The chief executive of Australia's biggest labour hire firm, Programmed, says spending on maintenance and repairs across the nation will grow twice as fast as the broader economy because infrastructure is getting older and companies and governments are trying to do more with less.

Chris Sutherland, who is at the helm of a business with 23,000 staff working across mining, maintenance, and blue-collar and white-collar jobs, says it's a trend that will continue for the next 20 years.