Brisbane facilities managers are facing increasing staff shortages, with major implications for the sector and its ability to preserve quality services. 

As local businesses search for ways to mitigate the staff crisis, dwindling numbers pose a risk to the integrity of many understaffed facilities. Some commercial properties may even risk losing business and sustaining lasting damage. 

So, what’s causing the problems, and what pressure are really at play? 

Staffing Challenges on the Rise

The facilities management sector has been dealing with a significant shift since the Covid-19 pandemic began to alter occupancy patterns. 

Even in 2024, many commercial premises are still under-occupied, and facilities managers have not yet recovered from a steady series of early-pandemic layoffs. 

Managers have been forced out of the industry and into alternative roles, including those that allow them to work from home. This has created a skills gap, with a competitive market driving up hiring costs. 

Today, as Brisbane workers transition back to the office, facilities remain burdened by chronic understaffing, with many businesses failing to find experienced facilities managers who are up to the job.

The Impact of Staffing Strain

Staffing strain has significant implications for facilities management and business welfare at large. 

Where facilities management once included large teams of building maintenance, cleaning, trade, and pest control staff, these roles have been trimmed down. Currently, tradies, cleaning, and compliance companies are picking up the slack, while some maintenance tasks are falling by the wayside. 

The result? 

Staff shortages are doubling down on problems. Slimmed teams are struggling to keep up with property maintenance and cleaning tasks, and inadequate commercial pest control is giving pests time to spread and wreak havoc. 

Facilities are facing hefty costs from avoidable damage as understaffed teams become increasingly prone to letting maintenance slide. 

Outsourcing Facilities Support

There’s no simple solution to Brisbane’s facilities management sector in crisis. Ultimately, businesses and governments alike will need to work together to attract people back to the industry and pursue robust skills development programs. 

For now, the most that many businesses can do is ensure that their facilities don’t fall too far behind. This means outsourcing to qualified high rise building maintenance and commercial plumbing contractors, along with pest control technicians and cleaning providers. 

As the facilities management sector works to get back on its feet, contractors are offering a lifeline that business can’t afford to let slip away.