The Master Plumbers Association of NSW has warned that Australia's worsening apprentice shortage will not be solved by focusing solely on apprentices while ignoring the businesses that employ and train them.
Pointing to the latest NCVER figures, the MPA said construction apprenticeships have fallen to their lowest level in five years.
MPA NSW CEO Nathaniel Smith said the figures expose a fundamental failure in government policy.
"Politicians keep talking about apprentices, but nobody seems willing to talk about employers," Smith said.
"You cannot have an apprenticeship without an employer."
Smith said every apprentice exists because a small business owner decided to take a risk and invest hundreds of thousands of dollars training them.
He said employers face rising wage and insurance costs, compliance obligations, supervision requirements, and productivity losses, while government support continues to decline.
"Government is bashing small business at every turn and then acting shocked when apprenticeship numbers fall,” Smith said.
"The average employer spends around $250,000 training an apprentice over four years.”
Smith said Australia would never solve its housing crisis while governments continued to ignore the businesses responsible for training the future workforce.
"We keep hearing about ambitious housing targets. That's wonderful,” he said.
"But who exactly is going to build these homes?
"The workforce doesn't appear by magic. It is created by small businesses employing apprentices."
The Master Plumbers Association of NSW is calling on the Federal Government to adopt a 200 per cent Apprentice Employer Tax Credit, allowing employers to claim enhanced tax deductions for apprentice employment costs.
According to the Federal Government more than 25,000 Australians have already started an apprenticeship in housing construction in the last 10 months. This was attributed to the $10,000 Key Apprenticeship Program.
Minister for Skills and Training, Andrew Giles, said the former Coalition government left office with shortages at a 50-year high.
He said the Program is also benefitting communities across the country, with 33 per cent of commencements occurring in regional and remote communities.