The urgent search for a skilled Australian workforce
The Australian
By Craig Lockhart*
31 October 2024
Deliveirng the SSN AUKUS program will require a focused and collective effort by industry and government.
Finding thousands of Australians with the right skills to deliver the SSN-AUKUS fleet sits high on the list of formidable challenges that lie ahead for the nation’s next-generation submarine program.
These Australians will deliver the conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines required by the Royal Australian Navy to enhance deterrence, partner in combat with our allies, and prevail over rivals deep below the ocean’s surface.
The complexity of this build is beyond anything encountered previously by Australian industry.
Focused on stealth and endurance, the SSN-AUKUS submarine will integrate cutting-edge technologies and advanced materials to enable it to operate the full spectrum of underwater missions, from advanced intelligence and surveillance through to underwater warfare.
Collaboration between the commonwealth’s Australian Submarine Agency, ASC and BAE Systems only started in March this year. Good progress is being made on defining the delivery schedule, the enablement environment critical to allowing the appropriate information to transfer between partners and designing the new yard which will accommodate the build strategy.
This work is essential in helping define the strategic workforce plan, allowing the early transfer of prospective employees to begin their training.
One estimate, from the South Australian government, says 11,000 workers will be needed in the local Defence industry by the 2040s. The Business Council of Australia says the number of direct workers needed on the AUKUS submarine program alone is 20,000.
With that context, it is important to look at what progress has been made towards building the talent pool and accelerating the Skills Academy required to support the significant competency training needed to support the capability pathway.
Our BAE Systems colleagues in the UK have already handed over five of seven Astute-class submarines to the Royal Navy and construction is under way on three of the four Dreadnought-class nuclear deterrent submarines, all at the Barrow-in-Furness shipyard on Britain’s west coast.
Design work under way at Barrow on SSN-AUKUS now involves more than 1000 employees, contractors, and government representatives, and the workforce there will grow to about 17,000 to deliver these three programs.
We have employees from Australia embedded with colleagues in the UK, working together to devise and deliver training at our skills academy and drawing on their experience to help shape future initiatives here in Australia.
At Osborne North, we are now seeing ASC on a rapid growth path, building on the workforce responsible for the sustainment of the Collins Class submarine fleet, and expanding now to meet the future upkeep of the nuclear-powered Virginia-class fleet.
At the nearby Osborne South, Naval Shipyard, construction of the six Hunter frigates is accelerating as the program moves towards a peak workforce of 2500 employees.
Together with mobilisation of trades in support of the impending Hobart-class upgrade, due to begin mid-2025, the Osborne precinct is maturing and accelerating towards its workforce peak demand from 2026 onwards and will take a truly enterprise approach from industry, state government and Defence to meet this significant challenge.
We are working to strengthen the pipeline of talent from schools into the workplace.
Local and interstate universities are now teaching mechanical and software engineering to students who are also earning an income in the shipyard as part of their degree apprenticeships.
Young apprentices are being recruited to the shipyard in growing numbers. Their interests in pursuing a trades career has been stimulated by secondary education at new technical colleges, funded by the South Australian government, where the curriculum has been shaped by teachers working alongside BAE Systems and ASC.
A similar focus will be needed in Western Australia to support the ambitious plan recently announced to construct, realign, and redevelop the Henderson Shipyard precinct in support of the nuclear-powered submarine program, as well as the future surface ship support program.
These programs across WA and SA should not be set up to compete for the scarce skills but should equally generate and contribute to the overall challenge needed to deliver what is a real step up in naval capability measured over decades to come.
The imperative on Defence industry has never been greater and our position and stability as a peacetime nation is dependent on our ability to deliver and service programs such as AUKUS, which will take every part of our focused and collective effort.
*Craig Lockhart is chief executive of BAE Systems Australia.