Why housing target is still under threat

Australian tradies are cashing in on a chronic shortage of workers leading to a spike in wages, but it's not good news for Australia's ambitious housing target.
Research by HR platform Employment Hero shows construction and trade services remains one of the most in demand sectors, with the median salary for workers jumping 7.8 per cent to $51.30.
But these high wages aren't leading to more houses being built with data from the ABS showing productivity in the construction sector remains shockingly low with hours falling and new houses getting built stalling.
The ABS monthly business turnover indicator for April 2025 shows that the construction sector experienced a 1.1 per cent decline in turnover.
This means businesses are facing a double whammy of costs going up and output falling leading to falling revenue. Australian tradies wages are rising on a critical shortage of labour. NewsWire / John Appleyard Credit: News Corp Australia
Employment Hero chief executive Ben Thompson told NewsWire a lack of qualified workers is putting pressure on the system.
'There's definitely an undersupply of workers, at the same time there's high demand,' he said.
'We offer recruitment services so we can actually see the ratio of candidates to hiring demand, with construction having a critical under supply of workers.'
Employment Hero's research follows the Albanese government's pledge in its first term to build 1.2m new homes by June 2029 to help ease the high costs of getting a home.
But at the National Press Club last week, the Prime Minister conceded it was currently 'too hard' to build a home in Australia.
The federal government's advisory body, the National Housing Supply and Affordability Council (NHSAC), forecasts 938,000 dwellings will be built nationwide by mid-2029, 262,000 below the target. Australia is tipped to fall 262,000 homes short of its target. NewsWire / John Appleyard Credit: News Corp Australia
Mr Thompson said younger Australians needed to see the benefits of learning a trade to help offset some of these costs and reach the government's targets.
'We need to get more people trained up and skilled to enter the workforce, we need to articulate the benefits of being a tradie including purpose, flexibility and higher wages,' he said.
'We need to make it easier and faster to get qualified.'
Mr Thompson said Australia could tap into past successes to help solve the current housing crisis.
'It goes back to the past successes like the Snowy Hydro Scheme,' he said.
'Australia was very effective at importing skilled labour to pull off major infrastructure developments.
'Right now there's a critical shortage of homes and a critical shortage skills to build them, so why wouldn't we go back to importing skilled labour to get the job done.'
Without it Mr Thompson warned more pressure would fall on businesses, which would only add to the problem.
'Overall we are paying more for trade labour, getting less output and are struggling to meet these ambitious housing targets,' he said.
'It suggests a deeper inflationary driver tied to the construction sector while raising questions on the 1.2 million homes.'

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West Australian

an hour ago

• West Australian

Scott Morrison: Donald Trump's strikes on Iran a necessary measure to achieve peace, not war in Middle East

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We must know who we stand with. That is the standard Australia has upheld in the past. And it is the standard we must uphold again now Scott Morrison was Australia's 30th Prime Minister.

