Labour shortages ‘crippling’ Australia’s tech sector, which is aiming to fill 1.2m jobs by 2030

The tech sector has an ambitious target of filling 1.2 million jobs by 2030, but new statistics show alarming vacancy rates across the board.

Guy Everingham from MTX, TCA chair Kate Pounder and Faith Sylvia from Envato.

Severe labour shortages are plaguing Australia’s technology industry, with the Technology Council of Australia calling for a new awareness campaign, a “virtual work experience program” for high school students and a shake-up of skilled migration rules to achieve a target of filling 1.2 million tech jobs by 2030.

A new report, to be launched by Afterpay co-founder Anthony Eisen and Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic at Parliament House on Tuesday, reveals significant shortages are being felt across the local sector, particularly for technical and experienced tech roles, with vacancy rates in tech 60 per cent higher than the national average and forecast to grow at triple the rate.

The most acute shortages are in technical occupations like software programmers and computer network professionals, but there are also significant gaps in commercial and creative roles like product managers, the report found, with forecasts showing Australia will need to employ an additional 653,000 tech workers to meet its goal of 1.2 million tech jobs by the end of the decade.

The Labor Party pledged before winning the last federal election that it would target 1.2 million tech jobs by 2030.

“We believe Australia has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to be a global technology powerhouse, leading in critical fields like quantum and fintech as well as increasing our lead in business software,” TCA chief executive Kate Pounder said in an interview.

Technology Council of Australia chair Kate Pounder. Picture: Jamila Toderas

“These jobs are critical to Australia’s future. They are among the fastest-growing, best-paid, most secure, and most flexible jobs in Australia. They have half the gender pay gap of other high-paying industries.”

The report identifies five key barriers preventing Australians from accessing tech jobs including an awareness of what tech jobs exist; training products that often aren’t fit for purpose; strong demographic skews in tech jobs; a small talent pool of people needed to work in experienced technical roles; and an overall lack of co-ordinated effort and planning for the nation’s tech workforce.

Ms Pounder said that despite the ongoing tech downturn, in which valuations have crumbled and start-ups have in some cases been forced to lay off hundreds of workers, the sector has grown overall by 66 per cent every year since 2005, which includes through the global financial crisis and the pandemic.

“Even though there’s a downturn going on, we cannot let that stop our momentum for getting more people into these tech jobs, because we know they are ultimately the most secure jobs in the economy and the demand for them across the economy is still booming,” she said.

“There’s such a resilience to these jobs because they’re so important to every sector of the economy and we actually just need to get our skates on to make sure we’re preparing Australians to move into them, because the big risk is we lose that opportunity for workers and lose the economic opportunity as a country.”

The report calls for a new nationwide awareness campaign on the benefits of tech jobs, as well as the establishment of a “virtual work experience program” for high school students as well as a public commitment to improving diversity within the tech workforce.

It also says the government should streamline skilled migration for high salary, experienced tech roles as a priority, as well as provide tech workers with pathways to permanent residency, and address barriers to work for international students studying tech-related courses in Australia. Research from Deel’s State of Global Hiring Report H2 2022 has also found Australia is the APAC country with the most organisations hiring overseas remote workers, ahead of Singapore and India. The top countries Australian companies are hiring from include the United States, Canada, the Philippines and India.

Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Swift

The report, prepared by Accenture, comes ahead of the government’s Jobs and Skills Summit in September.

“I welcome the recommendations of the report and the Albanese government is committed to taking the necessary steps to reaching 1.2 million tech workers by 2030,” Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic said.

“We are already taking action and this report is an important contribution as we address the skills shortages in the tech sector. The Job and Skills Summit in September will provide an important opportunity for technology companies to have their concerns and aspirations heard as we tackle this challenge together.

“The government wants to ensure Australia is a world leader in technology, delivering prosperity for the nation but importantly, also providing rewarding jobs for Australians.”

Guy Everingham, a former chef and construction labourer, now works for technology consultancy MTX.

“I wanted to get into tech because I could see a future career that no pandemic could shut down,” he said.

“After many years of insecure work, it‘s just great to receive such strong support. The way we are being introduced to MTX now, I can see myself working at a top-level as part of a leading company at the forefront of tech. Tech careers offer flexibility, are easy to retrain into and deliver genuine work life balance.

“I would encourage people from all work backgrounds, just like mine, to consider a career in the industry.”

Originally published as Labour shortages ‘crippling’ Australia’s tech sector, which is aiming to fill 1.2m jobs by 2030