MTAA calls for automotive trades to gain migration priority

The Motor Trades Association of Australia is urging the Federal Government to give automotive occupations greater priority in skilled migration policy as worsening labour shortages leave vacancies unfilled.

The association says automotive retail, servicing and repair have been overlooked as migration discussions focus on the construction workers needed to meet Australia’s housing targets.

Its 2026 Industry Skills Shortages Survey found more than 90% of automotive employers considered recruitment difficult or very difficult, while 75% said finding workers had become harder over the past three years.

The industry’s vacancy fill rate was 48%, well below Jobs and Skills Australia’s 67% shortage threshold, while 38% of positions remained vacant.

Average applications per vacancy fell from 8.2 in 2024 to three in 2026, with 68% of employers expecting shortages to worsen during the next year.

MTAA executive director Bruce Billson says the automotive workforce supports industries including mining, construction, agriculture, transport and logistics.

“Mining trucks don’t service themselves. Construction equipment doesn’t maintain itself. Agricultural machinery doesn’t repair itself,” Billson says.

“Behind these sectors are automotive technicians, diesel mechanics, panel beaters and auto electricians making it all possible, and we simply cannot find enough of them.”

The automotive industry employs more than 320,000 Australians and supports a national fleet of over 22 million registered vehicles.

MTAA’s submission to Jobs and Skills Australia identifies persistent shortages of motor mechanics, diesel technicians, automotive electricians, panel beaters and vehicle painters.

It also argues agricultural mechanics, tyre fitters and tow-truck drivers are experiencing significant recruitment difficulties despite being classified as occupations with no shortage.

The association wants shortage classifications and migration settings updated to reflect current labour conditions and provide access to skilled migration pathways where gaps can be demonstrated.

Billson says the focus on electricians, plumbers and carpenters needed to support the National Housing Accord target of 1.2 million homes is understandable but incomplete.

“The excavators, cranes, trucks and vehicles that make construction sites function also need qualified technicians to maintain and repair them,” he says.

“If you can’t keep the equipment running, the work stops.”

MTAA says problems within the domestic training system are adding to the pressure.

Almost four in 10 automotive and engineering trade apprenticeships are not completed within six years, while 43% of surveyed employers said existing training pathways were not producing suitable workers.

Only 10% considered the current pathways adequate.

The growing complexity of vehicles, including electrification, advanced driver-assistance systems and high-voltage diagnostics, is also increasing demand for specialist capabilities.

MTAA is calling for a combined approach involving stronger apprenticeship pathways, increased training support and targeted skilled migration.

“Skilled migration is a necessary short-to-medium-term measure, but it must complement, not replace, a properly resourced domestic training system,” Billson says.