In recent conversations with the Australian Financial Review and Sourceable I’ve been frank about the scale of what Queensland faces as we prepare for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The Games will be a highlight on our sporting calendar, but they also represent a macro-economic inflection point for Queensland’s built environment. As I told both publications, this isn’t business as usual. We are about to undertake an unprecedented volume of concurrent projects, and without early planning and targeted workforce strategies we risk delivery delays, cost escalation and the loss of the legacy benefits the Games promise.
WT’s report, From vision to legacy: a game plan for Brisbane 2032 and beyond, forecasts a construction labour shortfall rising from around 27,200 workers in 2026-27 to roughly 46,000 by 2028-29. That figure isn’t sensationalism; it’s the point where the demand for labour across Queensland’s $120 billion infrastructure pipeline diverges most sharply from realistic supply. It aligns with warnings from Construction Skills Queensland and the Auditor-General.
The shortfall isn’t just about numbers; it’s about capability concentration. Mechanical and hydraulic trades, crane crews, piling specialists and tunnelling teams will be in high demand. At the professional level we will need quantity surveyors and commercial managers with mega-project experience, integrated-program planners and transport engineers. By focusing migration pathways, skills programs and retention efforts on these specialties, we can keep control of our timeline and budget.
The figure that has drawn the most attention is that some construction sites in Queensland are achieving the equivalent of only 2.5 productive days per worker per week. That number doesn’t reflect lack of effort; it reflects structural inefficiencies in our current delivery model – weather delays, site access constraints, permit lags, design changes, roster issues and congestion on multi-trade sites. These are systemic, not behavioural. They compound quickly when programs overlap without clear sequencing or shared risk. Productivity uplift is therefore our biggest lever. Early scope freeze, modular construction, off-site manufacturing and procurement models that incentivise collaboration can all extend those productive days without asking people to work longer.
I also challenged the myth that faster delivery always costs more. Speed drives up cost only when it comes from brute-force measures like overtime and late-stage acceleration. When we build speed in from the start through disciplined scope, early works and smarter procurement, we actually save money by reducing preliminaries, escalation and risk premiums. Another misconception is that risk resides solely in the stadiums. In reality, transport, utilities and enabling works are complex, multi-agency systems where delays ripple across the program.
What does all this mean for legacy? As my colleague Tim Bessell notes, the Games will be judged not just by what is ready on day one, but by the value it leaves behind. Every asset we build should work twice – once for the Games and again for Queenslanders in the decades that follow. That means locking in scope early, designing for future use and embedding value from the outset. Legacy isn’t a phase; it’s a design principle.
Our report is both a reality check and a roadmap. The risks are real, but so are the opportunities. Queensland can transform its productivity, skills base and infrastructure quality if we act early and decisively. The earlier we get real about the constraints, the more options we have to deliver Brisbane 2032 with control, confidence and enduring value.
