TasTAFE to review courses in attempt to find $45m in savings over four years

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TasTAFE to review courses in attempt to find $45m in savings over four years

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By Mel Gleeson

TasTAFE to review courses in attempt to find $45m in savings over four years

Topic:Vocational Education and Training

Thu 12 MarThursday 12 March

TasTAFE Campbell St campus (1) — TasTAFE will carry out a strategic review of its training portfolio as it searches for savings. (ABC News)

In short:

TasTAFE could be set to make major changes to course offerings as it attempts to find $45 million in savings.

It comes after government subsidies were removed for 12 courses, and the institution attempted to find savings through corporate services and other expenditure, but it still faces a difficult financial situation.

What’s next?

The institution will carry out a strategic review of its courses; it hopes to lock in savings measures in the next 12 months.

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TasTAFE will undertake a review of its training courses as it attempts to find $45 million in savings over the next four years, with much of the cuts expected in the next 12 months.

The organisation has already attempted to find savings in corporate operations, printing and fleet, but in an email to staff yesterday, chief executive officer Norman Baker said these measures “are no longer sufficient”.

“Our expenditure continues to outstrip our revenue, and further progress now requires deeper structural and service aligned changes,” he wrote.

“Standing still is not an option.”

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It comes six months after the state government announced that 12 TasTAFE courses would lose their government subsidy, causing their cost to students to skyrocket.

At the time, Skills and Jobs Minister Felix Ellis said TasTAFE did not need to be “all things to all people”.

In his email yesterday, Dr Baker used similar wording.

“We cannot be everything to everyone or operate everywhere,” he wrote.

“Instead, we must narrow and refine our offerings to best support the state’s current and emerging skills priorities.

“We must adapt to ensure the organisation remains financially sustainable, responsive to the needs of industry, and future focused for the learners and communities we serve.”

TasTAFE chief executive Norman Baker responds to looming course and job cuts after expenditure review

Speaking to ABC Radio Mornings’ Leon Compton, Dr Baker said he had done an analysis of the business after taking over as CEO and realised “we need to live within our means”.

“We continue to be subsidised by the government,” he said. “It’s not really an issue with our funding, per se, it’s more of a case of TAFE needing to manage its budget within its limits.”

He said he expected the cuts would be identified “in the next couple of months … once management have come up with some ideas”.

The minister said TasTAFE “must operate within its allocated budget”, and that the government had provided funding for capital works in recent years.

Union fears impact on jobs and courses

The Australian Education Union (AEU) is concerned about uncertainty for teachers and the impact on skills training.Cyber course promoted with LEGO ‘centrepiece’ had 80pc dropout rate

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AEU state manager Brian Wightman said TasTAFE had already reduced its teaching jobs.

“The government want to implement a skills plan, but they are cutting skilled jobs and picking and choosing which skills are worthy of being taught in Tasmania,” he said.

“This government is slowly but surely dismantling public VET [vocational education and training] in our state.”

In its most recent annual report, TasTAFE described the impacts of a “decline in cash and underlying result”.

This was despite the institution’s expenditure being below budget.

Posted Thu 12 Mar 2026 at 8:13amThursday 12 Mar 2026 at 8:13am, updated Thu 12 Mar 2026 at 2:45pmThursday 12 Mar 2026 at 2:45pm