Electrical engineering hiring at a glance

Electrical engineering employment is growing quickly, and most of the advertised roles are in the cities, which leaves regional employers competing hard.

national rating for Electrical Engineer in 2026: Shortage; Electronics engineers and rail signalling engineers are also rated in shortage. In shortage means rated S or R.¹

growth in electrical engineering employment in a year: 6.8%; 33,100 employed in February 2026, up 2,100.²

of electrical engineering job ads were for regional areas: 14%; 78 of 550 located ads, against 29% across all jobs, three months to September 2026.³

of electrical engineers work in Queensland: 28%; The largest share of any state, February 2026.²

What does an electrical engineer do, and which qualification do they hold?

Electrical engineers design, develop and supervise the manufacture, installation, operation and maintenance of equipment, machines and systems that generate, distribute, use and control electric power.² Regional roles range from substations and distribution networks to mine power systems, solar and wind connections, water treatment controls and the electrical design of buildings.

Most hold an electrical or electrical and electronic engineering degree accredited by Engineers Australia.⁴ Some come up through the trade: a licensed electrician who completes UEE50420 Diploma of Electrical Engineering, which needs the electrician qualification or an unrestricted licence to enter, can move into technical officer and design roles.⁵

Which registration or licence does an electrical engineer need in each state?

Engineer registration and electrical licensing are separate systems. Registration covers the engineering judgement; a licence covers hands-on electrical work.

Professional engineer registration for electrical engineering work by state and territory, published by each regulator, 1 November 2026, with Queensland's electrical licensing note.

State or territory	Registration for electrical engineering	Notes
Queensland	RPEQ for professional engineering services⁶	Electrical installation work generally needs an electrical licence, with an allowance for some work as part of an electrical engineer's profession⁷
Victoria	Registered professional engineer: electrical is a prescribed area⁸	Mandatory for professional electrical engineering services in or for Victoria, except under a registered professional engineer's direct supervision or done only to a prescriptive standard
New South Wales	Registered professional engineer (electrical) for class 2, 3 or 9c buildings⁹	Direct supervision by a registered engineer allowed
Australian Capital Territory	Registered professional engineer: electrical is a prescribed area¹⁰	In force since 6 March 2025
Western Australia	Building engineer registration covers civil, structural, mechanical and fire safety, not electrical¹¹	No engineer registration for electrical work
Tasmania	Building provider licence as an engineer (building services), which covers mechanical, hydraulic and electrical services, for building-design work within the holder's competence¹²	Building services design only
Northern Territory	Building Practitioners Board registration for certifying engineers in three categories: structural, mechanical and hydraulic¹³; the board lists no electrical certifying-engineer category	We confirm what the role needs with you
South Australia	No registration required to practise¹⁴	None

What does an electrical engineer earn?

Where the Professional Employees Award 2020 covers the role, a full-time graduate electrical engineer with a four- or five-year degree earns at least $68,538 a year, or $34.57 an hour, from 1 July 2026; an experienced engineer at Level 2 earns at least $78,836.¹⁵ Engineers covered by the Electrical Power Industry Award 2020 or the Black Coal Mining Industry Award 2020 fall outside the Professional Employees Award.¹⁵

The market median for full-time electrical engineers was $2,553 a week, or $67 an hour, in May 2025, nationally.² A median blends every level of experience, so we test your range against the candidates we speak with before you advertise it.

Where are electrical engineers in demand?

Electrical engineering job ads rose from 485 to 559 a month in the year to September 2026, with Queensland, New South Wales, Western Australia and Victoria close together at the top.¹⁶

Online job ads for electrical engineers by state (three-month average to September 2026) and each state's share of electrical engineering employment (February 2026).²^,16

State or territory	Job ads a month	Share of employment
Queensland	145¹⁶	28%²
New South Wales	128	26.6%
Western Australia	119	14.1%
Victoria	116	22.9%
South Australia	32	5.7%
Tasmania	11	1.3%
Australian Capital Territory	5	0.8%
Northern Territory	4	0.7%

Which electrical engineering roles do we recruit?

Open a role for its rating and what to put in your brief.

Power systems and networks

Engineers for generation, transmission, distribution and site power systems.

What the role does: Designs and supervises the systems that generate and distribute electric power.²
Shortage: Electrical Engineer is rated in shortage for 2026.¹
Award coverage: Employees under the Electrical Power Industry Award 2020 are outside the Professional Employees Award.¹⁵
What to tell us: Voltage levels, network or site power, protection and switching duties, the modelling software and any on-call roster.

