QUALIFIED ELECTRICIANS LEFT WAITING FOR LICENCES AMID SKILLS SHORTAGE

Newly qualified electricians are being left on the sidelines for weeks as the Cook Labor Government struggles to process electrical licences within its own 10 business-day target.

Answers to parliamentary questions reveal the median processing time for apprentice-to-electrician licence applications has blown out from 17 business days in 2023 to 38 business days in 2026 – more than double in just three years.

Shadow Minister for Training and Workforce Development Tjorn Sibma said the delays were indefensible at a time when Western Australia was crying out for skilled tradespeople.

“At the very time WA desperately needs more electricians, the Cook Labor Government is leaving newly qualified tradespeople sitting on the sidelines waiting weeks for a licence,” Mr Sibma said.

“These people have completed their apprenticeship, achieved the required trade qualifications and provided their police check. They are not waiting to learn how to become electricians, they are waiting for the Government to process their paperwork.”

“A 10-business-day target has become a median wait of 38 business days. That is almost four times the Government’s own benchmark.

”The licensing process requires applicants to provide their completed application, fee, trade certificate and relevant qualification, and an Australian police check. Licensing Services then checks the documentation, qualifications and fit-and proper requirements.

There is also no statutory requirement for the Electrical Licensing Board to approve apprentice-to-electrician licence applications, meaning the process does not require applications to wait for a board meeting or further competency assessment.

Nearly 4,000 applications have been received since 2023, yet only four failed to result in a licence — and those applications lapsed because required documentation was not provided.

“This is overwhelmingly an administrative process, not another examination of whether somebody can safely do the job,” Mr Sibma said.

“The Government knew apprentice numbers were increasing, it has spent years encouraging more people into TAFE and the trades, and it should have ensured its licensing system could cope with the resulting demand.“Instead, processing times have gone backwards while qualified electricians are ready and waiting to get to work.

“The Minister needs to switch on, clear the backlog and get licensing times back to the 10-day target.

“When an apprentice has completed their training, demonstrated their competency and satisfied the licensing requirements, government bureaucracy should not be the thing stopping them from getting to work.”