Construction and Property Services

More than 1.5 million Australians work in about 250 000 enterprises within the Construction and Property Services industry. Together, these companies and workers contribute greatly to Australia’s infrastructure by underpinning the nation’s economic and social fabric.

In Australia, construction is part of a globally competitive industry, and is based on state-of-the-art technology and innovative design techniques. It is one of the Australian economy's largest industries, employing about 860 000 people, or 8.6 per cent of the total workforce.

Approximately 900 000 people work in the property component of the industry, or about 9 per cent of the total workforce. The Property Services industry is inextricably linked to building and construction, and to the many services that flow from maintenance of the built environment.

This industry forms a very visible part of everyday life for most Australians. And it offers a wide diversity of employment opportunities that require a range of training qualifications.

• building construction—residential and non-residential
• building structure services—concreting, bricklaying and roofing
• building installation services—plumbing, air conditioning and heating, and fire and security alarms
• building completion services—carpentry, plastering, tiling, carpeting, painting and decorating, and glazing.

These sectors focus on the domestic market and are strongly influenced by economic cycles and fluctuations, which can often lead to corresponding shortages or oversupply in industry skills and the number of qualified workers.

Construction faces challenges. For long-term sustainability, it must adapt to new technologies and products. It must strive to provide enough flexibility in qualifications to attract and retain a youthful, more gender-balanced workforce. There is also a need to upskill older workers.

Key sectors in the Property Services component are:

The component covers a disparate mix of sectors, which reflects the wide range of industries that require property services. As in construction, many of these sectors fluctuate in their workforce needs, due to economic factors affecting the industries they serve.

Current challenges for Property Services are the need to streamline legal regulation and industry registration, and to find nationwide approaches to these formal requirements. Property Services has high levels of part-time and individual employees, and this sometimes causes problems in relation to training and retaining workers.

Property Services has a good gender balance in the workforce and steady growth in the take-up of apprenticeships and other recognised training.