What are the trends driving career opportunities within Australia’s construction sector today? We are seeing an increased demand for fast-paced high-quality placements. Changes in consumer demand, the nature and economics of construction, and the realities of the modern supply chain have led to fundamental shifts in the way construction firms tend to do business. Construction is no longer simply about building quality and unique structures and physical infrastructure. A key focus today is exploring new ways to find key personnel quickly – before competitors snap them up.

The struggle to fill critical jobs is placing significant pressure on many construction firms, even as they face the ongoing challenges of maintaining construction during the pandemic. The industry is facing a rising challenge of securing great team members to fill vacancies, changing expectations in skillsets, managing multiple job offers, skills shortages and the restrictions that lockdowns are placing on location preference for candidates. The outsourcing of recruitment to a highly connected professional that can juggle this complex mix is one solution – and at Construction Recruitment, we have been inundated with enquiries and the speed of candidate placement has accelerated.

The Australian construction industry is expected to rebound in 2021 and has a projected annual growth rate of 2.5% in the next five years. The industry currently generates over $360 billion in revenue, producing around 9% of Australia’s Gross Domestic Product. This follows a challenging two year prior period, in particular 2020 where we felt the impact of the pandemic on investor confidence, coupled with plummeting oil prices and continued weakness in the residential sector.

Although the construction industry was designated as an essential service, and was exempted from the lockdown restrictions, construction work has been affected due to limitations on the labour availability on worksites, social distancing restrictions and supply chain operations.

Growth in 2021 has been assisted by the Australian government’s focus on an infrastructure-led economic revival, and the federal, state and territory governments agreeing to cut approval time for infrastructure projects in half, with announced plans to invest AUD14 billion over the next four years.

Over the remaining years of the forecast period, the industry is expected to gain further momentum and register an annual growth of 3.4% between 2022-2025. Most governments have budgeted significant funding towards transport, residential, health and educational infrastructure projects. 

According to the Australian Industry and Skills Committee, in 2020 employment in the industry reached just under 1,180,000 and is projected to exceed 1,282,000 by 2024. They have identified that the skill replacement gap is increasing. The need to replace larger numbers of highly skilled employees in the future raises the issue of the future supply for the industry.

• Architectural, Building and Surveying Technicians

• Construction Managers, Contract, Program and Project Administrators

• Civil Engineering Professionals

• Electricians

• Other Engineering Professionals

And the Top 3 Skills Shortage areas forecast will be:-

• Building Associate (site supervisor)

• Construction Project Manager

• Trades: Brickies, Stonemasons, Carpenters, Plasterers, Plumber, Tilers, Painters and Roof Tilers

 

They have indicated some key foundational skills, generic skills and occupational demands to look out for:-

5 Top Foundational Skills:

• Language, literacy and numeracy (LLN)

• Learning ability, information literacy, intellectual autonomy and self management (adaptability)

• Design mindset, thinking critically, system thinking, problem solving

• Communication, virtual collaboration, social intelligence

• Technology

• Communication skills

• Planning

• Detail oriented

• Building effective relationships

• Microsoft Office

In 2021, there are really interesting projects underway. With confidence slowly rebuilding across a number of areas within construction, the demand for talented professionals will continue. This means a lot of opportunities for local construction professionals, as well as a strong incentive for Australian based talent to deliver iconic, sustainable and attractive projects for our country.

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