Pathways to Success – Jobs and Skills Report 2026

Jobs and Skills Australia has released its latest Jobs and Skills Report 2026. This annual assessment of Australia's jobs and skills landscape brings together evidence on jobs, skills and workforce participation to support better decisions by governments, employers, education providers and individuals, and to help build a more productive, inclusive and resilient labour market.   

The report outlines that Australia’s future labour market strength depends on developing, using and deepening people’s capabilities throughout their working lives. The challenge is not only to produce enough skilled people, but to match skills and changing demand, help people move between opportunities, recognise skills wherever they are gained, design jobs that use them well and support sustained workforce participation. 

Jobs and Skills Australia outlines key implications for workers, employers, governments and the tertiary education system: 

• For workers, longer careers, technological change, and shifting occupational and skills pathways mean that learning can no longer be confined to the start of working life, with skill adaptation and renewal being key.  

• For employers, how workforce demand is expressed through jobs will shape their ability to attract, retain and make effective use of skilled workers. It will require workplaces that retain and develop capability through meaningful work, effective skills utilisation, opportunities for progression, investment in learning and working conditions that support long-term workforce participation.  

• For governments, the ability to deliver against major national priorities in areas such as care, housing, clean energy, manufacturing and digital transformation, will rely on the development and availability of a workforce where skills can evolve alongside changing technologies and industry needs.  

• For the tertiary education system, the challenge is to complement our focus on credentials with a skills-first system that supports lifelong learning, stronger pathway navigation, recognition of existing capability, enabled by a National Skills Taxonomy (NST), and reconciles disparities between student and labour market demand, and between higher education and VET. 

Many of the findings in this report align with research and advocacy undertaken by the Australian Industry Group Centre for Education and Training (CET). In particular, the report reinforces the Centre’s emphasis on building capability to respond to national priorities, lifelong learning, workforce adaptability and stronger alignment between education and the workplace context. Its support for clearer pathways between VET and higher education also aligns with the Centre’s long-term advocacy for a more coherent and connected tertiary education system.

Access a copy of the report and fact sheets

Register for Jobs and Skills Australia's 2026 Jobs and Skills Roadshow