Australia’s manufacturing industry needs a stronger skilled workforce, improved apprenticeship outcomes and more responsive training to support productivity and future growth, according to the Manufacturing Industry Skills Alliance’s 2026 National Manufacturing Workforce Plan.
The plan identifies four key workforce challenges: declining apprenticeship commencements, an ageing workforce, gaps in workforce diversity and changing skills requirements driven by technology. Its priorities align with broader industry discussions around lifting productivity and ensuring businesses can access workers with the right skills.
Manufacturing Industry Skills Alliance CEO Sharon Robertson highlighted the importance of these issues following her attendance at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Business Leaders’ Summit Gala Dinner at Parliament House in Canberra, where Prime Minister Anthony Albanese delivered the keynote address.
According to the alliance’s account of the event, the Prime Minister highlighted workforce skills, productivity and access to workers as important considerations for Australian businesses. The Future Made in Australia agenda was also a key theme, with a focus on strengthening industrial capability and economic resilience.
The workforce plan reports that manufacturing apprenticeship and traineeship commencements fell by 10 per cent between 2024 and 2025, and by more than 21 per cent since 2021. The number of apprentices and trainees in training declined from 34,850 in 2022 to 31,830 in 2025.
The report also identifies an ageing workforce and under-representation among some groups as challenges for the sector. The median age of manufacturing workers is 42, compared with 38 across the national workforce, while women account for 28 per cent of manufacturing employment and First Nations people 1.5 per cent.
Automation, artificial intelligence and digital systems are also changing manufacturing skills requirements, increasing the need for training that reflects evolving production technologies.
The plan sets out actions to attract more people into manufacturing, improve training and apprenticeship outcomes, broaden workforce participation and develop emerging skills.
Manufacturing employment is projected to grow from 739,800 in May 2025 to 831,100 by 2035, an increase of 12.3 per cent, based on projections produced by Victoria University for Jobs and Skills Australia.
The alliance identifies workforce development as a key consideration in supporting manufacturing growth and ensuring the industry can respond to changing economic and technological demands.
