When IT Engineers Start Researching Waterproofing Courses

Recently, thanks to the popularity of Openclaw crayfish 🦞, basically every IT group has become very lively.

Of course, besides chatting about Openclaw, tech stacks, system design, and so on, there is also a spreading undercurrent of worry.

Some people say their company just laid off a batch of people, and their team has been cut in half. Others ask whether this market is still worth grinding away at technical skills.
And someone half-jokingly asks: "How much longer can the IT profession even last?"

Then the conversation slowly turns in another direction. Someone asks: where do you study for a builder's course? Someone says they have recently been looking into waterproofing training. Another person is even more direct, saying they have already started a waterproofing course and are preparing to see if they can switch careers.

A group of people who originally wrote code suddenly start discussing builder licences, TAFE courses, waterproofing training, and construction site work. A few years ago, this scene would have been almost unimaginable.

Back then, many people thought of IT as a relatively stable career path. As long as your skills kept up, even if you changed companies, you could always find a position. But in the past two years, the atmosphere has clearly changed. Layoff news is more and more frequent, and the job market is no longer as active as before. On top of that, discussions about AI appear almost every day—sometimes it is not even that reality has changed, but that the discussion itself is enough to make people start thinking: if the future career structure really is changing, could the work we do now also be changing?

At times like this, many people face a very practical question: if one day I really have to switch paths, what else can I do?

In Australia, one word often appears in the answer to this question: tradie.

People in Australia usually start paying real attention to this industry when they receive bills. Renovating a house, mowing the lawn, even hiring someone to fix something—these are all significant expenses (which is why many people are forced to fix things themselves). Add to that Xiaohongshu and WeChat Moments, and the high income of some skilled trades is common knowledge in Australia.

Below are the approximate income ranges for some common trades (if you disagree, you are right):

Trade	Annual income (approximate)
Electrician	$120k–$200k
Plumber	$120k–$200k
HVAC technician	$100k–$180k
Carpenter	$100k–$160k
Tiler	$90k–$150k
Waterproofer	$100k–$160k

These numbers do not mean everyone can reach them (yes, some people earn far more than this), but they are enough to plant a thought in many white-collar workers' minds: how exactly do you enter this industry?

If you look closely, the common thread among these jobs is obvious, since they all take place in the physical world.

Installing electrical wiring, waterproofing, laying tiles, building structures—these tasks depend on the site environment, material conditions, tool operation, and many details that require immediate judgment. These things often must be done on site, and every project is slightly different.

In a way, this is exactly what sets them apart from many office jobs:

They rely on physical contact, on-site judgment, and hands-on ability, and these are precisely the parts that AI currently finds hardest to replace.

I am no stranger to the tradie industry, since my husband is a carpenter (you can refer to an article I wrote earlier).

His story is a typical example of transitioning from IT. Before we came to Australia, he was an embedded software engineer. After arriving in Australia, he essentially started learning carpentry at the age of 40.

I know many people imagine that by forty you should be in a stable career phase, and that learning carpentry as an apprentice means starting over from the most basic tasks: moving materials, measuring dimensions, driving nails, working on site while also attending classes. Yes, that was his experience.

But as time passes, you slowly realize that many things are not as "too late" as we imagine.

It has now been almost ten years. He is no longer an apprentice but a seasoned carpenter. Many things come naturally to him, and he can spot structural problems at a glance. Tools feel like an extension of his body.

Over the years, I have also gradually started to get involved in this industry. In the first two years, I took construction-related courses myself, completing a builder-track Certificate IV and Diploma part-time.

There was really only one direct reason for taking these courses: I wanted to see if I had a chance to try another path (and at the same time, to see if I could collaborate with my carpenter husband).

When people start researching, they quickly discover that information about tradies is very scattered.

You might see someone say you need to go to TAFE. Someone else says you first need to find an apprenticeship. Digging further, you come across words like licence, builder registration, subcontractor. Each word can be looked up and explained a little, but it is hard to piece together a complete picture.

So in this article, I want to present the information I know as completely as possible. If any part is incorrect, I welcome corrections and criticism.

If someone really starts seriously considering a blue-collar job, they will usually see several different entry points.

