MST20319 is the nationally recognised Certificate II behind hide and skin processing machine operator work. It has been the current version on the national register since 2020, when it replaced MST20316. About 13 hide and skin processing machine operator jobs were advertised in June 2026, up 2.6% on a year earlier.
The independent signals behind the Certificate II in Leather Production are weak right now. The official shortage list does not rate its occupations in shortage and enrolments are falling. Weigh both sides.
Job ads for hide and skin processing machine operators are holding steady. About 13 hide and skin processing machine operator jobs were advertised online in June 2026, up 2.6% on a year earlier. Over the last 12 months there were about 200 job ads, while 90 people were training in the qualification nationally (2025). Ads show the market. Enrolments show the pipeline. Neither is a job promise.
Australia's official shortage list rates footwear production machine operators, hide and skin processing machine operators, knitting machine operators, textile dyeing and finishing machine operators, weaving machine operators, yarn carding and spinning machine operators and textile and footwear production machine operators necs as not in shortage. The 2025 Occupation Shortage List rates Footwear Production Machine Operator, Hide and Skin Processing Machine Operator, Knitting Machine Operator, Textile Dyeing and Finishing Machine Operator, Weaving Machine Operator, Yarn Carding and Spinning Machine Operator and Textile and Footwear Production Machine Operators nec as not in shortage.
Hide and skin processing machine operator jobs are projected to stay about flat. Jobs and Skills Australia projections put these occupations at 1,683 workers in May 2025, 1,670 by May 2030 (down 0.8%) and 1,741 by May 2035 (up 3.4%).
Fewer people are enrolling in the Certificate II in Leather Production than a year ago. Across Australia, 95 people enrolled in 2024. In 2025 it was 90, down 5.3% in a year. National data for MST20319 starts in 2021.
The register and the national framework set some of this. Providers set the rest.
State funding for MST20319 is being verified against official program lists.
Eligibility and student contributions vary by program and provider. The official state listing is the source of truth. In a subsidised place the government pays most of the tuition and you pay a co-contribution set by the program and provider.
The register lists 5 core units for the Certificate II in Leather Production, plus 16 elective options. One unit has prerequisites, marked below.
No Get Course partner currently lists this qualification. Check the national register for organisations approved to deliver it, and remember that approval to deliver is a regulatory fact, not a recommendation. You can browse live courses from our partners and enquire today.
Browse coursesGet Course maps MST20319 to its occupations using the register’s own outcome wording, shown with ANZSCO codes (here, 7117) so the mapping can be checked. Job advertisement counts come from the Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index and count online ads, not vacancies filled. Enrolment counts come from NCVER Total VET Activity and count people in training, not completions. Funding rows appear only after verification against the official state program list. Source vintages: Occupation Shortage List 2025 assessment; employment projections May 2025 to May 2035 release; Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index latest month June 2026; NCVER Total VET Activity 2025 collection; register training.gov.au, synced 5 September 2026; register synced 18 Sept 2026. Page last updated 19 Sept 2026.