Australia could face a shortage of tradies as construction apprenticeships drop, threatening Labor’s pledge to build 1.2 million homes over the next five years.
According to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research, the number of Australians starting construction apprenticeships has dropped 22 per cent in a year.
The National Briefing heard from tradies in the construction industry who said that pay is a main concern.
Hear more about the looming tradie shortage on The National Briefing – keeping you in the loop with news as it hits:
One tradie told LiSTNR Newsroom, “Why would you want to be an apprentice when you could be a labourer for two and a half, three grand a week?”
“When we were apprentices, houses weren’t worth a million dollars and rentals weren’t worth five hundred bucks,” he said.
Master Builders Australia CEO Denita Wawn is concerned about what the number of tradies means for Australia’s housing crisis.
“We heard from BuildSkills Australia this week that the industry needs to attract 90,000 tradies in the next 90 days,” Wawn said.
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