Controls, instrumentation and electronics

Engineers for automation, PLC and SCADA systems and instrumentation on plants and utilities.

What the role does: Develops and supervises equipment and systems that control electric power.²
Shortage: Electronics Engineer and Electrical Engineering Technician are rated in shortage for 2026.¹
Qualifications: An accredited engineering degree, or for technical roles UEE50420 Diploma of Electrical Engineering.⁴^,5
What to tell us: The control platforms, the plant or network, commissioning and site work, and whether the role designs, maintains or both.

Rail signalling

Engineers who design and maintain signalling and train control systems.

What the role does: Applies electrical engineering to control systems on rail networks.²
Shortage: Rail Signalling Engineer is rated in shortage for 2026.¹
Award coverage: Employees covered by the Rail Industry Award 2020 are outside the Professional Employees Award.¹⁵
What to tell us: The network and signalling technology, possession and night work, competency requirements and the region the role covers.

What to tell us about your electrical engineering role

Tell us the voltage and the assets: building services, site power, distribution network, substations or generation. Then the work: design, protection, commissioning, maintenance or project delivery, and the experience level.

Candidates also want to know the software and standards, any switching or access authorisations they would need, on-call duties, and how far they will travel between sites.

How we help you hire an electrical engineer

You make the hiring decision and employ the person directly. We handle the search and the organising in between.

Step 1
Understand the role
We talk with you about the assets, the voltage, the design and field split, the registration your state needs and the experience the role calls for.
Step 2
Source and screen
We talk with electrical engineers about the systems they have designed or maintained, their protection and commissioning experience, their registration and the authorisations they hold.
Step 3
Introduce suitable people
We introduce the candidates who best match your brief, so you decide who to interview.
Step 4
Coordinate the hire
We coordinate the next steps and keep both sides informed through interviews and the offer. You employ the person directly.

Travel, on-call and moving to a regional electrical role

Regional electrical roles often mean travel between substations, sites or towns, and sometimes an on-call roster. We look first for engineers who already live in your region or have worked in one, and we explain the travel and on-call pattern before anyone applies.

Relocation support, housing and a vehicle can make the difference for an engineer leaving a city network. Tell us what you offer and we raise it in the first conversation.

If the right person needs a visa or sponsorship, our sister business Australian Immigration Agency can advise.

Are you an electrical engineer interested in regional work?

Register with Hire Australia and tell us the systems and voltages you have worked with, your registration and authorisations, and where you would like to live. We welcome graduate and experienced electrical engineers.

Register

Talk to us about your next electrical engineering hire

Tell us the assets, the location and your start date.

Employers pay nothing until the successful candidate has started and stayed two months. Candidates never pay for recruitment.

Discuss a role Register

Where we recruit

Regional Queensland

Regional recruitment specialist for Queensland employers, from Cairns to Toowoomba and Mount Isa. See how hard each region is to hire in, and how we help.

Regional New South Wales

Regional recruitment specialist for NSW employers, from Newcastle and the coast to Dubbo and Wagga Wagga. See how hard each region is to hire in.

Regional Victoria

Regional recruitment specialist for Victorian employers, from Geelong to Mildura and Gippsland. See how hard each region is to hire in, and how we help.

Regional South Australia

Regional recruitment specialist for South Australian employers, from Mount Gambier to Whyalla. See how hard each region is to hire in and how we help.

Regional Western Australia

Regional recruitment specialist for WA employers, from Bunbury and Albany to Kalgoorlie and the Pilbara. Hiring difficulty, FIFO roles and how we help.

Regional Tasmania

Regional recruitment specialist for Tasmanian employers, from Hobart to Launceston, Burnie and the West Coast. See how hard each region is to hire in.

Northern Territory

Regional recruitment specialist for Northern Territory employers, from Darwin to Katherine, Alice Springs and Nhulunbuy. See how hard the NT is to hire in.

Australian Capital Territory

Regional recruitment specialist for employers across the Australian Capital Territory: Canberra and nearby Queanbeyan, Goulburn and Yass (NSW).

Related roles

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Electrical linesworkers

Regional recruitment specialist for electrical linesworkers and cable jointers, with line work licensing by state, award and market pay, and demand.

Mechanical engineers

Regional recruitment specialist for mechanical engineers, graduate to lead: registration by state, award and market pay, demand and rosters.

Drafters

Regional recruitment specialist for civil, mechanical, electrical and building drafters: licences by state, pay, demand and the software.

