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{{propApi.successMessage}} {{region}} Change locationHome builders aiming to use slower year to train more apprentices
Home builders aiming to use slower year to train more apprentices
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The HIA Trades Report released today provides a quarterly review of the availability of skilled trades and any demand pressures on trades operating in the residential building industry.
“A survey of home builders undertaken in January shows that 51 per cent of home builders aim to increase the number of apprentices they employ in 2024, with just 7 per cent of builders expecting to reduce their apprentice numbers,” added Mr Devitt.
“The strong intention to increase employment of apprentices occurs as the volume of homes under construction continues to shrink due to the rise in the cash rate.
“Despite the slowdown in building activity, strong demand for skilled tradespeople in other sectors has ensured that building trades remain in high demand.
“Competing demands from other sectors for skilled trades such as carpenters, electricians and plumbers, are compounding the shortage of tradespeople in residential building.
“The HIA Trades Availability Index, which measures the industry’s perception of the availability of each skilled trade, sat at -0.64 in the final quarter of 2023, virtually unchanged for much of the past 12 months.
“The return of overseas workers made a marked difference in addressing what were the most acute shortages of skilled tradespeople since HIA started this Report in 2003.
“The lack of improvement for much of 2023, however, shows the industry is still struggling to find the skilled tradespeople it needs.
“Competition for skilled tradespeople from other sectors – including public infrastructure and other non-residential projects – is intense. All sectors are now employing significantly more construction workers than just a decade ago.
“This has made it harder for Australia’s home builders to complete the significant pipeline of work taken on during the pandemic.
“It has also pushed up the price of skilled trades, which increased by 5.0 per cent in 2023. While this is a welcome moderation from the near-10 per cent increase a year earlier, it is still much stronger than the 2.0 per cent average annual increase that prevailed before the pandemic.
“This ongoing demand for skilled tradespeople across the country reinforces the need for polices to attract skilled migrants to Australia.
“Access to skilled migration is essential to respond to cyclical changes in demand. This includes a streamlined and simplified visa program for in-demand trades.
“There also needs to be a conscious effort to promote careers in the industry. There needs to be more support for the apprenticeships and businesses that help train and upskill our existing and future workforce,” concluded Mr Devitt.
By trade, the most acute shortages existed in ceramic tiling (-1.04) and bricklaying (-1.03), followed by carpentry (-0.84), roofing (-0.81) and plastering (-0.79). Shortages are more modest in electrical (-0.21), plumbing (-0.33) and site preparation (-0.36) trades.
By region, the most acute shortages of skilled tradespeople at the end of 2023 were in Perth (-0.89) and Adelaide (-0.84), followed by regional South Australia (-0.76), Brisbane (-0.72), Melbourne (-0.70), Sydney (-0.58), regional New South Wales (-0.56), regional Queensland (-0.54), regional Western Australia (-0.48) and regional Victoria (-0.47).
HIA Trade Availability Index
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