Media release

South Coast manager of O’Brien Plumbing Owen Davies said with the industry booming and plumbing apprenticeships increasingly hard to fill, the course could empower more local young people to consider the trade.

“This will make a huge difference as it will give students an opportunity to see if they like the trade and will make it a lot easier to get apprentices to make that transition from high school,” Mr Davies said.

“We are definitely in a skills shortage here on the South Coast. Previously, we would get five or six applicants to job ads, now we’re lucky to get any.”

He said with new housing estates being established in the region and major infrastructure projects – such as the new Moruya Hospital – under construction, the demand for plumbers was in a steep growth phase.

“Our workload has been steadily increasing over the last few years and it looks like it will continue,” he said.

According to website EconomyID, the construction industry had the largest number of total registered businesses in Eurobodalla Shire, comprising 28.1 per cent of all total businesses, compared to 17.1 per cent in New South Wales.

Eurobodalla Shire Mayor Mat Hatcher said the new course would help the local plumbing industry cultivate more homegrown talent and help it meet a looming construction boom.

“It’s a great step and one that will benefit not just our shire, but surrounding shires too,” Cr Hatcher said.

“We have a masterplan to reimagine the CBD and surrounds in Batemans Bay and we are going to need more and more tradies to complete that work.”

TAFE NSW Plumbing Teacher and Batemans Bay local Ethan Fisher, who will run the new course, said it would help build a pathway to the trades for school leavers.

“We know that if young people have already had a taste of a trade in high school, they’re more likely to pursue it as a career when they leave school,” Mr Fisher said.

“Plumbing is such a diverse and rewarding career path, and TAFE NSW graduates are in demand all over Australia and the world.”

He said the course would give students a taste of many aspects of the industry, including hot and cold water services, fire services, and drainage.

**Media Contact:**Dan Johns, TAFE NSW Communications Specialist, 02 7920 5000.

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