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All Hands on Deck: Construction workforce requirements
Building a greater number of homes will require a greater number of skilled trades workers. This All Hands on Deck report estimates the number of additional workers that will be required across each of the 12 key trades in residential building. In total, it is estimated that the industry will need more than 83,000 additional trades workers across the key home building trades.
Investment in the provision of training and employment opportunities for local workers should be the priority for policy makers. However, this alone is unlikely to enable growth in the workforce that meets industry’s needs.
Giving the housing industry the best chance of reaching the Housing Accord’s target will require greater investment in training, enabling a greater number of migrant workers with trade skills to work in Australia. It will also require implementing measures to retain existing workers in these key trade occupations.
Recommendations
More training opportunities
Make skilling up to start a new career an easier and more accessible process.
Support skilled migration
Streamline and simplify the process of migrating to Australia to work in the housing industry.
Educate on career change
Develop strategies to attract workers from other sectors and retain existing workers.
Promote and subsidise apprenticeships:
- Subsidise employers to take on more apprentices
- Starter kits and supplement payments for new apprentices
- Industry-based mentoring programs.
Combat the aging trades workforce:
- Develop campaigns to attract new workers to occupations with the greatest age imbalances
- Occupation-specific incentives and support for apprentices to enter the industry
- Support for experienced workers to train new entrants.
Make better use of the skilled migration system:
- Expand international recruitment efforts
- Create a construction trade contractor visa
- Clear pathways to permanent residency via a construction career
- Enable international students to take on apprenticeships.
Breakdown of construction workforce by occupation
| Occupation | Current number of workers | Additional workers required |
| Carpenter | 73,399 | 22,020 |
| Electrician | 57,723 | 17,317 |
| Plumber | 39,663 | 11,899 |
| Painter | 26,774 | 8,032 |
| Bricklayer | 15,059 | 4,518 |
| Cabinetmaker | 14,693 | 4,408 |
| Plasterer | 11,826 | 3,548 |
| Tiler | 11,405 | 3,421 |
| Concreter | 10,421 | 3,126 |
| Roof Tiler | 6,384 | 1,915 |
| Floor Finisher | 6,016 | 1,805 |
| Glazier | 4,465 | 1,339 |
| Total | 277,827 | 83,348 |
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