Australia's engineering skills and labour shortage is currently at its highest point in over a decade
What:
Engineers Australia will launch The Engineering Profession Statistical Overview Report and interactive dashboard.
This report draws upon data from the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics Census, supplemented by the latest education and migration datasets.
Insights from the report include:
- Australia's engineering skills and labour shortage is currently at its highest point in over a decade.
- A startling statistic: only 8.5 percent of Australian graduates hold engineering qualifications, ranking us the sixth lowest proportion among OECD nations.
- A growing gap between the demand for engineering skills and the supply of qualified professionals. Despite a significant increase in the number of qualified engineers between 2016 and 2021, demand outpaces supply, growing at three times the rate of the general workforce.
- Notably, most growth in the engineering labour force is attributed to overseas-born engineers.
- The importance of bolstering the engineering pipeline by increasing support for students pursuing tertiary-level engineering studies, aligning with initiatives such as the Universities Accord, Diversity in STEM review, and Employment White Paper.
- For the first time – the introduction of an interactive dashboard within this report, serves as a vital tool to facilitate government decision-making by providing customisable data tailored to specific use cases.
Who:
Hosted by the Hon. Dan Repacholi, with Engineers Australia National President and Chair Dr Nick Fleming, Engineers Australia CEO Romilly Madew AO, and Engineers Australia Policy and Public Affairs Group Executive Damian Ogden.
When: Wednesday 15 November 2023
Time: Arrival 10:40. Start 11:00 am until 11:30 am with networking until noon.
Where: Committee Room 2R2 - Parliament House, Canberra
Media release available
For media inquiries and registration, please contact:
Lisa McKoy | National Media Manager
LMcKoy@engineersaustralia.org.au
M: 0468 366 691 | T: 03 9321 1793 | Ext. 3793
engineersaustralia.org.au
