first 5,000 students.
• A $65 million aviation fund, which will go towards re-establishing international and interstate flight routes that were disrupted by the pandemic, as well as targeting new routes including Germany, India, China and Vietnam.
• Incentives will also be offered to tourists, international students and workers in order to successfully compete with other global jurisdictions. This will include expanding the Stay and Play campaign, which offers discounts for those who stay in participating hotels, as well as vouchers for tours and experiences.
• An immediate additional $9 million funding boost to attract blockbuster international events to Perth and WA.
• $15 million to target business events to attract international conferences to Perth, an essential initiative to support CBD hotel occupancy as well as the hospitality industry.

​Read the full media statement 

The McGowan Government has announced funding for the construction of new state-of-the-art training facilities at North Regional TAFE's Broome and Kununurra campuses.
As part of the Rebuilding our TAFEs plan, $10 million has been allocated for a hospitality training centre in Broome, and $6 million has been allocated for a health and hospitality trade training centre at the Kununurra campus.
The new centre in Broome will provide students with a contemporary training environment and will be home to a new live works training restaurant and alfresco café. The centre will ensure students are job-ready and equipped to take up local employment opportunities in the hospitality and tourism industry as well as in the wider region such as catering in mine sites.
Live training restaurants add vibrancy to local communities and foster better industry partnerships while delivering industry-standard training.
The upgrades at North Regional TAFE's are part of the $167.4 million investment in capital works projects.
Read the full ministerial media statement.

As part of the WA Recovery Plan, the McGowan Government has announced a world-class hospitality and tourism training centre will be built at South Metropolitan TAFE's Mandurah campus.
The $9.17 million centre will replace an ageing home economics-style room to enable training of apprentice chefs in the Peel region. The centre will also focus on engaging local secondary students, young people and the long-term unemployed in vocational education and training.
The centre is set to improve the Peel region's capacity to train job-ready, highly skilled chefs, as well as front of house staff, event coordinators and tourism workers.
Read the full ministerial media statement.

Western Australian tourism company, Prendiville Group has purchased the former Fremantle Technical College.
​Plans include redeveloping part of the 2,400 square metre site to house a contemporary centre of excellence for hospitality management, which the Prendiville Group is seeking to partner with various institutions, to support hotels across the State, and create high-quality tourist experiences.
Short-term activation of the site will include opening a new alfresco food and beverage offering, with future potential for a hotel or student accommodation facility to front Norfolk Lane.
The sale will ensure that the State heritage-listed buildings, which are currently underutilised, will be restored and activated, making a positive contribution to the broader revitalisation of the Fremantle city centre.
Read the full ministerial media statement

Up to $6,000 in financial support is now available to employers who take on a displaced apprentice or trainee. The new Apprenticeship and Traineeship Re-engagement Incentive provides employers with a one-off payment of $6,000 for hiring an apprentice and $3,000 for hiring a trainee.

Employers who take on an apprentice or trainee whose training contract was terminated on, or after, March 1, 2020, are eligible to receive the payment. 

The incentive will help employers maintain a pipeline of skilled workers in Western Australia and is available until June 30, 2021 from the Department of Training and Workforce Development.

The financial boost for businesses follows the recent announcement by the State Government to cover the training costs for more than 3,000 apprentices and trainees, who have had their contracts cancelled or suspended, to continue their 'off the job' training for up to six months.

Read more about this government initiative.
For more about the Apprenticeship and Traineeship Re-engagement Incentive,

Visit  or call the Apprenticeship Office Helpline on 13 19 54.
Further support is also available at TAFE Jobs and Skills Centres or call 13 64 64.