CCF member survey predicts severe skills shortages

By Julie Abramson, CCF national policy director

Members will recollect this work was being undertaken after a referral from the Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard in response to a number of concerns we raised about structural barriers such as ANZSCO coding which was impacting on our ability to get support for the industry.
This article provides a snapshot of some of the key outcomes of our survey of 98 members of the CCF . We asked a range of questions but focused on five key areas; namely an industry overview, what our people do and skills they have it in terms of occupations, recruitment activity and difficulties, workforce age and training and retention issues.
One of the most important outcomes is that for the first time we have accurate base level data. It provides a national profile of the industry which has not been available to us through other data capture tools such as ABS surveys. The data certainly supports a number of the key concerns we have raised as your Federation over a number of years.
The industry
Within construction generally we believe that the civil construction industry employs some 350,000 people.
It has considerable breadth with civil occupations often being the foundation skill sets for other industries. Key areas are road and bridge construction and pipe-laying with plant operators a key occupation through all activities. Plant hire and civil engineering management were also key areas.
We also noted that whilst there was a breadth of activity, there was also discrete sub-specialisation, which is either not recognised or given insufficient weight in traditional measurement tools such as ANZSCO. Our supervisory workforce such as leading hands and supervisors was also not adequately captured.
Qualifications, skills
A significant proportion of our workforce don’t hold qualifications. In some occupations like plant operation only 49% held qualifications. This has significant implications for the career pipeline, and for the ability of the industry to access government initiatives, which rely on Certificate 111 qualifications and/or trade recognition.
Clearly on the job experience was a critical component in an employee being regarded as being able to perform tasks to a satisfactory standard. The on the job component depended on the role and proficiency required. In most instances for example, for a plant operator to be competent and of value to a business, 24 to 36 months was identified as the minimum experience required. Obviously this means that any training, needs to be based on giving trainees real hands on experience, a key component of our approach to industry training.
We also noted that the industry often undersells and mis-describes what it does. Our skilled plant operators are often referred to as labourers. This means that the data that flows to the ABS on the completion of the census every five years mis-states what our people actually do.
We will be working with you on this in the lead up to the 2011 census.
Training infrastructure
Our members valued highly specialised training, for the industry by the industry, once again referring to the importance of the on the job component. We noted that in some very specialised areas, it was hard for members to access the training they needed, at the level required.
Current, forecast vacancies
When we set out to examine our skills issues we chose four key areas for special attention. Those were road construction, bridge construction, pipe-laying and the occupation of plant operator.
What we found was, that the industry coming out of the GFC, was beginning to experience difficulty in filling vacancies. In particular, whilst 72% of the vacancies advertised April to September 2009 were filled, there were particular areas where employers struggled: for example bridge constructors, estimators and foremen, supervisors and civil engineers. With plant operators, whilst 70% of vacancies were filled, 30% were still unfilled in a time of lessened demand.
It is clear the industry is going to experience significant skills shortages in key areas such as road construction, bridge construction, pipe-laying, supervisory occupations and plant operations.
We also noticed a skills gap issue: positions were being filled but not with people that employers regarded as having the right skill set and experience. This in turn contributes to high attrition rates and instability in the workforce.
Demographic profile
Civil construction shows the same ageing profile as outlined in government research. Most of our workforce at an operator level is within the 25 to 44 age group. We have a sharp drop off in participation after age 45 and believe this is something we need to look into further.
Attraction, retention
As you know, over a number of years, we really have been focusing on our entrance levels. So it was pleasing to see that of the members surveyed, some 58% had trainees/apprentices, though not all in civil construction. We also noted that the reasons our people left civil construction jobs, related to lack of progression opportunities, lack of stability in the workplace (ie lack of work and downturns) and better opportunities in mining occupations.
We are talking to government and policy makers about what can be done to support the industry and will report further to you in the coming months.
Finally, on a personal note can I thank those members who participated in the survey. You will start to be surveyed more in the future and in preparation can I thank you in advance. Good data helps us get good outcomes to support the important work that you do.

 * It should be noted that the response rate to some questions was low varying between 30% and 50%. In view of this however we verified the results with a small working group comprising senior CCF members, SkillsDMC, National Office CCF with input from our state CEO’s.

¹ It should be noted that the response rate to some questions was low, varying between 30% and 50%.  In view of this however, we verified the results with a small working group comprising senior CCF members, SkillsDMC and the National Office CCF with input from state CEOs.