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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
HIA welcomes key findings of interim Productivity Commission’s report
“The Housing Industry Association (HIA) welcomes the release of the Queensland Productivity Commission’s interim report into construction productivity It is a significant and necessary step toward overcoming the housing supply challenges facing Queensland,” said Michael Roberts, HIA Executive Director Queensland.
Building approvals pick up 2024/25
“New home building approvals in the 2024/25 financial year were up by 13.9 per cent compared to their 2023/24 trough,” stated HIA Senior Economist Tom Devitt.
HIA urges action to back Australian building product manufacturers
HIA is calling on the Federal Government to act urgently to support Australia’s building product manufacturers and suppliers, an industry worth more than $130 billion and critical to the delivery of new housing across the country,” HIA Managing Director, Jocelyn Martin said today.
Amendment NCC 2022 published to align with the Premises Standards
With the delay to decisions on the content of NCC 2025, the ABCB has published a further amendment to the current NCC 2022 which applies from 29 July 2025. The purpose of this minor amendment is to align the NCC with recent changes to the Premises Standards which apply to Class 3 to 9 public buildings, common areas of Class 2 apartment buildings and short-term accommodation