Jobs waiting to be filled, small and big businesses in dire need of skilled workers

Big businesses say they’re screaming out for staff in hundreds of jobs across Toowoomba and the Darling Downs, and they say the resumes aren’t coming through. These are the positions they’re desperate to fill.

TOOWOOMBA business owners are receiving only a handful of applications for once high-in-demand roles as the city’s industry experts fear the job market is set to worsen.

Engineers, mechanics, psychologists, child care workers and aged care workers are just some of the professionals needed to fill jobs in Toowoomba, following a national trend indicated by data from the National Skills Commission.

Toowoomba’s current unemployment rate is 5.8 per cent and has a 71 per cent employment rate, data from the federal government showed.

Wagner’s co-founder and non-executive chairman Denis Wagner said they’re in need of a number of employees including; electricians, diesel fitters, spray painters, boiler makers, plant operators, truck drivers, production workers, and pipe layers.

“The lack of workers is certainly a challenge for us. From what I understand, it applies to most employers in the region, around Australia and the world,” he said.

Wagners is a leading producer of construction materials and services nationally and internationally, and has its base in Toowoomba where it employs the majority of its workforce.

Mr Wagner said the federal government needs to create an environment to bring migrant workers in and through the proper channels.

Proterra Group, located in East Toowoomba, provides civil engineering, regional project management, asset management and waste management services across the nation.

However, due to the lack of skilled engineers available at the moment, operations manager Jim O’Dea said they have had to make the strategic decision to place more focus on the other facets of the business.

“Growing the engineering team is what I really like to do, but I just can‘t do it at the moment and therefore I’m focusing on other parts of the business that I know I’m going be able to find resources for,” he said.

The lack of mobility of people as a result of the Covid pandemic over the last two years and a scarcity of engineering graduates has led to a breakdown in the pipeline, Mr O’Dea said.

“There‘s a real lack of engineering graduates and, I don’t know why, but a lack of interest in that occupation, perhaps at the upper secondary school levels,” he said.

Mr O’Dea said when there’s a small pool of engineers, bigger companies also have a better opportunity to make their offers more attractive with incentives and higher salaries.

“If you‘re a small engineering consultant consultancy that’s going to be a real problem because you’re not paying over the odds to get someone in, then you’ve suddenly got a disparity between your existing staff and your new staff,” he said.

Tilly’s Crawler Parts’ general manager of operations Lance Hinrichsen said finding mechanics has been incredibly difficult, and he predicts it will only get worse now that New Acland Coal Stage Three expansion is set to commence in a few months.

“There’s usually an exit of workers who go to work on the mines because of better pay,” he said.

“We used to have 120 applicants for a job … now we’re lucky if we reach double digits.”

Both state and federal governments have created incentives for employers and young people entering the workforce to fill industries in dire need of skilled professionals.

The Palaszczuk government has extended its free TAFE and apprenticeships to under 25s until 2023 as employers still need to fill jobs.

Queenslanders aged under 25 can continue to enrol in 26 Free TAFE programs and 139 Free apprenticeships programs up until June 30, 2023 and pay no course fees.

The federal government also created the Australian Apprenticeships Incentive System which commenced July 1 to provide financial assistance to hire, train and retain an apprentice.

However, Mr Hinrichsen said while these initiatives are great for onboarding new workers, there aren’t enough skilled professionals who are able to train new apprentices.

“Having the proper mentorship for these individuals now is incredibly hard … we try to take on as many apprentices as we can as we recognise that this is a long-term solution to the problem,” he said.