According to an industry group, the construction industry will need another 30,000 workers within just the next two years. Civil Contractors New Zealand (CCNZ) stated that not enough people were being attracted to the construction sector which was expected to grow by 4.7 percent, twice the national job growth rate by 2019.
This boom in demand is driven by two large consumers of construction talent. Firstly the Christchurch earthquakes and subsequent rebuilds are draining local talent and secondly the Auckland property and population boom is creating unprecedented levels of construction in New Zealand's largest city.
This pressure on the NZ labour markets is creating an opportunity for skilled workers to enter NZ under the essential skills programme. The essential skills work visa programme covers many sectors but certainly construction is a significantly active one.
According to the Business, Innovation and Employment Ministry forecasts, one in five new jobs created between 2016 and 2019 would be in construction,
Statistics NZ figures recently showed that almost 80 percent of construction firms reported vacancies last year.