Trades buck national enrolment downturn as construction qualifications surge
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Photo by SHOX ART
Australia’s residential building industry is defying a nationwide slump in vocational training, with new data showing construction trade qualifications recording strong growth even as overall VET enrolments fell by more than five per cent in 2025.
Figures released by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) reveal Architecture and Building was the only major field of education to post growth, adding almost 14,000 additional enrolments. Construction, Plumbing and Services and Electrotechnology qualifications also recorded strong gains during the same period.
Housing Industry Association (HIA) Executive Director Future Workforce Mike Hermon said the data reflected growing confidence in construction as a career pathway.
“While qualification enrolments are falling across much of the VET sector, construction is moving in the opposite direction. That’s a strong vote of confidence in careers that build Australia’s homes,” Mr Hermon said.
“Young Australians can see there is no shortage of work. They can earn while they learn and step straight into an industry crying out for skilled workers.”
The results stand in contrast to broader VET sector trends, where enrolments declined across the majority of major fields of education in 2025. The construction sector’s performance suggests the federal government’s high-profile housing targets — and the sustained demand for new dwellings that underpins them — are translating into tangible interest from prospective tradespeople.
Despite the positive enrolment numbers, Mr Hermon cautioned that the industry remains well short of the workforce needed to meet Australia’s housing ambitions.
“The increase in enrolments is encouraging, but Australia is still well short of the workforce needed to meet its housing ambitions,” he said.
“HIA estimates Australia needs another 83,000 skilled tradespeople to deliver the homes Australians need.”
Completion rates represent a significant structural challenge for the sector. According to Mr Hermon, approximately half of all construction apprentices do not finish their training — a dropout rate that effectively neutralises a substantial portion of enrolment gains before they reach the workforce.
“Getting more people through the front door is great news, but now we have to keep them there. Around half of all construction apprentices don’t complete their training, so lifting completion rates must be the next priority,” he said.
Compounding the challenge is growing competition for skilled labour from outside the residential building sector. Mr Hermon identified a broadening range of industries now drawing from the same pool of trained workers, placing additional pressure on housing construction’s ability to attract and retain talent.
“Housing is no longer competing for skilled workers within the construction sector alone. Residential building is now competing with major transport and energy infrastructure projects, defence programs including AUKUS, the transition to net zero, and the rapid expansion of data centres. Every one of these sectors is drawing from the same finite pool of skilled workers,” he said.
The HIA is calling for targeted policy intervention to address both the volume and retention of apprentices entering the trades. Mr Hermon pointed to the outsized role played by small businesses in delivering apprenticeship training, arguing they require dedicated support to absorb the volume of trainees required to close the workforce gap.
“That means Australia needs to double down on growing its skilled workforce. We need targeted investment in apprenticeships, stronger support for the small businesses that train the overwhelming majority of apprentices, and long-term certainty around skills funding,” Mr Hermon said.
“If we’re serious about delivering more homes while also delivering our broader national priorities, we need more skilled workers coming through the front door and more of them completing their training.”
The NCVER data comes as housing supply remains a central issue in Australian policy debate, with state and federal governments committed to ambitious dwelling targets against a backdrop of persistent labour and materials constraints.