Regional guides

Gippsland

Hiring in Traralgon, Warragul, Sale or Bairnsdale? Gippsland hiring data, the roles we fill and how a regional recruitment specialist helps.

Newcastle and Hunter

Newcastle and Hunter recruitment for trade, engineering, health and office roles. Local hiring data and how a regional recruitment specialist helps.

Rockhampton and Gladstone

Rockhampton, Gladstone and Central Highlands recruitment for professional, technical and trade roles from a regional recruitment specialist.

Townsville

Townsville recruitment for professional, technical and trade roles. Local hiring data, the roles we fill and how a regional recruitment specialist helps.

A FEW PRACTICAL QUESTIONS

Good to know.

Does an electrical engineer need an electrician's licence?

Not usually for engineering work. In Queensland, electrical installation work generally needs an electrical work licence, but the law allows some electrical work as part of an electrical engineer's profession.⁷ Engineer registration is separate. Hire Australia asks you which hands-on work the role includes and checks candidates' licences and registration against it.

Which states require electrical engineers to be registered?

Queensland, Victoria and the ACT require registration for professional electrical engineering work, and NSW does for work on class 2, 3 and 9c buildings. Western Australia's building engineer scheme does not include electrical engineering, and South Australia has no scheme.⁶^,8^,9^,10^,11^,14 Hire Australia builds this into your brief.

What do electrical engineers earn in Australia?

Full-time electrical engineers earned a national median of $67 an hour in May 2025.² Where the Professional Employees Award 2020 covers the role, a graduate with a four- or five-year degree earns at least $34.57 an hour from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026.¹⁵ Hire Australia discusses your salary range and allowances before the search starts.

Why is it hard to recruit electrical engineers for regional areas?

Electrical Engineer is rated in shortage for 2026,¹ and only 14% of electrical engineering job ads with a location were for regional areas in the three months to September 2026, so regional employers compete with a much larger city market.³ Hire Australia targets engineers with regional ties and explains your offer clearly from the first call.

What does it cost to use Hire Australia?

Employers pay nothing until the successful candidate has started and stayed two months. Candidates never pay for recruitment. You employ the person directly, and we agree the terms with you in writing before the search begins. Hire Australia applies the same terms to graduate and senior electrical engineering searches.

Does Hire Australia supply labour hire or temporary staff?

No. Hire Australia recruits people you employ directly, in permanent roles. We don’t supply labour hire or temps, and candidates never work on our payroll. We search for and screen people for your vacancy, introduce the ones who fit, and you make the offer and employ them. That keeps the working relationship between you and your new employee from day one.

Sources (16)

Jobs and Skills Australia, 2026 Occupation Shortage List (OSCA 2024 and ANZSCO 2022 sheets). National ratings. "In shortage" means rated S (shortage) or R (regional shortage). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Jobs and Skills Australia, ANZSCO occupation data, February 2026 (occupation descriptions, earnings, employment and state tables). Median full-time earnings: ABS Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, national, non-managerial adult employees. Employment and state shares: February 2026 trend. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Jobs and Skills Australia, Internet Vacancy Index, 4-digit occupations by remoteness (major cities and regional), September 2026. Online job ads, three-month moving average to September 2026; SA4 regions grouped as major city or regional. Counts ads, not jobs. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Engineers Australia, Accreditation. Accessed 28 October 2026. Back to text ↑
training.gov.au, UEE50420 Diploma of Electrical Engineering. Accessed 29 October 2026. Back to text ↑
Board of Professional Engineers of Queensland, Become a RPEQ. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Electrical Safety Office – WorkSafe Queensland, Classes of licences (electrical). Accessed 29 October 2026. Back to text ↑
Consumer Affairs Victoria, Who needs to be registered? (professional engineers). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
NSW Government, Professional engineer work: qualifications and experience. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
ACT Government, City and Environment Directorate, Professional engineers registration scheme. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Government of Western Australia, Building and Energy, Building engineering registration. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Building Standards Tasmania, Engineer (building provider licence). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Building Practitioners Board, Northern Territory, Practitioners: scope of works. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Engineers Australia, State registration. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Fair Work Ombudsman, Professional Employees Award 2020 [MA000065], clause 14.1 minimum rates. Rates from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026; coverage in clause 4 (excludes, among others, the Black Coal Mining Industry Award and some local government). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
Jobs and Skills Australia, Internet Vacancy Index, 4-digit occupations by state and territory, September 2026. Online job ads, three-month moving average to September 2026 (released 21 October 2026), rounded. Counts ads, not jobs. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑

Electrical engineer recruitment for regional employers