Business leaders Heidi Turner and Clayton Cook call for housing to support workforce

There’s plenty of major projects on Townsville’s horizon but a plan is needed to accommodate the skilled workforce to build them. Read about the challenge.

Townsville business leaders Heidi Turner and Clayton Cook want a housing plan to ensure the city could accommodate future skilled workers. Picture: Supplied.

A “perfect storm” in Townsville’s housing market threatens to impede the flow of skilled workers needed to deliver the city’s promising pipeline of projects, warns business leaders calling for a housing and skills security plan.

Townsville, like the rest of Australia, faces the challenge of recruiting thousands of skilled workers and migrants to build new homes, while competing against other industries and the 2032 Olympics.

With the city already straining for housing availability after recently cracking the 200,000 population mark, demographer Bernard Salt forecast another 34,000 people would need accommodation by 2040 – akin to adding six or seven new suburbs.

Townsville Chamber of Commerce chief executive Heidi Turner said our region boasts a promising future with a pipeline of projects slated for the next decade.

They include projects at Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct and Cleveland Bay Industrial Parks, Copper String 2.0, and hydrogen projects, while over $1bn will be spent by defence to relocate the Australian Army’s 29 Boeing AH-64E Apache attack helicopters and No. 1 Aviation Regiment.

Copperstring 2.0.

“However, we’re confronted with a perfect storm in the housing market, characterised by a severe scarcity of both housing and skilled tradespeople,” Ms Turner said.

“This challenge will be further exacerbated by Olympic infrastructure projects luring skilled tradespeople south over the next eight years.

Townsville Chamber of Commerce CEO Heidi Turner. Picture: Evan Morgan

“The existing housing shortage significantly hampers our capacity to accommodate local families and attract skilled labour already, which impedes the region’s development.”

She said addressing this multifaceted challenge demanded collaborative cross sector solutions, where everyone played a vital role.

TP Human Capital Managing Director Clayton Cook said the residential construction sector was a crucial element of an economy and business depended on a healthy residential market to operate successfully.

Angel Paws' North Queensland president Clayton Cook. Picture: Josephine Carter.

“Townsville has a residential construction worker shortage, and each year loses a significant number of workers through retirement and relocation,” Mr Cook said.

“The lack of available rental accommodation poses significant challenges for new residents looking to settle in Townsville.

“Without sufficient housing options, individuals and families may struggle to find suitable and affordable accommodation, potentially hindering the city’s ability to attract and retain skilled workers and professionals.”

Describing workforce shortages as the biggest challenge for the industry across all sectors, Master Builders Australia’s chief executive Denita Wawn said the federal government’s priority should be growing the building and construction workforce.

“Constraints on the supply side like workforce shortages, industrial relations changes and a poor planning system counter the full effectiveness of these measures,” Ms Wawm said.

“Productivity in the industry has fallen 18 per cent over the last decade.

“Domestically, we cannot fill this gap. We need to think outside of the box with better apprenticeship incentives, reskilling migrants already in Australia, and a targeted international campaign to bring in skilled migrants.”

Originally published as Business leaders Heidi Turner and Clayton Cook call for housing to support workforce