There’s a lot going on! With the easing of restrictions in Victoria imminent and as the Federal Government continuing to focus on the post-pandemic recovery, it’s hard to know what the key points for our industry are.

One thing is clear; the infrastructure and construction sectors will play a big and early part in boosting the economy and creating jobs. So, in this article, we will shed some light on the recent key government and industry announcements that will help you hold your own in any meeting, interview or just a coffee with colleagues.

The infrastructure and construction-led recovery – the key talking points

THE KEY POINTS

A quick overview – key developments to note include recent changes within the government’s Jobmaker program, which is fundamentally about helping the economy recover and improving unemployment rates.

Fast-tracking projects - infrastructure investment and deregulation form the basis of a five-year package (worth $1.5 billion) to immediately commence work on priority projects identified by states and territories. Scott Morrison hopes this will support “over 66,000 direct and indirect jobs”.

The big projects – there are 15 critical infrastructure projects, which including the Snowy 2.0, the inland rail from Brisbane to Melbourne, and the expansion of South Australia’s Olympic Dam. For more information, click here.

Smaller projects - the government has also allocated $1 billion for “shovel ready projects” that can commence within six months, and $500 million for local road safety works, if started by state and territory governments within 12 months. For more information, click here, but the basics are:

Federal and state governments will slash project assessment and approval times in half, from an average 3.5 years down to 21 months
An additional $500 million is available to local governments for roads and community infrastructure projects
$1.3 billion will also be brought forward from the 2020-21 Financial Assistance Grant for local councils to access.

What the industry thinks

Infrastructure Australia supports the government’s response and updated its Priority List to include 147 significant projects that would deliver lasting benefits across transport, water, energy, telecommunications and social infrastructure.
Master Builders’ Chief Economist, Shane Garrett, said its latest forecasts predict a substantial upswing in the coming year in engineering construction work, particularly on transport infrastructure, “contingent on state and territory governments working with the Federal Government to push shovel-ready projects out the door.”
CGC believes that smaller, ‘shovel-ready’ projects will be a clear winner as a driver of job creation, within the current environment, creating opportunities for Australian-owned SME businesses to deliver works up to $20M.

Industry optimism - while COVID has led to recruitment, placement and onboarding challenges, the construction sector has been less impacted than others. And in recent months CGC has seen significant market improvements. If some of these state and local government projects come along reasonably quickly, on the back of government stimulus for the economy, there's a lot of reason for optimism.

Recruitment insights

Continued high government spending has been a key driver of the construction market, spearheaded by the education, health, and aged care sectors. However, there are senior and experienced candidate shortages, primarily for defence, health, and education. With those areas projected to be busy in the coming years, this will put pressure on the talent pool.

We see commercial construction, industrial, defence and data centres as strong, and logistics as a growing space as more businesses move online.

To read our expert predictions for the infrastructure, architecture, property development, construction, and engineering recruitment sectors in the coming financial year, and what it means for you, download our CGC in Focus Report

CGC – your recruitment partner

At CGC Recruitment, our experienced consultants cover all major infrastructure, engineering and construction sectors. This industry specialist focus gives CGC a strong understanding of the project lifecycles, government policy and economic considerations impacting our sector and the demand for skilled professionals around Australia.

If you’re looking for the right team member for a COVID recovery project, get in touch with CGC and talk with one of our experienced consultants. If you’re looking for your next career opportunity and to play a role in Australia’s economic recovery, complete our online registration in just 30 seconds. Alternatively, contact us or search our jobs.

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