Desperate Call for Skilled Trades
The Building and Construction Industry remains under pressure due the onset of a debilitating skills shortage in coming years. This shortage is likely to drive the costs of construction higher across all areas of residential building, commercial building and infrastructure.
We want them, we need them. But how are we going to create them?
A recent current affairs program on SBS, Insight, aired a 1 hour show centred around Urban Planning and how to manage the growth of Australia as it stretches from a current population of over 22 Million to an estimated 36 Million + by the year 2050. That estimate could be conservative. The concern was the demographics within that number: The ageing population will grow dramatically as a percentage of the overall total.
The building and construction industry is an important engine of growth for the Australian Economy. Stimulus spending through 2009 by the State and Federal Governments had a role to play in ensuring that engine was kept running. But as we return to steady output due to an apparent shortage of housing, how are we going to find the skilled tradespeople to manage the task of building millions of new homes in the next 40 years. Yes, millions of new dwellings. Our population is ageing and as we all know in the building industry the working life of the average trade is much shorter than in other industries.
The Housing Industry Association, said in a report recently the shortage of skilled workers in residential construction is set to blow out to almost 65,000 nationally by 2012-13. There will be a shortfall of 59,400 construction workers in the 2009-10 year alone, it added.
The government and the building and construction industry must join forces and work for more training, more apprenticeships, and more skilled migration in specific trades. Else we will continue to fall behind in the demand of a growing population for new dwellings.
The latest Housing Industry Association-Austral Bricks Trades Report shows that a surplus availability of tradespeople in the residential sector was a one quarter wonder, reversing in the September 2009 quarter. Although there was a small surplus during 2009 that is no longer the case and if things continue in their current form then it will get tighter.
The HIA-Austral Bricks Trades Price Index inched up by 0.5 per cent in the September 2009 quarter to be 3.1 per cent lower than the comparable period last year.
According to Harley Dale, Chief Economist at the HIA: “With little price pressure, and trade availability still considerably better than it was up until late last year, it is a good time to engage in renovating an existing property or building a new home.”
“The pressing concern is that this situation won’t last and labour shortages will re-emerge by mid 2010 as a major
constraint on the ability of the housing industry to grow both in terms of new home building and renovation activity.”
“It is vital for all levels of government to keep the training of apprentices and trainees as a priority, encouraging young
people to not only start a trade but to complete the training.”
“Failure to constantly address the structural shortage of skilled labour will inhibit the recovery in the housing industry,
denting economic growth and affordability along the way,”
This is a great time to be skilling up, training and developing career pathways in the building and construction industry. Do more courses, gain more licences and qualifications and as a result profit from the growth in our industry. Better yet, encourage others to do the same. Put the word out to your mates. The construction boom is going to be around for a while and everyone needs to look for ways to get more skilled trades on the ground.
Filed Under: Industry News • Trade Administration
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