The Hon. H.J. GUMBYS (15:19): I rise today to speak about women in trades and about the work being led by the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union to ensure women can not only enter our industries but build long and rewarding careers in them. I began my own apprenticeship in 1988 and spent decades on the tools in defence and aerospace advanced manufacturing and served as an AMWU shop steward or delegate. I know a trade can provide secure work, good wages and a future for a family.
For too long, too many women have had encounters and obstacles in sharing those opportunities. In 2025, women made up only 11½ per cent of trade apprentices in training across Australia and only one in five Australian workers are employed in a gender-balanced occupation. These figures show that significant barriers continue to prevent many women from pursuing and remaining in trade careers. The issue is not a lack of skills, strength or determination, the issue is that workplace and structural difficulties still exist, from recruitment through to apprenticeship completion and long-term employment.
The AMWU's Women's Voices from the Floor report listened to 71 women working in traditionally male-dominated sectors, including mining, manufacturing, automotive and other non-traditional VET industries. Seventy-eight per cent reported bias or discrimination. Fewer than half felt safe reporting workplace issues, citing retaliation and the 'men protecting men' culture as a barrier. Almost 35 per cent identified inadequate amenities, including toilets and sanitary facilities, as a factor not to remain in the industry. These are not minor inconveniences, they affect safety, dignity and a worker's confidence that they have a future in that sector.
Success is not measured by recruitment alone, it means completing an apprenticeship, gaining qualifications and building a lasting career. One South Australian helping to drive that change is mechanical fitter Beth Jones. Beth was named South Australia's Apprentice of the Year in 2025 and she has used her experience of the challenges facing women and apprentices to advocate for safer, fairer and a more supportive workplace. Today, as a project officer in the AMWU's Breaking Barriers, Women in Trades and Tech project, Beth works with employers around Australia to improve workplace culture and support women to remain in skilled roles.
Backed by a $4.9 million investment, the Australian government's Building Women's Career Program, Breaking Barriers, will bring unions, TAFEs, employers and community organisations together to expand pathways into trades and improve workplace culture. Their Try a Trade events give women, girls and non-binary people aged 15 and over the chance to get hands-on experience in automotive work, metalworking, welding and more. Participants can meet trainers and tradespeople to ask questions about the job and explore apprenticeship pathways.
Trying the work for themselves helps participants see a clearer pathway into the industry, while employers can connect with capable future workers they might have otherwise overlooked. The project will deliver more than 20 short courses over 250 participants, together with site tours and workplace experience. The project's industry stream is expected to reach more than 30,000 workers through workplace training, gender equity action plans and cultural change initiatives delivered when participating with employers.
However, attracting women into trades is only part of the challenge. Retaining them requires workplaces that are safe, respectful and supportive. Here in South Australia, this work is particularly important. More than 10,000 additional defence industry jobs are expected by 2040. The 2026-27 state budget records 390 female completions in technical and trade occupations in the year to June 2025 and commits $26.8 million over five years to AUKUS skills initiatives, including measures to increase women's participation.
Those jobs should be open to every South Australian with the skill and commitment to undertake them. If we are serious about building sovereign capability, we must build a workforce that reflects the full potential of our community. The AMWU South Australia is planning the Fearless Festival, to be held in Port Augusta in May next year. Aimed at helping regional women and girls enter trades and those exploring the option, school advisers will be in attendance to assist with subject choice guidance and employers to help with apprenticeship applications, and I look forward to attending myself.
Unions have an essential role in this work. They can identify systemic issues that no worker should have to face alone, secure proper facilities and safe conditions, and ensure apprentices have a voice in their workplace. We cannot build the workforce our state needs while leaving half of our population underrepresented in key industries.
I congratulate Beth Jones, the women in trades whom I have worked alongside as a machinist and fitter, and all women choosing to undertake a career in a trade. I commend the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union and every delegate, trainer and employer who is doing the hard work to create more inclusive workplaces and stronger career pathways. South Australia needs women in trades.