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.
Subscribe to The Briefing, Australia’s fastest-growing news podcast on LiSTNR today. The Briefing serves up the latest news and deep dives on topics affecting you, all in under 20 minutes.
Here’s how and where Triple M will be rocking footy around Australia in Round 17 –…
The UK's Labour Party, led by Sir Keir Starmer, has secured a decisive victory over…
US President Joe Biden has acknowledged a stumble in last week's debate against Donald Trump.…
Todd Goldstein is a fresh face at the Bombers this year after 315 games at…
Todd Goldstein's AFL career continued on for a 16th season as he made his way…
An Australian man has been sentenced to six months of rehabilitation by an Indonesian court…