Industry training and other workplace-based trends

New Zealand’s Workplace-Based Learners gives an overview of industry training and other workplace-based learning trends for the year ended December 2020. It focuses largely on industry training and covers the characteristics of learners, the industries they learn in, and what they achieve. It also contains a short overview of Gateway and trades academies.

This information shows performance in industry training, regardless of whether training-related activity was funded by the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC). As such, these measures may differ to those published by the TEC.

Types of workplace-based learners

There are three types of workplace-based learners. These are:

a) Industry Training Apprentices

Apprentices are industry training learners who do substantial training programmes at Levels 4 or above. Apprenticeships provide opportunities for learners to establish careers in new occupations. Apprenticeships include New Zealand Apprenticeship programmes, and programmes at equivalent levels and credit loads, as well as the remaining Modern Apprenticeship programmes.

b) Managed Apprentices

These are apprentices enrolled at Te Pūkenga subsidiaries. As such, they are included in the reported counts of provider-based tertiary education students. They are not included in the counts of learners in this report

c) Trainees

Trainees are industry training learners who do short programmes, often at lower levels. Traineeships often cater for established workers, and employers who need supplementary skills for their workers to help them continue to adapt to changing technologies and other working conditions. They are also used to train new employees.

We report statistics on these a) apprentices and c) trainees separately.

We also report on school students in workplace training through the Gateway programme, as well as trades academy students, who are senior secondary school students in secondary-tertiary programmes that provide access to trades or technology learning opportunities to ensure they stay engaged in education.

What does the 2020 data show?

The data for the 12 months to December 2020 shows:

• The workplace-based training system was strongly affected by the COVID-19 outbreak in New Zealand. COVID-19 caused the economy to contract, as lockdown periods and the border closure disrupted business. Employers reacted to the associated economic uncertainty by stopping hiring new staff, which led to a large decline in the number of people starting traineeships. Two main Government initiatives were quickly deployed to support skills training in workplaces. These were Apprenticeship Boost, designed to support new (Year 1 and Year 2) apprentices by providing subsidies to employers, and the Targeted Training and Apprenticeships Fund (TTAF), which provided fee support to apprentices, and trainees at Level 3 or higher in targeted study fields.
• The number of trainees decreased in 2020, but there was an increase in apprentices. The number of trainees decreased by 9.3 percent to 76,740, while numbers of apprentices increased by 16 percent to 61,890. Overall, the total number of industry training learners was slightly higher than in 2019 with 137,960 learners.
• The number of trainees and apprentices completing qualifications decreased, and the 5 year completion rate for both groups decreased. In 2020, 26,760 trainees completed a qualification, down 6.5 percent on 2019. The proportion of trainees completing a qualification within five years of starting study decreased by 3 percentage points to 60 percent. The qualification completion rate for apprentices also decreased by 4 percentage points to 54 percent, reversing the increase seen in 2019.

Who participates?

The overall number of trainees and apprentices in 2020 was 137,960, similar to 2019 with only a 0.3 percent increase (360 learners). The number of trainees decreased by 9.3 percent (to 76,740), while apprentices increased by 16 percent (to 61,890). This increase comes after three years of decreases in industry training participation.

The number of new entrant trainees declined by 15 percent, while the percentage of trainees continuing from the previous year decreased by 22 percent, and those leaving training without completing a qualification increased by 5.9 percent, all of which led to a decrease in trainees overall. The amount of training delivered to trainees (measured in standard training measures, or STMs) was 14 percent lower than in 2019 (see tables 1 and 2).

The proportion of the workforce participating as trainees decreased slightly to 2.8 percent in 2020 (from 3.1 percent in 2019). In 2020, 48 percent of trainees were women (see figure 1). The male trainee participation rate was slightly down on 2019 (2.7 percent of the male workforce compared with 3.0 percent in 2019) and there was a comparable decrease in the female trainee participation rate to 2.9 percent of the female workforce (from 3.2 percent).

