New Zealand Is Short of Plumbers: What It Means for Skilled Tradespeople From South Africa

News · 2026-08-31 · 4 min read

Every home, hospital and office in New Zealand depends on someone who can fit a pipe, connect a gas line or lay a drain. Right now, the country does not have enough of those people, and the gap is widening. The causes sit partly in training and partly in migration, which is why the shortage matters to anyone thinking about work in New Zealand from South Africa.

Infometrics, an economic forecasting firm, estimates that roughly 1,450 plumbing, gasfitting and drainlaying roles will need filling over the coming year alone. Three forces are behind that demand: an ageing workforce, a steady stream of workers leaving for Australia, and a construction sector that is starting to recover. New Zealand is not training enough new people to keep up.

Apprentices Are Drying Up

Master Plumbers, the industry body, gives the scale of the problem. Fewer than one in five plumbing businesses currently take on apprentices. Across construction as a whole, the share falls to as low as 10–15 percent. New apprentice numbers dropped sharply again this year, after a steep fall the year before. During the recession, margins got tighter, and smaller firms found it too costly to carry trainees through the early months when they produce little.

People who have spent decades in the trade describe taking on an apprentice as a long-term investment. A business can wait five years before it sees a real return. That makes training one of the first costs to go when work slows, and one of the last to come back when work returns.

Qualified Workers Crossing the Tasman

The tradespeople leaving the workforce are mostly not retiring early or changing careers. They are leaving the country.

Freshly qualified plumbers are moving to Australia, where pay can be close to double. A jump from around NZ$30 an hour to AU$55 is not unusual. Some estimates from recent trade cohorts suggest nearly half of a graduating class may move to Australia soon after qualifying. For a young tradesperson weighing up career, earnings and lifestyle, the choice is easy, even though it leaves New Zealand employers short.

This is a familiar pattern. A developed economy trains skilled workers and then loses them to a neighbour that pays more. Migration pathways exist to fill exactly that kind of gap. New Zealand has to look past its own workers, while Australia keeps drawing internationally qualified tradespeople.

The Retirement Wave

Age makes the problem worse. In New Zealand, the average certifying plumber, gasfitter or drainlayer is now 49 years old. Industry figures suggest around 1,000 tradespeople still working on the tools are already older than 65 and close to retirement. These trades protect safe drinking water, sanitation and gas supply, so the shortage is about public health and safety as much as building timelines.

Two Ways to Widen the Pool

Experienced people in the industry point to two fixes that go further than training more apprentices. Both are about untapped talent and overlooked pathways.

Bring more people into the trade. Women make up under one percent of the licensed plumbing, gasfitting and drainlaying workforce in New Zealand. Many women show interest, yet say they struggle even to get an interview.
Recruit from overseas. Training providers face their own problems, including patchy course availability, a lack of tutors and old equipment. As local pipelines shrink, skilled migration is turning from an optional extra into something the country needs to keep essential infrastructure work staffed.

What South African Tradespeople Should Take From This

For employers in New Zealand's construction and trades sector, the message is to look seriously at skilled migration instead of fighting over a shrinking local pool. For qualified tradespeople abroad, especially plumbers, gasfitters and drainlayers, it points to real, lasting demand and an industry looking for experienced hands.

If you hold a South African trade certificate, remember that trades are usually assessed again abroad, and in New Zealand some trades, plumbing among them, need occupational registration before you can work. Start gathering your trade test results, references and work records early so you are ready when the right role comes up.

As New Zealand works out how to rebuild its trades pipeline, migration has moved from the edge of the workforce conversation to its centre.

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