Subbies say they need lawyers to interpret ‘convoluted’ contracts as Jewel workers face uncertain future
AS Jewel workers wait to find out if they still have a job, subbies have hit out at the contracts now common in the industry. Here’s what they say needs to change
Gold Coast
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VETERAN tradies say construction contracts must be stripped back and made fairer as the Jewel saga shows a contract no longer means job security.
More than 150 workers from various trades were last week told they were no longer needed at the Jewel site. Remaining workers fear they could suffer a similar fate.
President of Subbies United and tradesman of 30 years John Goddard said construction contracts are designed to be convoluted and confusing so developers and builders can opt out legally at any time.
He said not even the most experienced tradesmen are qualified to go through modern day contracts, calling them “a terrible blight on the industry”.
“You’ve got these contracts that are 130 pages, which of your average subbies is going to sit down and read 130 pages?” Mr Goddard said.
“I’ve got 30 years’ experience but even I need a lawyer.
“A contract used to be six pages but now they’ve got lawyers tying it together like a jigsaw so they have total control.
“So they can cancel the contract at any time.
“They can sit down with a contracts administrator, go through clause by clause, delete the clauses they don’t agree with and if the builder doesn’t like it they can negotiate or walk away, and often walking away is not an option.
“People need work.”
MAYOR WADES INTO JEWEL CONTROVERSY
Jewel workers union CFMEU assistant state secretary Jade Ingham said the industry has always been volatile for subcontractors, but trickery such as unrealistic contracts were making it even harder for workers.
“In construction the only certainty you’ve got is project by project,” he said.
“As a worker you know that your job security lasts until the end of that job.
“Well now you can’t even say that.
“You don’t even know once you start a job that you’ll be allowed to finish it, and your employer that won the project on a competitive tender, they don’t even know if they’re going to finish the job because the contracts mean nothing now.”
Business owners working on the Jewel site are not only facing a lack of work, they are also sitting on materials they have ordered in order to fulfil their part of the job.
In some cases the figure is in the millions, with no assurance they will be paid for this product.
Mr Goddard can’t believe that tradies are expected to pay out money for materials without a guarantee they will ultimately do the work.
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“You couldn’t go into a bank and get a $300,000 loan with no surety,” he said.
Minister for Housing and Public Works Mick de Brenni promised that new regulations will help assist subbies - but they won’t come into force until January 1.
In September his department released a discussion paper titled “The proposed improvements to the Minimum Financial Requirements for licensing in the building and construction industry”.
Mr de Brenni said the proposed changes will help identify contractors who may not be operating in a financially sustainable way, and thus prevent subcontractors from getting left in the lurch.
“Our nation-leading Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Act is a once in a generation package of reforms that provides Queensland with Australia’s strongest security of payment regimen,” he said.
“One of these reforms is to restore the effectiveness the Minimum Financial Requirements (MFR) for licensing, and returning the Queensland Building and Construction Commission’s (QBCC) powers to regulate those requirements.
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“The previous LNP government, the now Deputy Opposition Leader, came in like a wrecking ball and destroyed the stability of the industry by stripping the requirement for businesses to regularly report their financial situation to the regulator.
“That’s about to end.
“I intend for these new requirements to commence from 1 January 2019, and I have released a discussion paper seeking feedback from the industry on how best to implement these reforms.”
Anyone seeking to provide feedback on the paper can find it on the Housing and Public Works website. Feedback submissions close at 5pm on October 9.
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