AVA Submission on the Commonwealth Government Employment White Paper

01 Dec 2022

Following the Jobs and Skills Summit held in September 2022, the Commonwealth Government is developing a White Paper on Employment. The terms of reference states that, “The Employment White Paper (the White Paper) will provide a roadmap for Australia to build a bigger, better-trained and more productive workforce – to boost incomes and living standards and create more opportunities for more Australians.”

The AVA has made a formal submission to this discussing key issues related to the veterinary profession. The executive summary sets out the key points made:

  • Australia’s veterinary professionals deliver an essential service in our rural and regional communities on commercial farms, in our metropolitan communities caring for our domestic pets, and in areas of community need such as wildlife, stray and feral animals.
  • Vets have become part of the fabric of our communities and play a key role in detecting and managing biosecurity threats. Vets are highly valued and trusted by the communities they serve, providing a particularly vital service for the agriculture sector which contributed $71 billion to the Australian economy in 2020-21.
  • There is a shortage of veterinarians in Australia. This shortage is significantly more acute in rural and regional areas. Regional practices have in recent years been closing clinics because of a lack of veterinary staff.
  • Two key issues facing the veterinary workforce are:
    • Long training time for new veterinarians (necessary to maintain animal health and welfare standards) limits the ability of the veterinarian supply to meet short to medium term fluctuations in demand for veterinary services; and
    • The sustainability of veterinary service provision is under threat from decades of underinvestment.
  • Investment in veterinary services has direct flow on benefits to biosecurity, animal health and welfare, which, in turn, benefits human health in a range of ways - from the indirect benefits of protection from zoonotic disease, zoonotic disease management and food safety, to the health and wellness benefits that owning a pet.
  • If Australian society is to continue to rely upon modern standards of animal health and welfare, made feasible by modern standards of veterinary practice, investment in the veterinary profession is needed to ensure that these services can be sustainably provided.
  • Solutions:
    • Improved data collection, analysis and workforce planning is needed to ensure that future veterinary demand is matched by supply in a way that provides sufficient veterinarians, whist realising the return on investment from veterinary training; and
    • Correct the unsustainability of the veterinary profession through a model that sees appropriate investment in and renumeration for the public benefits veterinary services deliver.

Read the full submission here.