Small business owners across the state have reported a lack of people willing to live outside cities was a significant challenge to their ability to grow and service their clients as fewer apprentices appeared interested in working in regional, rural or remote communities.
At Coalstoun Lakes, North Burnett Plumbing directors Nikita and Terry Staib said they are turning away 50 per cent of new business due to a lack of people willing to work in the region.
"We advertised 18 months ago for a school leaver with the view of putting on an apprentice," Mr Staib said.
"Our job advertisement on social media had two applicants, a former bus driver who only wanted the drive the truck but not do manual labour which is 70 per cent of the job and another person who did not have the right attitude."
Ms Staib said she had contacted three local high schools regarding potential school-based apprenticeships or students leaving who wanted a job, but received no response.
They also contacted a local hire company, apprenticeship schemes in Bundaberg and the regional representative of the Master Plumbers' Association of Queensland to see if they could help.
"They were wonderful to deal with but were not able to find a suitable applicant," Mr Staib said.
He said son Ryan had been "invaluable during school holidays and on weekends" but had chosen to take on an auto-electrical apprenticeship elsewhere.
"We know of other plumbers around the state who have spent a considerable amount on advertising for tradespeople but with no result," he said.
"So we have decided to focus on gap-filing for other local plumbers, such as taking on gas-fitting or specialist jobs which we are fully endorsed to do."
"All the local plumbers have really good professional relationships and are helpful rather than competitive as there's so much work," Mrs Staib said.
Mr Staib said he felt as one of the last plumbers from the era where they made water tanks and worked in sheet metal, he hoped to be able to pass on tips, skills and expertise to the next generation.
"I feel there's a stigma around the plumbing trade about working with waste but it's only about 10 per cent of the job," he said.
"We work with metals, plastic, timber ,hydro-excavation and mini earthworks using an excavator and a bobcat.
"Plumbing offers great job security and everyone is really happy when you turn up to fix their problem."
According to the Regional Australia Institute's interactive regional job vacancy map, in Toowomba and south west Queensland there's 2242 jobs available, with approximately 400 in the engineering and trade worker category.
It's a statistic which does not surprise Biggenden Engineering Works, owners general manager Julie Chapman and her husband and CEO Glen Chapman.
They founded their business nearly 30 years ago and said their company which specialises in manufacturing a variety of equipment for the agricultural, transport, earth-moving and constructions industries has vacancies for senior apprentices as fewer people choose a trade outside urban centres.
But the business partners said they have been future-proofing for some time by training and developing skilled tradespeople, which they said not only benefits them but also the community, the region and the wider agricultural industry.
"We are a small company with a dozen people," Mrs Chapman said.
"Ideally at any one time we have four apprentices as this keeps the skills level going through the business and currently we are looking for a third and a fourth year apprentice."
Mr Chapman said their staff shortage began during the pandemic and impacted their long-term training regime.
"During COVID we had people come in and we offered them jobs but they said the government was giving them more money to stay at home," he said.
"This means we lost the opportunity for nearly two years which put us behind, but we have developed a talented workforce despite being in a smaller market for trades-skilled people."
They said while Biggenden was a fantastic place to live, potential workers would often turn down the opportunity to live in a small town before they investigated the benefits country living offered.
"Everyone wants a bush-change but some people still want lots of coffee shops," he said.
Meanwhile, the business has committed time, funds and energy to develop a pool of locals with skills needed in the bush.
"We were regional winners for Central Queensland Small Employer of the Year 2015 and state finalists as well," Mrs Chapman said.
"And we provide a Trade Award for Biggenden State High School and have sponsored this award since 1998 as a source of future talent for apprenticeships."
Mr Chapman said the success of their company in the face of a worker shortage is due to the fact their staff possess multiple trade qualifications.
"Most of our apprenticeships are in boiler-making," he said.
"Because we are small and versatile, all our workers get trained on drill presses and lathes and are multi-skilled.
"They can cut their own steel, some of our boiler makers are really welders, we train our guys so they can fit, machine and fabricate both heavy and light so we cover all aspects of different trades."
Mrs Chapman holds a B.Arts (Bus) and post graduate qualifications in small business and commerce and said her husband has gained additional full trade qualifications, partly so he can train apprentices in a specialty and partly because it makes good business sense to be on top of all the trades he supervises in their workshop.
"As well as holding a diploma of engineering, Glen has an Advanced Trade Cert IV and holds qualifications in sheet metal, boilermaking, diesel fitting and is a fitter and turner," she said.
"Our qualified draftsman Russell Banks is doing a second trade as a boilermaker as he supervises this trade himself and this qualification will be another feather in his cap,
"And Jamie been here for 19 years, first as a trainee then an apprentice and now he's a leading hand diesel fitter and a boilermaker."
Mr Chapman said keeping up with government red tape would put off a less innovative business.
"A big hiccup occurred when the government deemed even if you had been in the job for 30 years you cannot train an apprentice unless you have a certificate in that trade," he said.
"This puts more pressure upon the employer."
Recently the Queensland Government announced it will cover the cost of training with a training provider for a high priority apprenticeship or traineeship in area including primary industry and horticulture, construction and civil engineering and aviation and process manufacturing.
Know more about this issue? Contact Alison Paterson on 0437 861 082.
