“Same value, same support”
Engineers Australia is calling on the Federal Government to extend the Commonwealth Prac Payment (CPP) to include student engineering students, saying the current policy creates an unfair divide between equally essential professions.
Announced in the 2024-25 Federal Budget, from 1 July the CPP will offer $319 per week to students in teaching, nursing, midwifery and social work while completing compulsory practical placements. However, engineering students – who are also required to complete practical placements to ensure authentic engagement with the profession they are entering -remain excluded.
Engineers Australia Group Executive Professional Standards and Engineering Practice Bernadette Foley said the omission risks deepening skills shortages and creating unnecessary financial barriers in a profession critical to Australia’s future. Industry does offer paid placements to some student engineers – however extending the CPP would provide equity for all.
“Engineering students face the same placement poverty as others; they’re often unable to work during placement, but still must cover rent, bills and travel. It’s only fair they receive the same level of support as their peers in other essential professions.”
The call follows Engineers Australia’s ongoing advocacy for policies that build a stronger, more equitable pipeline of engineers, including during the May Budget where the peak body urged government to provide financial support for engineering placements.
Ms Foley said the case for inclusion is both economic and ethical.
“In Australia, an estimated 70,000 engineers are set to retire over the next 15 years. To help bridge this gap Engineers Australia is calling on the Federal Government to set a target for 60,000 additional engineering graduates over the next decade,” she said.
“It’s also about fairness. If placements support transition to industry, then all students – regardless of their field – deserve equal access to financial support.”
Extending the payment would align with the CPP’s stated goal of tackling financial stress caused by unpaid placements and help close the equity gap between professions.
“Engineering underpins everything from infrastructure and energy to defence and advanced manufacturing. This policy is about easing hardship for students in key industries and engineering should be part of that conversation,” Ms Foley said.
Engineers Australia will continue to advocate for targeted action to address the engineering skills squeeze and ensure students are supported from study to career.