Local government across NSW faces a critical workforce transition. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that in 2022-23, the median retirement age was 65.2 years for men and 64.8 years for women, with 41.5% of retirees leaving the workforce before age 60*.
As experienced leaders reach retirement, councils risk losing decades of institutional knowledge, community relationships, and operational expertise, often across multiple departments simultaneously.
Traditional external recruitment is expensive, time-consuming, and increasingly difficult for regional councils. Industry research indicates that replacing a skilled professional employee typically costs anywhere from 15%-30% of their annual salary#.
To put in a local government context, for a council employee earning an average wage it can cost $14,000 to $20,000+ when accounting for recruitment, lost productivity, and onboarding time. And you can double that cost if you want to cover the senior executive team^!
The solution isn’t found in costly recruitment cycles, but rather, it’s built from within through strategic engagement embracing learning and development programs, where Traineeships play an integral role.
When councils invest in an employee’s professional development through a traineeship, they signal: “We believe in your potential and we’re committed to your future.” This creates reciprocal loyalty, enhanced job satisfaction, and a sense of value that significantly increases long-term retention.
Many council employees leave because they perceive limited advancement opportunities.
Traineeships provide visible progression pathways (Certificate IV → Diploma → Management), creating internal promotion pipelines and demonstrating that long-term growth is possible within the organisation. For Indigenous employees, staff from diverse backgrounds, returners-to-work, or those in regional areas, traineeships remove financial and structural barriers to advancement.
Employees undertaking traineeships remain engaged through continuous learning, progressive skill acquisition, and preparation for future roles, all while contributing at higher levels as their competencies expand.
By developing internal talent pipelines through traineeships, councils:
Trainees completing Leadership and Management qualifications become ready-now successors for retiring managers, ensuring continuity, stability, and sustained service excellence.
Traineeships build sustainable talent pipelines that strengthen over time. Councils collaborating on shared cohorts create peer support networks and regional career pathways, particularly powerful for smaller councils that together form vibrant learning communities.
Traineeships provide equitable access for Indigenous staff by removing financial barriers, support employees from diverse backgrounds through structured pathways, and enable regional staff through flexible online delivery, creating inclusive leadership teams better equipped to serve diverse communities.
As trainees progress into leadership roles, they become mentors for new cohorts, advocates for development pathways, and retention champions, creating virtuous cycles where investment in one generation of leaders generates compounding returns across future cohorts.
UNE Partnerships delivers NSW Government Smart and Skilled fee-free traineeships (places are limited) in:
All qualifications are delivered online with flexible scheduling, expert trainers, and content contextualised to council operations.
NSW councils facing succession planning challenges and retention pressures can address these issues through strategic traineeship investment. With fee-free qualifications available through Smart and Skilled, there has never been a better time to develop your team from within.
Contact us to discuss tailored traineeship programs, multi-council regional cohort opportunities, succession planning strategies, and Indigenous employment initiatives.
Email: matthew.beal@unep.edu.au
Phone: 1800 066 128
Visit: UNE Partnerships NSW Fees and Funding
Enquiry: Complete the form below
Let’s build tomorrow’s skilled local government workforce, together.
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