The proportion of the workforce who were apprentices increased slightly to 2.3 percent (from 2.0 percent). Participation rates for male apprentices and female apprentices both increased, by 0.4 percent for males (to 3.6 percent) and a slight 0.1 percent increase for females (to 0.7 percent). In 2020 14 percent of apprentices were women (see figure 2).

Figure 1: Trainees by gender 2011-2020

Figure 2: Apprentices by gender 2011-2020

Age group

The age split of trainees in 2020 was similar to 2019 with 8.9 percent of trainees being under 20 years, 15 percent between 20 to 24 years, and 30 percent between 25 to 34 years.

The trend towards older apprentices continued, with the proportion aged under 25 years decreasing slightly to 45 percent (from 46 percent in 2019), and the proportion of apprentices aged 35 years or older increasing to 23 percent, from 22 percent.

Ethnicity

Figures 3 and 4 show the proportion of the workforce that were trainees or apprentices, broken down by ethnicity . Trainee participation as a percentage of the workforce decreased across most ethnic groups but was steady for Asian, Middle Eastern, Latin American and African trainees in 2020. Workforce participation rates for Māori and Pacific Peoples, although decreasing, remained higher than for other groups.

Participation rates for apprentices increased across all ethnic groups with the largest increases for Māori and Pacific Peoples. Participation continues to be highest for apprentices of Māori ethnicity.

Figure 3: Trainee workforce participation by ethnicity 2015-2020

Figure 4: Apprentice workforce participation by ethnicity 2015-2020

Prior Qualifications

A high proportion of industry training learners hold tertiary qualifications gained prior to starting training. Overall, 61 percent of trainees and 47 percent of apprentices in 2020 already held a tertiary certificate, diploma, or degree (bachelors or above). For both groups this was consistent with 2019. When looking at new entrant apprentices only, the proportion holding a tertiary degree, certificate or diploma was consistent with 2019 at 46 percent.

What industries do they participate in?

The industries with the most trainees in 2020 were: healthcare and social assistance (21 percent of trainees or 15,970 learners), manufacturing (16 percent or 12,505 learners), and retail, trade and accommodation (14 percent or 10,380 learners).

The construction industry hosted the highest number of apprentices (42 percent or 26,160 learners), followed by retail, trade and accommodation (13 percent or 8,315 learners), and manufacturing (10 percent or 6,400 learners) (see figure 5).

Figure 6 shows the proportion of the workforce for each gender undertaking an apprenticeship for the three industries with the greatest numbers of apprentices across the years 2016 to 2020. Female workers have much lower rates of participation in apprenticeships. For example, during the 2020 year 11 percent of men working in construction were apprentices compared to 2.1 percent of women. Overall, 3.6 percent of the male workforce were apprentices compared to 0.7 percent of the female workforce.

Figure 5: Distribution of trainees and apprentices by industry 2020

Figure 6: Apprenticeship participation by gender 2016-2020, selected industries

What training activity did learners undertake?

The number of new entrant trainees in 2020 declined by 15 percent on the previous year to 24,880 entrants. The proportion of trainees whose main activity was entering a traineeship declined to 32 percent, down from 35 percent in 2019. The proportion continuing training from a previous year dropped to 22 percent from 26 percent in 2019, but the proportion that completed training increased by three percentage points to 39 percent (see figure 7).

In contrast, the proportion of apprentices that were new entrants in 2020 increased to 31 percent (or 19,120 apprentices), from 25 percent in 2019. The proportion continuing training from a previous year dropped by nearly 4 percentage points to 44 percent, with a small increase (less than 1 percent) in the proportion withdrawing without completion to 13 percent. The proportion leaving training having completed decreased by two percentage points to 14 percent (see figure 8).

Figure 7: Proportion of trainees by main activity 2011-2020

Figure 8: Proportion of apprentices by main activity 2011-2020

What qualifications did they achieve?

