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Exploring Skill Ecosystems in the Australian Meat Processing Industry: Unions, Employers and Institutional Change

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2023

Richard Cooney ,
Marjorie Jerrard ,
Ross Donohue  and
Nell Kimberley
Richard Cooney
Affiliation:
Department of Management, Monash University
Marjorie Jerrard
Affiliation:
Department of Management, Monash University
Ross Donohue
Affiliation:
Department of Management, Monash University
Nell Kimberley
Affiliation:
Department of Management, Monash University
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Abstract

This article discusses the concept of the skill ecosystem in the context of the network oriented literature on learning and skill acquisition. Three critical features of skill ecosystems are identified and then applied to an analysis of the abattoir sector of the Australian meat processing industry. The analysis highlights the important role of the employee union in the skill ecosystem, including maintaining a flow of new entrants into the sector. The article then examines the impact of major institutional change, through the deregulation of industrial relations, on the ecosystem. It concludes by discussing the applicability of the skill ecosystem concept to a mature, low-skill industry such as meat processing and then draws some conclusions about the limitations of the skill ecosystem concept itself.

Keywords

Industrial relationsmeat processing industrytrade unionsworkforce development
Type
Symposium: Innovation, Skills and Training
Information
The Economic and Labour Relations Review , Volume 21 , Issue 2 , December 2010 , pp. 121 - 138
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2010

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