NewsBite

HTTP/1.1 200 OKServer: nginxContent-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8X-Powered-By: WordPress VIP Host-Header: a9130478a60e5f9135f765b23f26593bX-Content-Type-Options: nosniffX-XSS-Protection: 1x-rq: syd3 123 243 443Cache-Control: must-revalidate, max-age=300Expires: Thu, 30 Jan 2025 20:16:28 GMTDate: Thu, 30 Jan 2025 20:11:28 GMTTransfer-Encoding:  chunkedConnection: keep-aliveConnection: Transfer-EncodingSet-Cookie: nk=d4fd537ff29480321d64cc0d8815e26d; expires=Fri, 30-Jan-2026 20:11:28 GMT; domain=.heraldsun.com.au; secure; SameSite=NoneStrict-Transport-Security: max-age=31536000 ; includeSubDomainsContent-Security-Policy-Report-Only: frame-ancestors 'self'; report-uri https://www.heraldsun.com.au/csp-reportsContent-Security-Policy: block-all-mixed-content; style-src https: 'unsafe-inline'; script-src https: blob: 'unsafe-inline' 'unsafe-eval'; img-src https: data:; frame-src https:;BlaizeHappened: trueX-ARRRG5: /blaize/decision-engine?path=https%3a%2f%2fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2fweb-stories%2ffree%2fherald-sun%2fhow-much-melbourne-tradies-earn%3fnk%3dd4fd537ff29480321d64cc0d8815e26d-1711775422&blaizehost=v4-news-au-heraldsun.cdn.zephr.com&content_id=&session=d4fd537ff29480321d64cc0d8815e26dX-ARRRG4: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/X-PathQS: TRUEVary: User-AgentAkamai-GRN: 0.4e4e6168.1738267887.5b7707aHow much Melbourne tradies earn | Herald Sun
It certainly pays to be a tradie in Melbourne at the moment, with new statistics revealing the impressive amount workers in the construction sector are earning compared to the rest of Australia and the world.
The average hourly wage across Melbourne's construction sector in Melbourne is $124 – the seventh highest in the world.
How much tradies pocket
The whopping rates, which are beaten only by four US cities and two Swiss cities, are higher than other capitals in Australia and work out to be $243,000 a year for those working 38-hour weeks.
The figures are contained in an international construction sector survey by consultants Turner & Townsend that assesses labour market conditions in 88 markets across the world.
Senior construction sources said the figures partly explained why major infrastructure was so expensive to build in Victoria, but the Australian Workers’ Union believes the high wages are a badge of honour for the state.
Covid-19 has wreaked havoc across the construction sector, with skills shortages contributing to an explosion in labour costs.
Why wages are so high
Across Australia and New Zealand there has been a 6.5 per cent increase over 12 months, but a whopping 28 per cent increase in labour costs since 2019.
Some high-skilled jobs are now commanding eye-watering pay packets in Australia, with the poaching of specialist engineers and project managers common along the eastern seaboard.
One senior source at a top tier building firm in Australia said even people holding stop signs on mega projects could earn $110,000 a year.
They said electricians were commanding rates equivalent of $240,000 a year, and carpenters $220,000, which was leading to “astronomical” costs across mega builds.
Top average hourly construction wages in the world (AUD)
Geneva:
$175.50
Zurich:
$174.75
San Francisco:
$172.82
New York:
$169.48
Boston:
$163.55
Los Angeles:
$134.64
Melbourne:
$124.26
Words: Matt JohnstonProducer: Andrew PivaAnimations: Andrew Bedford

Original URL: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/web-stories/free/herald-sun/how-much-melbourne-tradies-earn