The number of trainees that completed a qualification decreased 6.6 percent (to 26,755), and a total of 28,120 qualifications were awarded to trainees (down from 29,815 in 2019).

As a consequence of the continued decrease in lower level training (Level 1 and Level 2), 80 percent of the qualifications achieved by trainees were at Level 3 or higher, up from 76 percent in 2019.

The proportion of trainees completing a qualification, at the intended or higher level, within five years of commencement decreased to 60 percent in 2020, from 63 percent in 2019 (see figure 9). For apprentices, the five year qualification completion rate decreased to 54 percent in 2020, from 58 percent in 2019 (see figure 10).

Figure 9: Five-year trainee qualification completion rates 2012-2020

A total of 9,780 apprentices completed a qualification in 2020, a decline of 2.8 percent compared to 2019, and 10,400 qualifications were awarded to apprentices in 2020.

Figure 10: Five-year apprentice qualification completion rates 2012-2020

How many school students took part In Gateway and Trades Academies?

Gateway and trades academies, part of the government’s Youth Guarantee programme, aim to assist school students to gain employment or further training. Learners can earn assessment standards that can contribute towards the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) and other qualifications on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework.

Gateway

The number of learners accessing Gateway programmes in 2020 was lower (by 8.4 percent) than 2019 (12,905 students). Gateway students achieved 266,780 credits in 2020, an average of 21 per student. This is a decline on previous years.

Trades Academies

The number of students that participated in trades academies increased by 1,350 in 2020 to 9,455 students.

Technical Notes | Background

Forms of industry training:

There are two main forms of workplace-based learning. The most common is industry training, which covers trainees and apprenticeships administered by industry training organisations under the Education and Training Act 2020. Traineeships are industry training programmes that do not meet the New Zealand Apprenticeships credit (120 or more credits) and level (at least Level 4) criteria. Trainees are often involved in smaller programmes, at lower qualification levels, that suit established workers wanting to update or increase their skills.

Apprenticeships:

Apprenticeships presented here are mainly arranged under the Education and Training Act 2020. They include: New Zealand Apprenticeships (introduced in 2014); Modern Apprenticeships; and industry training apprenticeship equivalents (study programmes that meet or exceed the New Zealand Apprenticeships criteria, i.e. qualifications at Level 4 or above, consisting of at least 120 credits). The other form of workplace-based learning is administered by tertiary education organisations, such as polytechnics, and is sometimes referred to as ‘Managed Apprenticeships’.

Data Sources:

Most of the statistics on this page are derived from returns provided by government-funded tertiary education organisations to the Tertiary Education Commission. This data may differ from that reported by the Tertiary Education Commission because it is based on all industry training enrolments. It shows counts of both funded and unfunded trainees and apprentices. Data may also be different to that published in previous years because tertiary education providers can submit updates to historical data. Denominator workforce numbers for participation rate calculations were estimated using the Household Labour Force Survey.

Rounding:

Data has been rounded to the nearest 5 to protect the privacy of individuals, so the sum of individual counts may not add to the total.  Percentages are calculated using unrounded numbers.

Standard training measures:

A standard training measure (STM) is a unit or a quantity of training. One standard training measure is the nominal amount of training that is required for a learner to achieve 120 credits (or its equivalent) in an approved and structured training programme. One credit equals 10 nominal hours of instruction and study.  One standard training measure comprises 120 credits, or 1,200 nominal hours, of instruction and study.

Ethnicity:

Learners may report multiple ethnicities and so may be counted in more than one ethnic group.  The acronym MELAA refers to Middle Eastern/ Latin American/ African.

Prior Qualifications:

The results reported are estimates based on the distribution of trainees and apprentices whose previous highest qualification was known. For 2020, previous qualification was known for 87 percent of trainees and 94 percent of apprentices.

Training activity:

Training activity is prioritised to entrance and exit activities. Trainees who are continuing training started in a prior year are classified as exiting the system if they leave training in the reference year. Trainees who are continuing their training, but do not leave training in the reference year, are classified as continuing.