Tradeswomen Australia Community Foundation

The Federal and State Government's throughout Australia are being urged ensure increasing employment and housing for vulnerable women are built into the COVID national recovery strategies.  

The Tradeswomen Australia Community Foundation welcomed the announcement today by the Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, of the Federal Government’s Local Recovery Fund aimed at increasing employment in 25 regions across Australia. 

Janet Cribbes, Chair of the Tradeswomen Australia Community Foundation, which has been set up to assist vulnerable women and help them gain employment in the trades, said “now is the time to drive a national employment campaign to lift the number of women employed in the trades and increase housing for vulnerable women." 

Currently the National Skills Needs List (2019) lists 65 trades that are experiencing national skills shortages. Of those, 62 can be classed as male-dominated trades; only 3 could be classed as female-dominated.

Ms Cribbes said the new program announced today by Minister Cash would assist women gain employment in the trades, one of the Federal Government's stated objectives, which we welcome and support.  

“The COVID recovery ‘shovel ready’ projects provide a substantial opportunity for Federal and State Government's to address and promote the employment of tradeswomen and careers in the trades to schools and the broader community, including parents.” 

"The Federal Government's $1.2 billion budget commitment to fund 50% of apprentice’s wages for one year should also provide an opportunity to lift the participation rate of women in the Trades area and we would look to this being extended and to the Government actively engaging with women to promote this opportunity. "

Ms Cribbes said a growing number of women in Australia will continue to face financial hardship and a greater risk of homelessness during retirement. It is important to provide a focus on creating increased employment opportunities in the post COVID recovery.

“Part of the challenge is the need for a coordinated approach to lift the number of women employed across all trades.”

Tradeswomen Australia Community Foundation Taking Action 

Tradeswomen Australia Community Foundation aims to boost Australia’s recovery and women’s financial security by encouraging employment in trades. 

We do this by: 

• Supporting vulnerable and at-risk women to transition to financial and life security through career, education, and other pathways 

• Resourcing peer support groups, career, and personal mentoring, 

• Providing training in resilience, engagement, and careers 

• Ensuring potential employers are welcoming and inclusive 

• Connecting women to our network of employers, primarily in trades-related industries. 

Who we focus on: 

We focus on women in vulnerable demographics, including: 

• relatively recently arrived in Australia 

• in lower-income households 

• recovering from traumatic experiences 

• experiencing or having experienced other hardship or adverse circumstances