workplaces welcoming to all workers. By addressing these cultural and systemic barriers, the organization aims to create a more balanced workforce and provide more significant opportunities for women in construction. SUPPORTING SKILLED MIGRANTS Migration has historically played a fundamental role in filling skills gaps within Australia’s construction industry. However, recent years have seen a sharp decline in migrant workers entering the sector, exacerbating existing labor shortages. “Twenty-five percent of our workforce is made up of migrants, but in the last five years, only 5% of new entrants have been migrants,” Wawn states. “That’s a significant reason for the current skills shortage. We’ve identified 20,000 skilled migrants in Australia who aren’t working in construction due to barriers like licensing and training requirements.” Many skilled migrants in Australia cannot secure work in their field due to restrictive licensing processes, costly gap training programs, and visa-related challenges. In some cases, required bridging courses do not exist, preventing qualified workers from reentering the industry. Language barriers also pose a significant hurdle, particularly for those who need to meet English proficiency requirements before changing their visa status. Master Builders Australia has been actively lobbying for increased funding to help skilled migrants overcome these barriers. The organization has pushed for government support in creating more accessible training and upskilling programs that allow qualified professionals to transition seamlessly into the workforce. These efforts have already yielded results, with the federal government recently introducing in-country migrant skills recognition funding to help expedite the process. At the same time, Master Builders Australia has pushed back against restrictive policy changes that could disrupt the 50% of businesses in the industry that operate under independent contractor models. Proposed legislative reforms, such as the Closing the Loopholes bill, aimed to reclassify many independent contractors as employees, creating financial and operational challenges for businesses. “In the last federal budget, we successfully lobbied for in-country migrant skills recognition funding,” Wawn says. “And earlier this year, we led efforts to push back against the Closing the Loopholes bill, which would have forced independent contractors into employee relationships.” 18 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 07, ISSUE 03
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