The exclusion of civil construction trades from a new $10,000 apprentice incentive shows the Federal Government still hasn’t grasped the need for more skilled workers to build housing enabling infrastructure, says the Civil Contractors Federation WA.

CCF WA CEO Andy Graham said apprentice civil plant operators and pipelayers deserved the same support from the new Key Apprentices Program as apprentices in the housing trades.

“While the Federal Government continues to announce generous funding for housing-enabling infrastructure, it has ignored the apprentices in the trades that actually deliver it,” Mr Graham said.

“Without housing lots, there’s no houses, and it’s critical we attract and retain the skilled tradespeople we need to build those housing lots.

“Do the Feds understand that building subdivisions requires a highly skilled workforce? Don’t they get that the apprentice plant operators and pipelayers building subdivisions are every bit as important as the bricklayers and carpenters building houses?

“If we sound frustrated, it’s because the CCF has been telling the Federal Government this for 15 years. Yet every time a new Federal apprenticeship incentive is announced, civil construction apprentices miss out.

“This month alone we’ve been snubbed twice – firstly excluded from the new GTO Reimbursement Program, and now this apprentice completion incentive.

Mr Graham said the consistent lack of Federal support for civil trades was in stark contrast to the strong support shown by the Western Australian Government.

“Our State Government consistently provides equal support for civil construction skills. It understands that you can't build houses without housing lots. For example, we’ve just seen excavator operators and pipelayers included as eligible for the $10,000 relocation bonus, aimed at encouraging interstate migration.

Mr Graham said the State Government was also a strong supporter of civil construction skills through its apprenticeship funding programs – unlike the Federal Government, which refuses all civil construction apprentices, including apprentice plant operators, access to its Australian Apprenticeship Incentive System funding.

CCF National CEO Nicholas Proud said the Federal Government had to start prioritising civil trades or risk further delays in addressing Australia’s housing and infrastructure challenges.

“We are building 60,000 fewer homes than we were in 2021, so it is baffling that the Government has chosen to defer action on civil trades,” Mr Proud said.

“Civil construction is the foundation of every housing project, enabling essential services like subdivisions, roads, sewerage, and water. Without a skilled civil workforce, the housing sector simply cannot function. The longer we delay investing in these trades, the further we fall behind on delivering the infrastructure and housing Australians desperately need.

“Unless the Government is intending to build homes without cleared lots, connective roads and utilities, we are not going to see any progress on housing until the Government prioritises the civil skills that unlock new homes.”