The survey said staff were required for commercial, industrial, fit-out and refurbishment projects, and the most highly sought-after professionals were project managers, estimators, contract administrators, site managers and foremen. It said occupational health and safety professionals with construction industry skills were also in demand.The city-by-city analysis found demand in Sydney had been created by a skills shortage and there was real concern for the immediate future of some companies awarded projects without quality applicants to fill key roles.In Brisbane there is high demand for anyone with commercial and industrial project experience, the surge due to projects in the suburbs.Numerous vacancies exist for project managers, contract administrators and site managers in Adelaide, where unemployment is at an all time low within the construction sector.The strongest demand in Melbourne is for senior project managers or those with good all-round skills sets. And in Perth, demand for candidates with health and education experience, from building cadets to senior project managers, is high, due to the state government’s allocation of a large budget to these types of projects.The survey said during the next quarter there would be far more jobs than candidates in Adelaide; demand would diminish slightly in Brisbane; the trend for both permanent and temporary staff in Sydney and Perth would continue; and smaller Melbourne builders would be looking for permanent staff. It said there were considerable opportunities at an executive level within some construction companies in Sydney and Melbourne, but little movement in the other cities surveyed. During the past year, 58% of employers increased salaries 3-6%, with 21% increasing their salaries by up to 3%. About 18% raised salaries by 6-10% and 3% lifted salaries by more than 10%. “However salary increases over the past 12 months have been restrained, considering the level of skills shortages prevalent,” the survey said
