Farmers have asked for a shake-up of primary industry training, and it looks like they might get it.

Almost every farm owner has a horror story about a bad employee. Waikato Federated Farmers has said too many people were entering the industry without the necessary skills and knowledge.

These staff were presenting themselves poorly and had few practical on-farm abilities, despite holding Primary ITO qualifications.

This is a common complaint among farmers.

A Puketaha sharemilker, who did not want to be named, advertised for a fulltime farm worker at the farm he manages.

Of 40-odd applicants, only 10 lived in New Zealand.

The sharemilker had experience with Filipino workers at his South Island farm, and said they had a great reputation.

As this was only one position, he interviewed two of the New Zealand residents.

What about the other eight? "Just a bunch of drongos, really."

He is more than happy with the workers he has, but the hiring process was no walk in the park.

"I always dig deep in the references, and the references just didn't stack up."

One referee turned out to be the applicant's father; others couldn't be tracked down at all. Some applicants obviously typed the application on their phone, or simply couldn't spell.

One applicant was given an interview, but did not turn up.

Many also had a poor attitude, he said.

Life was too easy, and workers did not want to do hard work, up to 60 hours a week at this time of year.

University of Waikato professor of agribusiness Jacqueline Rowarth said modern workers did not want to work in an industry that was seen as archaic.

A generation ago it was common for children to help out on the farm after school, but that was no longer the case.

The industry had to sharpen up its image to attract new workers. "The big thing is to get some kudos back into it," she said.

Rowarth believed Primary ITO had not been filling the gaps adequately.

"Farmers are pretty teed off with the ITO because the farmers do all the training and the ITO gets the money."

Former AgResearch scientist and agriculture teacher Clive Dalton said people were not attracted to farming as a career.

"The solution about the image of farming is in the hands of farmers. If farming has a bad image, farmers are to blame."

The industry needed to be rebranded to attract better workers.

Primary ITO chief executive Mark Jeffries has proposed a revival of the old farm cadet scheme.

Speaking to Waikato Federated Farmers in Hamilton yesterday, the head of the country's largest training provider for agriculture hoped to get a commitment from the federation to help improve industry training.

"We are seeing what you are seeing and we are here to go forward together," Jeffries said. "The bottom line is that you're not getting grounded graduates with the skills and knowledge."

He wanted to see a quality assurance framework developed for farm employers that would give staff confidence and attract quality trainees.

Waikato Federated Farmers president Chris Lewis believed that would address the issue of workplace bullying on farms.

"That's why a lot of mums don't send their kids farming, because us employers are seen as nasty."

Mothers would be more likely to encourage their children into farming careers if they knew their children would be looked after, Lewis said.

"That's where our industry has failed - we haven't looked after our young."

Jeffries said respect between employer and trainee was key, and that was a role Federated Farmers could play.

He proposed the adoption of a code of standards around human resources, safety, education and ethics between trainee and employer. They would also adopt a learning plan that outlined the expectations of both farm owner and trainee.

Jeffries was also interested in secondary schools playing a greater role.

gerald.piddock@fairfaxmedia.co.nz