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Electrician - Job outlook

Kaimahi Hiko

An electrician installing electrical wiring.

What are the chances of getting a job?

Chances of getting work as an electrician are generally good. Electrician appears on Immigration New Zealand's immediate and long-term skill shortage lists. This means the Government is actively encouraging skilled electricians from overseas to work in New Zealand.

The shortage of electricians is due to:

a decline in the number of electrician apprentices in the 1990s
many newly registered and experienced electricians moving to Australia to take up positions.

Demand for electricians depends on their area of speciality

Electricians can be divided into two main groups:

Industrial electricians – (about 25% of the electrician workforce) install, maintain and repair advanced electrical equipment for businesses in industries such as manufacturing, boat building and petrochemicals.
Domestic/commercial electricians – (about 75% of the electrician workforce) install or maintain wiring in houses or large buildings and office blocks.

Demand is highest for skilled industrial electricians.

By contrast, demand for domestic/commercial electricians to wire new houses has dropped significantly due to the downturn in the construction industry. Opportunities to do this type of work are likely to become scarcer until house building picks up.

However, there is still strong demand for domestic/commercial electricians to:

install and maintain wiring in large buildings and office blocks
service and repair appliances and electrical systems
carry out telecommunications and security work.

Current commercial building projects expected to continue providing work for electricians until 2011

While the number of new commercial building projects is predicted to drop, it has held up well to date. Large buildings can take two to three years to build from start to finish, so some projects begun in 2008 will still be providing electricians with work in 2010-2011.

Opportunities may become harder to find as projects currently under development are completed, and fewer new projects replace them.

"The thing about our industry is it’s always going to go up and down a bit with the economy. You have periods when you’re flat out and periods when you’re flat. But, if you put a mean through that and ask 'Do we have enough electricians to do the work?', generally we don’t."

Paul Craven - Training Manager

What types of employers can I work for?

Most electricians work for electrical contracting businesses. More than half of these businesses employ fewer than five staff members. Many electricians are self-employed and run their own businesses.

The New Zealand Army also trains and employs electricians.

Industrial and specialist electricians work in a wide range of areas, including:

the dairy industry
boat building
the petrochemical industry (oil rigs and refineries)
electricity supply and manufacturing.

Where can I do this job?

Electricians work throughout New Zealand. As well as working in the cities and towns of New Zealand, electricians work underground in mines, on mountain ski fields, and on off-coast oil rigs.