More than half of Queensland's automotive repair businesses say they are struggling to find skilled staff, with some advertising for more than six months without success.

A new report on the state of the industry has found attracting and keeping skilled workers is its biggest challenge, despite consistent growth in demand.

The industry-commissioned Capricorn report surveyed 989 business owners around the country as part of its annual state of the nation release.

Scott Wilmington and his brother have operated their own garage in Morayfield, north of Brisbane, for more than 20 years.

He said he was not surprised by the statistics.

"We're constantly looking," he said.

Mechanic Scott Wilmington says it is difficult to find qualified workers. (ABC News: Stephen Clarke)

"We had an ad for a couple of years and would have had 200 applications.

"Out of them, there were probably only a handful that we would possibly interview."

Mr Wilmington said the vast majority of applicants did not have the skills needed to suit a busy workshop.

"They say, 'look, I've worked on my car at home a little bit and I know my way around a car,' or some of them are plumbers wanting to change [fields]," he said.

"We're too busy to have someone that's not qualified."

Chief executive of the Motor Trades Association of Queensland, Rod Camm said labour and skill shortages were the "number one issue" for the industry.

That is despite a post-pandemic boost in demand for mechanic services, with a 13 per cent increase in the number of registered motor vehicles on Queensland roads between 2020 and 2024, according to the Queensland government's latest State of the Environment report.

Some mechanics say they have been advertising for more than six months without finding a skilled worker. (ABC News: Luke Bowden)

"During COVID when no one could travel, everyone pivoted and started investing in their vehicles, making sure they were maintained, so our industry's still really, really busy," Mr Camm said.

The latest data from the state Department of Trade, Employment and Training showed 1,825 people completed their automotive apprenticeships in 2023-24.

Mr Camm said the challenge of attracting young people to take up a career in the automotive industry was "multi-layered".

"Schoolkids often nowadays don't have parents working on cars in the backyard, so they don't have a modern perspective of what an automotive career would look like," he explained.

He said the base rate of pay in the industry could also turn young people away.

"My message to them ... is that is not what you will earn in the industry," he said.

"As you become productive and develop your skill set, you can earn really, really good money."

Some businesses turning overseas

Some business owners have been willing to pay more than $20,000 to bring in skilled mechanics from overseas.

The Philippines has proven particularly popular, due to widespread English-speaking skills.

Mr Wilmington said he turned to recruiting overseas workers "out of desperation".

"I think we had no choice. We really were running out of options and we needed a mechanic."

Bonie Fernandez spent almost 20 years working as a mechanic in Saudi Arabia, sending money back to his family in the Philippines.

Bonie Fernandez works as a mechanic in Brisbane while his family live in the Philippines. (ABC News: Stephen Clarke)

Mr Wilmington hired him last year through an online agency based in Western Australia.

Mr Fernandez said the work was "much more enjoyable" than some of his previous jobs, including working in Saudi Arabia where he said there was a lot of "pressure".

He now hopes to become a permanent resident and bring his family to Australia to live with him.

'Hard to keep up'

The lack of workers was affecting both customers and business owners, according to Mr Camm.

"Customers can expect to have some delays to get their vehicles repaired," he said.

"And for businesses, they struggle with workloads."

The report showed 33 per cent of Queensland automotive businesses are turning away work due to being understaffed — compared to 27 per cent nationwide.

About one third of automotive repair stores say they've had to turn away work due to not having enough staff. (ABC News: Luke Bowden)

Mr Wilmington agreed it could be "really hard" to keep up with demand, particularly because his business had a large customer base.

"You've got to do the job so you get busier ... you've [got to do that balancing act] where you don't get yourself too snowed under but you meet everyone's needs," he explained.

Mr Camm said a recent federal government decision to slash incentives to take on apprentices from $5,000 to $2,500 from January 1 next year was putting the industry's future at risk.

"I just can't believe the government would walk away from an industry," he said.

"It's been a very disappointing decision."

In a statement, the federal Minister for Skills and Training Andrew Giles said the government was "backing Australians to get the skills they want for the jobs we need".

"We're ensuring incentives are geared towards the skills we most need, and complemented by measures to ensure apprentices have access to additional supports like study loans and living away from home allowance."