The most traditional one is the apprenticeship system. Simply put, you find an employer and work on site while studying (this study is usually for a Certificate III). Many skilled trades have such a system, such as carpentry, electrical, plumbing, and so on. This is basically for trades that require a licence. (Unfortunately, carpenters in Victoria do not have a licence.)

Courses are completed within the TAFE Victoria system. Please refer to https://www.vic.gov.au/tafe for the website. Note that this site also lists specific free TAFE courses, so interested friends can check it out.

Some common courses include:

Course	Corresponding trade
Certificate III in Carpentry	Carpenter
Certificate III in Electrotechnology	Electrician
Certificate III in Plumbing	Plumber
Certificate III in Painting	Painter
Certificate III in Wall & Ceiling Lining	Plasterer
Certificate III in Tiling	Tiler
Certificate III in Landscape Construction	Landscaper
Certificate III in Waterproofing	Waterproofer
Certificate III in Air Conditioning & Refrigeration	HVAC technician

Apprenticeships usually take three to four years, often 48 months. Of course, if the employer is willing to provide proof of apprenticeship completion, the time can be shortened appropriately.

An apprentice's income in the first year is not high, usually around fifteen to twenty Australian dollars per hour. But as experience increases, income gradually rises.

Also, before actually entering a construction site, there is one essential thing: White Card.

The White Card is the most basic safety training certificate in the Australian construction industry. Anyone working on a construction site, whether an electrician, carpenter, or labourer, must complete this training first.

In Victoria, this certificate is usually provided by training organisations approved by WorkSafe Victoria. The course itself is not complicated and can generally be completed in one day. The main content is site safety, such as working at heights, tool use, hazard identification, and so on. But without a White Card, many sites will not let you in.

So if you really want to pursue an apprenticeship, this is usually the first step.

TAFE fees are very friendly for Australian PR holders or citizens, so you can try choosing a school close to home. TAFE is divided into public and private institutions. Public ones tend to have stricter requirements. Private TAFEs sometimes offer government-funded programs. For example, the builder-related course I took was completed at a private TAFE and was completely free.

Besides apprenticeships, there is another very common path in the real world.

Start as a labourer, especially for trades that do not require a licence. Many sites have labourers doing auxiliary work, such as moving materials, tidying the site, and assisting tradespeople. Many people gradually become familiar with the industry in this environment, then move on to become a trade assistant. They can continue down that path or choose to become an apprentice.

Another path is entering the service industry through a franchise.

Australia has some very mature service franchise networks, such as Jim's Group. They have many different businesses under them, such as lawn mowing, cleaning, fencing, pool care, handyman services, and so on. Many people join or directly buy a franchise to run a small service business.

This path does not require starting as an apprentice. For people with some savings who want to enter the service industry quickly, the entry threshold is relatively clear.

The costs of different franchises vary considerably, roughly in the following ranges:

Franchise	Cost
Jim's Mowing	$30k–$60k
Jim's Cleaning	$20k–$40k
Jim's Pool Care	$40k–$70k

The fees usually include licence, branding, training, and a certain level of customer leads.

Of course, the franchise fee is only the beginning. Later you usually need to invest in vehicles and equipment, and pay ongoing management fees to the head office.

Of course, no matter which path you take, before making a decision, there are several practical issues you must consider.

Many newcomers to the industry most easily overlook not the technical side, but cash flow.

I once heard a saying that left a deep impression on me.

A friend who has worked in the construction industry for many years said: if you really want to become a tradie, there is one principle you should try to remember.

Once there is a loss, try to ensure that the only loss is your own labour or time.

To put it more bluntly, try not to advance money for materials on behalf of clients.

When you are just starting out, a client may say that materials need to be purchased first, and ask you to pay upfront, then settle everything after the job is done. It sounds reasonable, but if problems arise with the project—for example, the client delays payment or the work stops midway—the first thing that gets stuck is often that material cost.

So many experienced tradies repeatedly remind newcomers: it is better to lose time than to lose cash.

This article ends here for now. In this era of gradually blurring career boundaries, knowing one more path is never a bad thing. Next, I will write about the map of the Australian tradie industry, so that everyone can have a more comprehensive understanding.

I hope we can all progress together on the road to antifragility~~~~