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Victoria is an unusual solar hiring market: it has the cheapest electricians of any capital city, and a solar sector competing hard for exactly those people.
SEEK, refreshed 1 September 2026, puts Melbourne electricians at $85,000-$100,000 against a national band of $95,000-$115,000 and Brisbane at $100,000-$120,000.
Melbourne is the softest capital-city electrical market in Australia. For a solar employer that is genuine good news - the licensed people your installs require cost less here than anywhere else.
The catch is that everyone else knows it too, and a Victorian electrician can see the Queensland numbers on the same job board you advertised on.
Three separate things, held by two different parties.
1. The electrical licence. In Victoria that is the A Grade electrician's licence for full electrical work, or a Restricted Electrical Worker's licence (REL) for limited scopes attached to another trade. Solar grid connection is electrical work. If your installer is doing it, they need the licence, and A Grade is the one most solar roles need.
2. SAA accreditation. Solar Accreditation Australia replaced the Clean Energy Council scheme, announced 29 February 2024 with a three-month transition. The accreditation types are Design Only, Install Only, Design & Install, and GCBS for grid-connected battery systems. SAA requires a current electrical licence number, Working Safely at Heights certification, and public liability insurance for Install accreditation.
If a Victorian CV says "CEC accredited", that is two-year-old terminology. It usually means the person transferred and hasn't updated their CV. Verify rather than assume.
3. Your business registration. Your company needs Registered Electrical Contractor (REC) status to contract for electrical work in Victoria and issue Certificates of Electrical Safety. Your installers' licences do not cover the business. There is also an Employers of electrical workers registration (EMP) for businesses that need to purchase Certificates of Electrical Safety.
Picture a Melbourne solar company with four A Grade electricians, all SAA accredited, quoting installs directly. Every individual is correctly credentialed. If the company is not an REC, the business side of that work is not covered.
Victoria participates in Automatic Mutual Recognition. An electrician licensed in a participating state can work in Victoria without a separate Victorian licence, after notifying through ESVConnect. They receive a Victorian licence number - no physical card, so verification is against the register.
Two things to know. Queensland is a partial exception - only the A Grade equivalent uses AMR, other Queensland classes need a full application. And anyone permanently relocating must convert to a full Victorian licence, which is the situation for most genuine interstate hires. Build that into the start date.
Four things. Most Victorian solar employers check one.
HJ Recruitment places permanent solar, electrical, plumbing, HVAC and refrigeration and fire tradespeople with Australian employers.
Sources- SEEK - Electrician salary, Melbourne- Energy Safe Victoria - Electrical licence types- Energy Safe Victoria - Interstate electrical workers- Solar Accreditation Australia
