What about skills? A discussion of the role of skills in the strategic positioning of ports as essential catalysts of trade and economic growth.

The centrality of the role that ports have in world trade and the economic prosperity of nations is unquestionable. For a geographically isolated trading island such as Australia their role is even more critical. In an environment of projected steady economic expansion over the next two decades, with associated trade and port throughput growth, current discussions about port expansion and the strategic positioning of the ports industry become essential. An important part of this discussion is the sustainability of skills in key commercial and safety-critical areas of port operations. This paper reports on an on-going qualitative study commissioned by the Transport and Logistics Industry Skills Council (TLISC) on the future of skills in Australian ports. The research involves a case study of four key ports, independent interviews with key stakeholders as well as a secondary analysis of existing statistical data. The preliminary findings suggest that, whereas appropriate emphasis continues to be focussed on port facility expansion, sufficient thought is not given to the question of the associated skill demands. Furthermore, there seems to be a divide in opinion about how key skills should be developed and who should be responsible.