About Us

Our Mission

By promoting brick and blocklaying vacancies and career pathway opportunities we minimise the barriers to employment through generating job openings that will continue to build a solid future for the industry.

Our Vision

To fulfil the career aspirations of young Australians and job seekers, by providing employment opportunities in brick and blocklaying.

Brick & Block Careers 4 pillars

To support our Vision and Mission, it is important that our business model remains agile and flexible in an ever-changing environment.

We aim to meet industry challenges and increased demands through a cohesive and organised business model which is focused on the following four pillars – Attract, Prepare, Place and Retain.

Our refined business model now reflects our strategic objectives and will drive a suite of operational activities which are focused on candidate care, the apprentice pipeline, filling vacancies, individual and team responsibilities.

Beneficiaries

• Youth - 15 to under 25 • Youth Unemployed • Youth Females • Unemployed • Youth Financially disadvantaged backgrounds • Youth in rural/regional communities • Retention of youth within the apprenticeship

Programs

• School programs, webinars and presentations

• Working with Job Actives

• Career expos

• Try a trade programs (short hands on skills program). Funded by Brick and Block Careers

• Role modelling beneficiaries through our Youth Ambassador programs

• Webinars and panel sessions to schools and job actives

• Marketing via social media, web advertising

• Brickstart incentive program to encourage job availability to beneficiaries

• $3000 subsidy to assist with apprenticeship training costs

• Apprentice retention programs - Retention calls and Welcome packs sent to apprentices and employers

Our History

Australian Brick & Blocklaying Training Foundation Ltd (ABBTF) trading as Become a Bricklayer represents clay brick and concrete masonry manufacturers and was created to address the critical shortage of skilled bricklayers.

Victorian Brick & Blocklaying Training Foundation Ltd (VBBTF) was established in June 2003 following a request from the Clay Brick & Paver Association of Victoria, representing Brick and Block manufacturers, for a levy funded scheme to be put in place to address the shortage of competent bricklayers in Victoria.

In January 2006, the name was changed to Australian Brick & Blocklaying Training Foundation Ltd (ABBTF). A new Board was appointed, and the Victorian business model was rolled out to all States as ABBTF, starting with the consolidation of Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory. In 2007 Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania were added to the group and operations commenced nationally.

ABBTF is governed by a Board of Directors who represent the Clay Brick and Block Manufacturers, Builders, a Registered Training Organisation, the Housing Industry Association and the Master Builders Association. The structure of the Board is to ensure all relevant parties in the building and construction industry are represented.

The Australian Brick and Blocklaying Training Foundation provides annual reports to members, outlining our objective, strategies and performance highlights of the year. As an organisation committed to improving outcomes for brick suppliers, bricklayers, apprentices and others in the industry, we strive to keep improving industry and employment outcomes into the future. Our annual reports allow our members to see our achievements throughout the year, industry challenges, funding breakdowns and changes to the organisation.

Our members are important to us, and so we want to inform them of opportunities within the bricklaying industry for the future and our current initiatives. We encourage taking a look at the annual report each year to keep in touch with the industry at large.

Our operating results are also published annually, and they outline key metrics in the bricklaying industry. These metrics aide us in determining our vision for the future, where funding should go, and what initiatives we can bring forward to improve outcomes for our members and future apprentices.

From time to time, we conduct industry research reports to more accurately determine what employers and apprentices are looking for in different parts of the country. These reports include stories, surveys and suggestions from the ground to give more clarity to the statistics.

Annual Report 2022 – 2023

Annual Report 2021 – 2022

Annual Report 2020 – 2021

Annual Report 2019 – 2020

Annual Report 2018 – 2019

After older reports? Contact Us