Civil Contractors Federation Tasmania is increasing the talent pool of skilled workers needed to deliver local infrastructure projects, through its award-winning High-Vis Army Civil Job Ready Program and the upcoming Civil Construction Earthworks Academy
Tasmania’s proposed Macquarie Point Stadium project in Hobart has dominated headlines around the country in recent times, but with the state’s building and infrastructure pipeline estimated as being close to $40 billion over the next decade, there’s a much broader infrastructure boom underway.
While this is an exciting proposition for Tasmanians, it is expected that a greater workforce will be required to meet the growing demand of infrastructure projects across the state.
Civil Contractors Federation Tasmania (CCFTas) is playing a significant role in supporting the growth of a skilled workforce with several initiatives that aim to attract, train and retain people in the civil construction industry.
One of these is CCFTas’ award-winning High-Vis Army Civil Job Ready Program.
Job ready
Now in its fifth year, the CCFTas High-Vis Army initiative is a pre-vocational training pathway that upskills participants – predominately those facing employment obstacles – to gain meaningful jobs in the civil construction industry.
Running in partnership with TasTAFE, the short-course and full-time program runs for five days a week over two weeks and is fully funded for eligible participants.
“There are a lot of opportunities for careers in civil construction, but there’s not a lot of awareness of them,” CCF Tasmania CEO Andrew Winch says.
“Since its launch, the High-Vis Army Civil Job Ready Program has transformed lives by providing industry-specific skills, workplace readiness training and direct pathways into jobs on small and large infrastructure projects across the state.”
He adds that participants receive two weeks of classroom-based essential training units that are accredited towards a variety of qualifications.
This includes obtaining a white card – the required certification to work on a construction site in Australia, as well as units such as Operate Small Plant and Equipment, Enter and Work in Confined Spaces, Work Safely at Heights, and traffic management training. These accredited training units are part of the Certificate II or Certificate III in Civil Construction, so once completed, participants are on the pathway to attaining full qualifications.
Work experience is also organised for participants as part of CCFTas High-Vis Army, which has proved to be a huge factor in creating employment opportunities, as Winch says 80 per cent of the program participants end up finding civil construction-related jobs.
High barrier groups
With a focus on those who may face barriers to employment, the CCFTas High-Vis Army program has delivered several training courses for women – especially those with young children – migrants, long term under employed, and most recently, prisoners who are nearing the end of their sentence and preparing to transition back into the community.
Having partnered with the Tasmania Prison Service, CCF Tasmania has been able to help prisoners gain accredited skills and qualifications that will help them find work when they are released.
This was piloted at the Risdon Prison Complex in March, with eight participants learning everything from safe work practices, communication in the workplace, use of tools and equipment, and assistance with job readiness, such as CV writing and future employment referrals.
“Obviously it’s hard for prisoners to find work when they are released, and we know we need to help them, and the best way is new skills,” Winch says.
“The ultimate goal is to equip individuals in prison with the skills and confidence they need to find jobs, break the cycle, and reduce the likelihood of reoffending.”
“We had around 50 people apply for the eight spots in the program, and it was a huge success.
“There’s been a lot of interest to do more prison programs, so we have ran three more since the first one in March, including one in the women’s prison facility.”
Career awareness
A shortened version of CCFTas High-Vis Army Civil Job Ready Program has been offered to high school students in year 10, 11, and 12 for the first time this year, running during school holidays.
This has allowed students to participate in a one-week training course, with CCF Tasmania subsequently helping to organise relevant work experience within students’ normal school arrangements.
“Part of CCFTas High-Vis Army is career awareness, so we do a lot of activity in schools,” Winch says.
“We’re presenting civil career awareness programs at two or three schools a week, and we have our equipment simulator van with a front-end loader and an excavator simulator that is part of our program. The simulator van is a fantastic way to showcase our industry and get kids excited about careers in civil construction.”
CCF Tasmania was recognised for its efforts in helping people find work in the civil construction industry at the 2025 Australian Training Awards, with its High Vis Army Civil Job Ready Program winning Gold in the ‘Industry Collaboration Award’ category.
While this was great recognition of all the work done by CCF Tasmania, Winch says the real reward is providing job outcomes and being able to change people’s lives.
“It’s great for our industry to be visible as a career opportunity, and we’ve had some fantastic success stories from the High Vis Army Civil Job Ready Program,” he says.
“I can recall one lady who has been promoted three times in her job since completing the program.
“One thing that she reflects on is the company bought her a brand-new ute for her job, and she never thought in her life she’d ever be able to drive a brand-new car.
“This program has been able to change lives, so it’s been very rewarding to be able to deliver it.”
Earthworks Academy
Another program that aims to upskill the existing civil construction workforce while attracting new people into the industry is the upcoming CCF Tasmania Civil Construction Earthworks Academy – delivering hands-on machinery operator training in a safe and controlled environment.
This idea was formed based on a key performance indicator of the CCFTas High-Vis Army program, in which CCF Tasmania identified a need for its own operator training site.
A study tour of Civil Train South Australia’s Civil Construction Live Works training site was then conducted in late 2022. As the largest site of its kind in Australia, it is considered as best practice for delivering specialised civil construction industry training.
Following the study tour and extensive research, the Tasmanian government committed $4.3 million for the Earthworks Academy, including $2.5 million to establish the site’s infrastructure – at Carrick’s Quercus Park – and $1.8 million for equipment.
Construction has been underway since February, with Winch hoping to welcome students by September this year, where they will train on various types of equipment, including excavators, wheel loaders, backhoe loaders, bulldozers, graders, road rollers and trucks.
The students’ training will involve upgrading infrastructure across Rural Youth Tasmania’s Quercus Park site, providing them with real-world experience rather than simply learning how to operate the machinery.
This will also benefit the community, with students set to deliver road maintenance across the site, which is home to the popular agricultural show Agfest.
“Rural Youth Tasmania has an infrastructure plan for the next 10 years that we’ll be working with them on as part of our training plans,” Winch says.
“Rather than simply digging holes and filling them back in, our training will be leaving a legacy.”
With three classrooms onsite, the Earthworks Academy will also have capacity to deliver relevant industry training courses.
“The Earthworks Academy will have registered training organisations based there, which will deliver a range of industry-related training such as Certificate II and Certificate III in Civil Construction, White Card, Enter and Work in Confined Spaces, Work Safely at Heights, and various other courses,” Winch says.
“We’ve already got a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with TasTAFE and Link Resources who currently deliver civil training in Tasmania. Plus, we’re working on potential MOUs with CCF South Australia and CCF Victoria who are keen to send trainers to the Earthworks Academy.”
While the focus of the Earthworks Academy is on civil construction training, Winch says CCF Tasmania is more than happy for other industries and organisations to make use of the site.
“We’ve had some early discussions with Master Builders Tasmania and the Housing Industry Association to use the site for some of their own training,” he says.
“It’s not just civil contractors that will need training, a lot of builders, electricians and plumbers buy small excavators and the Earthworks Academy will provide an opportunity for them to participate in training and improve their safety too.”
For more information, visit ccftas.com.au
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