GMC has submitted to Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ Economic Reform Roundtable, being held 19-21 August, suggesting an industrial skills exchange to accelerate Australia’s advanced manufacturing capabilities.
Acknowledging that significant policy change will be required to lift Australia’s productivity, including reducing red tape and the costs of energy, GMC submitted a concept for consideration, saying it “will go a long way to driving Australia’s industrial transformation”.
GMC argues the resilience of manufacturing in Australia– its capacity for innovation and survival, despite the intensity of global competition and despite the success of our raw exports – is the product of this country’s skilled and talented people.
“It is encouraging that the current Federal Government considers productivity a key focus. This will require very substantial policy change, including a major effort to reduce the regulatory burden and other obstacles to business investment. Given the comparative small scale of Australia’s industrial players, it will also require significant government support to ensure capability uplift.”
GMC urged the Federal Government “to create a nationally-supported International Skills Partnership (ISP) model that accelerates industrial transformation and lifts workforce capabilities through structured exchange with advanced manufacturers in our international trading partners.”
“Australia can build on its existing defence and training programs, such as the Defence Industry Internship Program (DIIP). This would:
- Address short- to medium-term skill gaps through structured knowledge transfer.
- Uplift domestic manufacturing workforce capability via mentorship and co-learning.
- Facilitate regional SME access to global expertise, without requiring offshore relocation.
The government is convening the Roundtable to unlock new ideas and build consensus around reforms. These reforms focus on 3 priority areas for the government: productivity, economic resilience and budget sustainability. It will be informed by the work the Productivity Commission (PC) is leading through its 5 productivity inquiries. The inquiries are guided by the government’s 5-pillar productivity agenda:
- Creating a more dynamic and resilient economy.
- Investing in the net zero transformation.
- Building a skilled and adaptable workforce.
- Harnessing data and digital technology.
- Delivering quality care more efficiently.
Summary of GMC Submission to the Economic Reform Roundtable
23 July 2025
The Hon Dr Jim Chalmers MP
Treasurer of Australia
GMC Submission to the Economic Reform Roundtable
About the GMC: GMC is the leading industry body for manufacturing in Geelong and the south-west region of Victoria. GMC represents innovative manufacturers, large and small, and suppliers to the sector, who collectively employ more than 150,000 people nationally and internationally. Among our programs, GMC partners with regional educational institutions in support of workforce skills and training, and with the Victorian and Australian Governments to attract and retain more women in manufacturing roles. GMC’s flagship event, the biennial Technology and Innovation Summit, builds understanding among manufacturers, researchers, and the investor community, of opportunities and imperatives for Australia’s industrial transformation.
About this submission: GMC acknowledges the enormous breadth of opportunities for reform that the Economic Reform Roundtable may consider. Our proposal, outlined briefly here, will go a long way to driving Australia’s industrial transformation.
- General context
In 1995, when the Harvard University Economic Complexity Index rankings were first published, Australia was number 62. In 2023, Australia was listed at 105 (out of 145 countries).
While there are many reasons for Australia’s poor – and worsening – performance on this index, it reflects the fact that our prosperity now largely depends on the export of large amounts of resources like iron ore, coal, gas and unprocessed agricultural products.
The resilience of manufacturing in Australia– its capacity for innovation and survival, despite the intensity of global competition and despite the success of our raw exports – is the product of this country’s skilled and talented people.
It is encouraging that the current Federal Government considers productivity a key focus. This will require very substantial policy change, including a major effort to reduce the regulatory burden and other obstacles to business investment. Given the comparative small scale of Australia’s industrial players, it will also require significant government support to ensure capability uplift.
- Proposal: International Skills Partnerships (ISP) for Advanced Manufacturing Capability
Driving a skilled and adaptable advanced manufacturing workforce
The world is moving fast, adopting new technologies and advanced processes. Australia’s mainly small and medium sized manufacturers have limited capacity to provide global benchmarking experience for their early career professionals, front-line leaders and trades and technical workers.
The Opportunity
Exposure to international experience is critical to advancing manufacturing and industrial transformation. This can be accelerated and supported through an international industrial exchange program with our major trading partners. Australia can build on its existing defence and training programs, such as the Defence Industry Internship Program (DIIP), by creating a structured and reciprocal international skills partnership program. This would:
- Address short- to medium-term skill gaps through structured knowledge transfer.
- Uplift domestic manufacturing workforce capability via mentorship and co-learning.
- Facilitate regional SME access to global expertise, without requiring offshore relocation.
Concept Outline
- International Technical Residencies
- Short and longer term (3–12 month) secondments of experienced international tradespeople, technicians, and process engineers to Australian manufacturers.
- Target countries: countries with leading expertise in advanced manufacturing, automation, defence-grade QA, and smart industry systems, such as Germany, South Korea, Japan, USA, UK, and Canada.
- Reciprocal outbound placements for Australian professionals.
- Residency participants paired with local apprentices, engineers, or production leads.
- Co-delivery of technical workshops, process optimisation sprints, and equipment training.
- Outcomes include documented SOPs, best-practice guides, and skills assessment tools.
- Regional SME Focus
- Priority access given to SMEs in defence-adjacent and clean economy supply chains in regional areas, delivered in partnerships with local TAFEs, Jobs and Skills Councils, and advanced manufacturing hubs.
- Alignment with Existing Programs
- Builds on DIIP by targeting mid-career workforce development rather than undergraduate exposure. Complements Skills Reform agenda, Jobs and Skills Australia’s Workforce Plans, and National Reconstruction Fund objectives. Supports recommendations from the Clean Energy Skills TNA (2023) and AMGC roadmaps.
We urge you to create a nationally-supported International Skills Partnership (ISP) model that accelerates industrial transformation and lifts workforce capabilities through structured exchange with advanced manufacturers in our international trading partners. The program should provide opportunities for short and long-term exchange and manufacturing scholarships for graduates and early-career manufacturing professionals, to enable industrial benchmarking and international exposure.