Perth Now

an hour ago

• Perth Now

‘Liberation Day' drives Aussie investor exodus

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Sydney Morning Herald

2 hours ago

• Sydney Morning Herald

Chalmers must realise any reform relies on trust

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So a policy change which could have been accepted without fuss has become the 'sheer ventilation' Hartcher describes. Reform depends on trust – on people believing the process is fair, measured and transparent. By making unreasonable demands like this and framing them for minor tweaks, Chalmers risks the very consensus he's asking for. Marina Cardillo, Beecroft Chalmers deserves support for his plans to rejuvenate our faltering economy. If the naysayers, big business, the conservative press and the Coalition, torpedo his efforts, they will be forever condemned for their negativity. Andrew Macintosh, Cromer If Chalmers wants to improve productivity through tax changes, start with housing. Australia puts too much investment into housing, reducing investment in skills, equipment, transport et cetera. Many people spend two hours-plus a day commuting as they can't afford to live near their work. Meanwhile, housing completions decline, rents increase and house prices accelerate again. House prices took off after John Howard and Peter Costello introduced the capital gains tax 50 per cent discount in the late 1990s. Reduce the discount to 25 per cent on housing. Exempt the first house for small investors. Put the additional tax received into construction trades training, more pre-apprenticeship courses, skilled migration and incentives to builders. If politically necessary, 'grandfather' existing investment in housing or take it to the next election. There'll be more homes built so prices and rents will level and productivity will improve. Have courage. If not now, when? Kevin Fell, Cooks Hill Pipes and poles Treasurer Daniel Mookhey startles with the budget (' $120b for new 'pipes and poles' in the budget ', June 21). Water and power services for new housing are not government budget funded. They are budget 'taxed'. Only the rural-based Essential Energy, Sydney Water and a few other urban water authorities belong to the NSW government. All our pipes and poles companies are commercial entities that borrow money to fund capital investments. State government-owned utilities pay 'tax' to the state government equivalent to what they would pay the Commonwealth if privately owned. In saying water and power will be a priority for the foreseeable future, the treasurer is effectively saying infrastructure is not a priority of the government. Public sector wages remain its priority. Peter Egan, Mosman When Mookhey says spending on infrastructure over the next decade will be defined by 'pipes and poles', I hope the emphasis will be on pipes, including the orange ones for underground power distribution. Many Sydney suburbs already have more than their quota of ugly poles and wires, especially on major roads, where they are both a safety hazard and an eyesore. Doug Walker, Baulkham Hills There is not one mention of any spend for rural and regional communities in this account. Says it all. It's as if we do not exist; that is until the city complains about the cost of food all transported at increasing cost from 'over the mountains' on 'dog tracks' for roads. A tunnel under the mountains, nah, the spend is on tunnels under Sydney; you will have to put up with a single lane climb up Mt Victoria, then a track festooned with Christmas tree traffic lights and changing speed zones for the next 60 kilometres. Bruce Clydsdale, Bathurst Nature under attack Reading reports of fossil-fuelled environmental disasters such as the algal bloom affecting South Australian waters leaves me in despair (' The South Australian algal bloom the rest of the country should be worried about ', June 21). People can move from areas affected by bushfires, droughts, flooding and sea level rise but flora and fauna can't. Where is the justice that allows government-approved fossil fuel exploitation to continue unabated at the expense of the natural environment? In addressing this question, the crux of the proposed environmental protection laws must be inclusion of projects' impacts on climate change. Roger Epps, Armidale Courage of gang rape survivors Bravo to Karen Iles for speaking up (' I survived gang rape. We need to talk ', June 21). I am also a survivor of a gang rape – in 1966. I was also 17, and the headline in the paper was almost identical to the current one, almost 60 years later. The perpetrators were not 'others', children of migrants. They were five 'good' Aussie boys. This crime transcends ethnic boundaries. The police would not believe my claim when I reported it. Not until a very invasive test by a doctor, with various other people present, watching with salacious glee, proved I had been a virgin. In those days, if I hadn't been, then there would have been no case. I had asked for it. Still, the defence lawyers managed to make it look as if I had invited and enjoyed the encounter. In the end, some got off and the others got a slap on the wrist. In hindsight, I would not have put myself through the court case. But I had thought it would make things easier for future victims. The local gossip mill at the time remained in overdrive for years after it happened. Yet here we are, more than half a century later. The case being held in an open court meant there was no control over who heard and interpreted the proceedings. My heart goes out to this girl. All I can say is that you can survive and overcome it. My proof is my four kids, 10 grandchildren and a loving husband who did not judge when I told him about it. Name and address supplied I am staggered after reading Karen Iles' article. Like many octogenarians, I have completed a memoir including my involvement in the ferment of the 1970s Women's Movement. I described the era of my youth when publicity of sexual assaults on women resorted to judgmental terms like the ones Karen Iles mentions. Back then, reports lacked any wider objectivity, which could include questioning the man's behaviour. Why have we made so little progress despite the evolution of behavioural science? I really want to know. Glenda Gartrell, Newtown I cannot imagine the horror of what you went through, Karen, but I am so glad that you survived and speak for those who cannot. It needs to be said. Bravo. Michele Sharp, Bondi Beach How brave of Karen Iles to speak out about the horrors of gang rape. This shocking crime must be suitably punished and laws should reflect the severity of the crime. The brave girls and women who report these crimes must have the total support of police and the justice system to encourage others to come forward knowing they will be given all the help they need to survive a harrowing criminal justice process. Denis Suttling, Newport Beach Karen Iles is to be applauded for tackling a subject we shrink from. One aspect shines a spotlight on the sheer brutality inherent in rape. It is all too often employed in times of war when an invading army uses rape to terrorise and subdue a civilian population. Misogyny is a term that almost sanitises rape – it is an act of pure hatred and utter contempt. If a bunch of rugger buggers ever thinks it might be fun, Chris Minns has an opportunity, indeed an obligation, to come down harder than ever before on the crime of rape. Margaret Johnston, Paddington Dead reckoning My son recently came upon a poem that I think is as apt today as it was in the 1930s. From The Book of the Dead, by activist Muriel Rukeyser: 'What three things can never be done?/Forget. Keep silent. Stand alone.' Pauline McGinley, Drummoyne EVs' energy boost With petrol being the 'single biggest weekly expense for most households' and the global oil market so volatile, an EV is a wise investment (' There's no crisis in oil markets yet − but your bowser bill could creep up', June 21). Secondhand EVs are as cheap as chips, due to largely unfounded claims about battery reliability. By saving on weekly fuel costs, it's possible to pay off a good used EV sedan in about three years. New EVs are increasingly affordable as Chinese models flood the market. It makes a lot of sense for the government to encourage EV uptake for our energy security when petrol prices are unreliable. On top of this, transport contributes more than a fifth of our domestic emissions. Perhaps the biggest benefit would be a reduction in our pollution levels. Anne O'Hara, Wanniassa (ACT) Hurtful words I am outraged, and more (‴ ⁣⁣Fungus bench' should outrage school parents ', June 21). And I'm not even a school parent. Also, I am alarmed for the good public servants dismissed by their boss as 'oxygen thieves'. What a lowlife wordsmith Anthony Manning is. What happens next? Jennifer Fergus, Croydon Barking madness It's hard to find anything more self-indulgent than the growing cult of treating dogs as mini humans, not the domesticated animals they are (' From 'puppitinis' to pooch-only high teas ', June 21). In a city where food banks are stretched to the limit and children live in poverty, it appears that some think it makes sense to indulge in their fur baby's unnecessary 'dog-lato'. Michael Berg, Randwick Years ago I went to a hardware shop to look for a self-assembly dog kennel kit. One of the older staff helping me look for it asked me why I wouldn't just let the dog sleep in the space under the house. It made total sense. Another pet shop owner told me, not too long ago, people have too much time on their hands when I asked him if he had a toothbrush and toothpaste kit for my dog. He said he could sell it to me but questioned the need for it. When I read about the pooch-cafes I only want to say, 'Really?' It is anthropomorphism gone barking mad. Manbir Singh Kohli, Pemulwuy Homme de plume Dear Doctor, I seek advice on transitioning to become an emu. I'm completely turned off by the dangerously nutty humans I see on the news and don't identify as one any longer. I want a simple, peaceful life without any politics, warmongering or religion. I have long skinny legs and beady eyes, so feel my choice is appropriate and the species-affirming won't be too much of a problem. Dave Watts, Avalon