Some working in the construction industry aren’t sure that’s the right approach, with industry bodies warning they’re facing the opposite problem \u2013 not enough skilled workers to build the numbers of homes needed.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Organisers have staged multiple anti-immigration protests in recent weeks across Australia. (ABC News)<\/p>\n
“Immigration is putting pressure on housing, but perhaps not the way people think it is,” Master Builders Australia chief executive Denita Wawn said.<\/p>\n
“We simply have not had enough skilled migrants coming into this country to help us build what we need to build to resolve our housing crisis.<\/p>\n
“There is a migration crisis for housing, but for us, it’s a crisis relating to not enough migrant workers.”<\/p>\n
Ms Wawn described that crisis as one which had been “decades in the making”. While she acknowledged it was partly attributed to population growth, she said a more “nuanced” approach was needed which would also take into account government policies.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The country’s construction industry is under pressure without enough workers. (ABC News: John Gunn)<\/p>\n
Calls to streamline process<\/p>\n
Ms Wawn estimated a quarter of the country’s construction workforce were migrants. But she said that numbers were dwindling, with only 5 per cent of new entrants to the industry in the past five years having been from overseas.<\/p>\n
Partly to blame for this, she said, was the difficulty of getting overseas qualifications recognised and the length of time the process took.<\/p>\n
“We know that it takes anywhere between 12 to 18 months to get your skills recognised. It costs a lot of money and then, of course, if you need to do gap training, it’s also expensive as well,” Ms Wawn said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Denita Wawn is calling for a streamlined process for skilled migrants to have their qualifications recognised. (ABC News: Luke Stephenson)<\/p>\n
Ms Wawn pointed to Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom as places which had successfully streamlined its recognition processes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“The government is recognising these problems, [it’s] working hard,” she said,<\/p>\n
“It’s one of the things that was identified during economic reform roundtable<\/a>, but we need that process sped up as quickly as possible.”<\/p>\n Ms Wawn said the industry was also working hard to attract young Australians into the industry, but it wasn’t going to be enough without migrants, too.<\/p>\n “Every single building and construction trade is actually deemed in shortage at the moment,” she said.<\/p>\n “We’re looking at carpenters … plumbers, electricians, tilers, plasterers, roofers etc. … the list goes on.”<\/p>\n The federal government’s skilled occupation list <\/a>includes a number of construction roles.<\/p>\n George Thomas now runs a Brisbane-based carpentry company tekDB. (ABC News: Jessica van Vonderen)<\/p>\n Brisbane-based carpenter George Thomas migrated to Australia from the UK a decade ago \u2014 mostly attracted by the warm weather \u2014 and remembers only too well the hoops he had to jump through.<\/p>\n Mr Thomas had worked as a builder in the UK for 10 years before he moved to Queensland on a skilled visa after falling in love with the country on his travels.<\/p>\n It took around 18 months for his visa to be processed and approved with the help of a migration agent.<\/p>\n “I had carpentry qualifications in the UK. They recognised them over here … I had to do a couple of tests and exams just to prove that,” he explained.<\/p>\n “And then I was transferred to a Certificate III in carpentry in Australia.”<\/p>\n Loading…<\/p>\n These days, Mr Thomas runs his own business, which he estimates to be about 60 per cent reliant on contractors who have themselves migrated to Australia.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n