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Building and Plumbing Labourers

Building and Plumbing Labourers perform a variety of routine tasks associated with erecting and repairing structures and facilities, maintaining stormwater, drainage and sewerage systems, excavating earth and clearing and levelling sites, and installing and maintaining piping systems, fixtures and water regulators.

Trades & constructionLicensed workANZSCO 8211
$1,827/wkMedian full-time pay
70kPeople employed
+6% ▲Growth to 2035
82%Work full time
32Median age
Source: ABS · JSA, 2025-26ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Labour Force via Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), February 2026; ABS Employee Earnings and Hours May 2025; JSA Employment Projections, May 2025 base. ANZSCO 8211.More about our sources: How we check our facts

What they do

The main tasks of this occupation, from the national occupation standard.

loading and unloading building and construction materials, tools and equipment and transporting them around building siteserecting and dismantling temporary structures such as barricades and scaffoldingmixing, pouring and spreading materials such as concrete, plaster and mortarcleaning and carrying out minor repairs on stormwater drains and canals, and checking for cracks and leaks in sewerage systemsdigging holes and shovelling excavated material onto conveyors, wheelbarrows and trucks for removalspreading and levelling soil, gravel and sand on roads and driveways, trench bottoms and similar locations
Source: JSA occupation profileTask list from the Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profile for ANZSCO 8211 (ANZSCO task statements).More about our sources: How we check our facts

The outlook

Room for 4,700 more people in building and plumbing labourers by 2035 ▲

The field shrank 0.1% in the year to February 2026, losing about 100 workers. Most of the jobs are in NSW and VIC, with QLD third.

Source: JSA · ABS, 2025-26ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Labour Force via Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), February 2026; ABS Employee Earnings and Hours May 2025; JSA Employment Projections, May 2025 base. ANZSCO 8211.More about our sources: How we check our facts
73k2025
75.2k2030 PROJ.
77.7k2035 PROJ.

Getting in

There is no single way in. 34% trained through VET, 6% hold a degree.

Both paths are common in this field. These are the nationally recognised courses mapped to this occupation, with the number of registered training providers that offer each one.

Source: JSA · training.gov.auEducation split: JSA (Jobs and Skills Australia) occupation profile, using ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Census data, ANZSCO 8211. Qualification mapping and provider counts: training.gov.au, the national register of vocational education, October 2026. Listed providers are current registered training providers (private providers and TAFE institutes).More about our sources: How we check our facts

Nationally recognised training · most offered first

CPC20220Certificate II

Certificate II in Construction Pathways

Construction, Plumbing and Services Training Package.

See 76 providers
CPC10126Certificate I

Certificate I in Construction

Construction, Plumbing and Services Training Package · licensed work.

See 67 providers
CPC20120Certificate II

Certificate II in Construction

Construction, Plumbing and Services Training Package.

See 35 providers

Licensed work: several of these courses lead to work that also needs a state or territory licence. Training is the first step; licensing rules are set by each state.

See all 10 mapped courses
CPC20220Certificate II in Construction Pathways · 76 providers
CPC10126Certificate I in Construction · 67 providers
CPC20120Certificate II in Construction · 35 providers
CPC30426Certificate III in Demolition · 14 providers
52893WACertificate II in Building and Construction (Pathway - Trades) · 10 providers
CPC20720Certificate II in Drainage · 10 providers
11410NATCertificate II in Plumbing Pathways · 3 providers
11312NATCertificate II in Indigenous Housing Repairs and Maintenance · 2 providers
CPC20822Certificate II in Prefabricated Concrete Element Installation · 1 provider
SIF30213Certificate III in Gravedigging, Grounds and Maintenance · 0 providers

Providers are shown in A-Z order on each course page. A listing is not a recommendation.

Jobs open right now

70k Australians do this work. See who is hiring this month.

Search job ads by state

Each link opens seek.com.au in a new tab, showing ads posted in the last month. SEEK is a job site; we link there because that is where most Australian jobs are advertised. We have no commercial relationship with SEEK.

Source: ABS · JSA, 2025-26State chart shows people employed, not current job ads. ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) Labour Force via Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), February 2026; ABS Employee Earnings and Hours May 2025; JSA Employment Projections, May 2025 base. ANZSCO 8211.More about our sources: How we check our facts

People employed by state, 2025-26

NSW26.7k
VIC15.6k
QLD13.7k
WA6.5k
SA4.8k
ACT1k
TAS0.8k
NT0.5k