TAFE’s pause on nurses

TAFE nursing students who have completed their courses are facing delays in their accreditation because of teaching staff shortages.

TasTAFE blames the delays that students fear could last for months on “unforeseen circumstances”.

NURSING students who have completed their courses are facing delays in their acreditation because of TasTAFE staffing shortages.

Frustration is growing across a range of TasTAFE Certificate II courses, including nursing students who have already finished their course, because delays in marking mean their qualifications could be postponed for weeks.

TasTAFE said it was aware of the delay for southern nursing students and was seeking external markers from other parts of the state and interstate.

TasTAFE chief executive officer Jenny Dodd said there had been staff absences due to unforeseen circumstances, which had delayed marking.

“We are seeking additional sessional teachers from other parts of the state and from interstate to complete the marking to address this,” she said.

She said new support roles were also being created to allow teachers to focus on teaching and assessing.

“Student marking is a priority for the team and is being completed as quickly as possible,” Ms Dodd said. “Students will be awarded their qualification when they have been deemed fully competent.”

The union representing TasTAFE teachers says the learning provider is “drastically understaffed” and educators are overworked. The TasTAFE division of the Australian Education Union said some nursing students due to complete a course at the end of July were still waiting on their results.

The Mercury understands some nursing students had been told their accreditation may not be completed until at least the end of September.

Labor has also raised concerns about the management of TasTAFE, arguing the lack of teachers was leading to fewer courses on offer across construction and information technology. Labor’s TAFE spokeswoman Michelle O’Byrne said the Government was failing to invest in TAFE, and young Tasmanians were failing to get a job as a result.

“Will Hodgman’s only plan for TAFE is to offer fewer courses with fewer teachers,” Ms O’Byrne said.

Premier Will Hodgman said his Government was committed to TasTAFE.

“We are investing in TasTAFE to make sure their needs are met,” Mr Hodgman said.

AEU TasTAFE organiser Simon Bailey said the institution was “drastically understaffed”.

“These teachers are doing 50-60 hour weeks and working weekends trying to get the program through,” Mr Bailey said.

Education Minister Jeremy Rockliff said the Government had increased recurrent funding to TasTAFE from $73.5 million in 2015 to $77.8 million this financial year.

He said the Government was committed to doing more to meet the demands of industry, and $2.9 million was being invested in increased capacity at TasTAFE.

“This includes an additional five teachers across building, construction and allied trades, a dedicated team of three welding teachers and a dedicated apprenticeship coordinator and industry liaison officer,” Mr Rockliff said.

Ms O’Byrne said fewer teachers meant students also were struggling to be trained in construction and information technology. She said the Technology Cert IV students in Launceston were told their course was being postponed until next year.

Only 12 of the 100 Tasmanians who applied to study Construction Cert II were accepted due to a lack of teachers.

She said students who were excluded from the construction course were advised to look at other courses, including plumbing and electro-technology, but neither of these courses was being offered this year.

Mr Bailey said more people with industry experience were needed to teach at TasTAFE, but the first-year salaries were too low to attract people who could earn more in their fields.