Energy revolution sparks predictions for Illawarra jobs of the future

Or nurse, electrician, cyber security engineer, rigger.

How different will the jobs market in the Illawarra be, looking forward five to ten years, and what fields are the best bets for job security?

These are questions older teenagers and their parents are asking as the local economy reaches the long-anticipated era of "green jobs"

And with the Illawarra, and Australia, in the midst of a revolution in how we generate power, the answer is perhaps not surprising: electrical trades and engineering are a safe bet.

Jonathan Pelham, who has been recruiting workers for industry in the Illawarra for 20 years, said it's likely electricians and engineers will be in high demand in the decade or two to come.

"In renewable power, electricians and electrical engineers, power systems engineers are in demand," Mr Pehlam, director of recruitment operations at 360HR Solutions said.

"I think the renewable energy sector will be heavily reliant on electricians - both your engineering [professionals] and your trades people.

"I think that will be there as a pretty safe spec [and also] your engineering trades, your fitters, your electricians, your boilermakers, fabricators, because all of those trades are needed to support those industries.

"Electricians are definitely in demand when you get into the offshore wind.

Wind farm proponents claim 3000 jobs will be created in construction; there will be fewer in maintenance when operational. Mr Pelham said these would not be as many as work in steel and metallurgical coal now, but he expected these industries would be around for a long time.

"When it comes to maintenance [of wind farms] you'll need marine skippers, boaties to drive, people to operate the equipment that comes in and out of the port - so harbour, maritime people," he said.

The focus on wind power follows last weekend's declaration of an offshore wind development zone off Wollongong.

Demand high already

But the revolution was underway before this announcement, with job advertisements and training places showing renewable energy workers and "electrotechnology" are already in demand.

"Right now we're looking for at least 10 electricians who want to move into renewable power," Mr Pelham said.

Sandra Gray, the Illawarra South Coast Employment Facilitator for the Federal Government's Local Jobs program, said it had already been proven that trades were no "lesser" than university-qualified professions.

"The current research says that a person who chooses to trade will be way ahead financially than someone who chooses a university career," she said.

"I think that's become quite apparent - you're not going to have a HECS debt, you can often even look at self-employment in the future if you're a construction kind of trade.

"So we're really pushing and we need to change parents' understanding of the benefits of trades, and the fact that there are more trade jobs going to be around the Illawarra."

Care sectors

Another thing seems certain: aged care and health workers, including registered nurses, will be in great demand as the population continues to grow, and age.

Ms Gray said health care was becoming more attracting in terms of pay and flexibility.

"The other area apart from the trades is obviously health as we're ageing - aged care, health roles, nursing, all of the care roles whether it's lifestyle, leisure, all of those roles are really important," she said.

"There's more work than [anywhere] and they've had great pay rises of late, nearly a 30 per cent pay increase for aged care.

"So now people are realising that, you can earn reasonable money and there's lots of really good job roles, and lots of flexibility for and if they're going back to work, that can be part time.

"So I think the health areas, whether it's podiatry, the allied health areas, all very strong, lots and lots of jobs available in the future.

"I encourage, and a lot of the kids at school are realising, that a lot of them are studying Certificate III in individual support and then going on to nursing.

"So they're quite aware of seeing the pathway through rather than just going on to school and thinking, well, what university will I go to the next?

"They're starting to see that it's important to maybe have the links a bit earlier. So health will be really important."

Future dreaming

For those who were adults before the turn of the century, the future has well and truly arrived. There's a wristwatch that's a phone, a videotalk computer (phone) we carry in our pocket, computer programs that can produce written tasks for us.

The thrill of the future now creates speculation of high-technology jobs - headline-grabbers like "cyborg psychologist" and "shadowtech manager" that appear in various reports and cause heads to spin.

A project by Deakin and Griffith universities and vehicle maker Ford produced a list of 100 Jobs of the Future, and while 2019 information may already be outdated, there are some interesting inclusions:

But most workers of the future will be looking for something a bit more established.

Pathway for a bright spark

Jonathan Pelham is confident enough in his advice that he's given it to his son Jack, who at age 18 and a year out of high school is facing the career question right now.

He agrees that industrial electricians will be in healthy demand and has done a Certificate II in electrotechnology at TAFE in Wollongong.

"There's always demand for electricians and engineers and I feel like with the industry changing, it's focusing a lot more on sustainable energy, renewables, all that," he said.

"Just the infrastructure that goes into making them, I think would drive up like the need for electricians and engineers for sure."

It's happening already. A look at the vacancies on a leading job advertisement website for the Illawarra-Shoalhaven region shows electricians are already in clear demand.

There were 18 electrician positions this week, including apprenticeships and experienced hands, including specific power generation and heavy industrial sparkies. One offered a $3000 sign-on bonus, indicating the level of demand.

Interestingly, there were about 30 automotive mechanic jobs, including heavy diesel and Recreational Vehicle (RV) specialists.

The task is now before governments state and federal, as well as Illawarra educators and employers, to develop the training and pathways before the job ads go up.

In the Mercury next week: How are we preparing the workforce of the future?