Queensland's Building Boom Meets a Labour Squeeze: What It Means for Builders in 2026

Queensland is building more homes than it has in a decade. Behind the headline, Master Builders Queensland's latest forecast and its 9 October follow-up both make the same point: the work is there, but finding enough qualified people to do it is the hard part. Here's what the numbers say and what builders who need labour in Queensland, Victoria and NSW can do now.

What did Master Builders Queensland forecast?

In its forecast release on 1 October 2026, Master Builders Queensland estimated that 44,592 new homes started across the state in 2025–26, a 22.4% increase on the year before. Apartments and other higher-density housing did most of the lifting, rising 56.2%, while detached house starts rose 4.7%.

Non-residential building is also likely to have hit a record, up 15.8% to $13.5 billion, led by retail and commercial work. Looking ahead, Master Builders expects 202,611 new homes to start over the next five years, 7.3% more than the previous five-year period, and about $64.8 billion of non-residential work over the five years to 2030–31, supported by government projects including Olympic venues.

The catch is labour. Master Builders Queensland's General Manager of Policy & Advocacy, Dyan Johnson, said: "Homebuilding in Queensland faces serious headwinds, particularly with skilled trades." The organisation also notes that competition for workers will intensify as major infrastructure programs ramp up.

How big is Queensland's construction workforce gap?

Construction Skills Queensland (CSQ) puts numbers on the problem in its Horizon 2032 outlook (2026 edition, using data to December 2025). It forecasts Queensland's construction pipeline growing from about $60 billion in 2025–26 to a peak of $75 billion in 2027–28, with average labour demand peaking at around 148,300 workers that year.

CSQ's previous outlook had projected a 50,000-worker peak in 2026–27, so the latest forecast is later and smaller. But CSQ says the pressure is now expected to arrive in stages and last longer: building work peaks in 2027–28, while engineering and civil work keeps climbing to a peak in 2030–31. In other words, there's no quick end to the squeeze.

Which trades will be hardest to find?

CSQ lists the occupations most in shortage across Queensland's pipeline:

• Building: carpenters and joiners, building and plumbing labourers, painters, plumbers, electricians, plasterers, bricklayers and stonemasons, concreters and construction managers.
• Engineering and civil: concreters, labourers, earthmoving and plant operators, electricians, construction managers, structural steel workers and civil engineers.

Concreters, labourers and electricians appear on both lists, which means residential builders and civil contractors will be chasing the same people. If your program relies on those trades, expect longer lead times and firmer rates.

What's happening on Brisbane 2032 venues?

Olympic and Paralympic venue work is moving from planning to delivery. The Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority (GIICA) took possession of the Victoria Park site on 1 June 2026, and early works for the 63,000-seat Brisbane Stadium, including earthworks, clearing, demolition and utility works, are underway. Initial works for the National Aquatic Centre began on 1 September 2026. Main construction of the stadium is scheduled to start in 2027, which lines up with CSQ's forecast building peak.

GIICA's program covers 17 new and upgraded venues, with design teams appointed for projects including Barlow Park Stadium, Sunshine Coast Stadium and the Moreton Bay and Logan indoor sports centres. GIICA's leadership has flagged workforce availability and competing infrastructure demand as risks that need active management.

Where in Queensland is building activity strongest?

Master Builders Queensland's 9 October release shows a mixed month: total dwelling approvals fell 22.5% in August 2026 (ABS data), driven by a 56.1% drop in unit approvals, while detached house approvals rose 6.3%. Over the three months to August, approvals were up 15.1% on the Gold Coast and 8.4% in Greater Brisbane, but down 12.7% on the Sunshine Coast. Regional Queensland was stronger, with Central Queensland up 30.6% and Mackay & Whitsunday up 28.1%.

Approvals move around month to month, but for labour planning the trend matters more: the Gold Coast, Brisbane and regional centres all have rising pipelines competing for the same trades.

Does this matter if I build in Victoria or NSW?

Yes. Among its recommendations, Master Builders Queensland wants more skilled workers recruited from interstate and overseas, alongside more apprentices, less red tape and productivity reform. As Queensland's peak approaches, mobile tradespeople and ticketed workers from Melbourne and Sydney may be drawn north, so southern builders should not assume today's labour supply will hold through 2027–28.

What should builders do now?

• Book key trades earlier. For carpentry, concreting, electrical and labouring crews, give your suppliers as much notice as possible, particularly for starts in 2027.
• Map your peaks. Work out when each project needs its biggest crew and where those peaks overlap. That's where a gap will cost you most.
• Keep a flexible layer. A core team plus labour hire for peaks, pours and short-notice cover avoids carrying extra wages through quieter weeks.
• Budget for tighter rates. Where demand outstrips supply, rates and lead times usually firm. See our 2026 labour hire rates guide.
• Use licensed providers. Queensland and Victoria both require labour hire providers to be licensed. Check your provider's licence before workers start.

How Dash Group can help

Dash Group is a licensed labour hire provider in Queensland and Victoria, with offices in Brisbane (Milton), the Gold Coast (Surfers Paradise) and Melbourne, which also looks after NSW and Sydney projects. We supply general labourers, carpenters, formwork, steel and concrete workers, electricians, civil crews and skilled and ticketed workers such as traffic controllers, EWP and forklift operators, dogmen and riggers. Each client has one dedicated consultant, and when a worker calls in sick we can often have a replacement on site within 2–4 hours. Talk to our Brisbane labour hire or Gold Coast labour hire team, or our Melbourne office for Victoria and NSW.

Sources: Master Builders Queensland, "Forecast Queensland building boom sharpens workforce challenge" (1 October 2026); Master Builders Queensland, "Yes, we can: Queensland's ambitious construction pipeline possible with focus on robust workforce" (9 October 2026); Construction Skills Queensland, Horizon 2032: Imagining Queensland's future construction workforce, 2026 edition (key findings); GIICA, Victoria Park construction notice (September 2026); Australasian Leisure Management, "GIICA reports progress on Brisbane 2032 venues as delivery program advances" (2 October 2026); Australian Bureau of Statistics, Building Approvals, Australia, August 2026 (as reported by Master Builders Queensland). Dash Group is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of these organisations.