Chief Executive of the national employer association Ai Group, Innes Willox, welcomed the announced federal government boost to the development and supply of skilled workers for the construction sector.
“A strong skills pipeline is essential to meet the demands of the construction sector and the ambition to increase housing supply.
“Funding for an additional 15,000 TAFE and VET fee-free places and 5,000 pre-apprenticeships over two years from 1 January 2025 will help grow and sustain the skills pipeline,” said Willox.
Willox said the Ai group welcomed the $1.8 that streamlines skill assessment for what is potentially a large amount of migrants who want to work in Australian residential and commercial construction sectors. Chief Executive of the national employer association Ai Group, Innes Willox, welcomed the announced federal government boost to the development and supply of skilled workers for the construction sector.
“A strong skills pipeline is essential to meet the demands of the construction sector and the ambition to increase housing supply.
“Funding for an additional 15,000 TAFE and VET fee-free places and 5,000 pre-apprenticeships over two years from 1 January 2025 will help grow and sustain the skills pipeline,” said Willox.
Willox said the Ai group welcomed the $1.8 that streamlines skill assessment for what is potentially a large amount of migrants who want to work in Australian residential and commercial construction sectors.
“… For approximately 1,900 potential migrants from countries with comparable qualifications who want to work in Australia’s residential and commercial construction sectors. This includes the processing of around 2,600 Trades Recognition Australia (TRA) skills assessments in targeted occupations.
“Skills assessments for prospective migrants have become excruciatingly slow and often take many months due to a large backlog and the sole approval path being through TRA,” Mr Willox said.
Willox said expanding the access will ensure a strong supply of skills.
“Expanding access to potential skilled migrants is an important strategy to ensuring a strong and relevant supply of skills in a timely manner and hopefully the additional investment will help clear that backlog,” Mr Willox said.