Western Australia faces severe trade shortage

A severe tradie shortage in Western Australia is tipped to impact on the home building sector, blowing out construction waiting times to almost double what they are now.

According to a West Australian report this week (November 28), the state's biggest building companies are concerned about the looming shortage, which is tipped to be the worst the industry has seen.

Robert Shaw, president of Master Builders Australia, attributed the problem to less employers training new apprentices and more qualified tradespeople leaving the sector in favour of mining opportunities in the resource-rich state.

"What we've got at the moment is that a lot of people have left the industry but there hasn't been the flow-through of apprentices," Mr Shaw explained.

The expert went on to say that a lack of construction workers would see the build time for new homes increase significantly to about a year, placing more demand on the sector as a result.

"We are going to see the worst trade shortage ever in the building industry in WA," he added.

The issue is likely to be exacerbated by an influx of first time buyers looking to construct their own home.