ABCC’s end sparks renewed push for casuals

Union will use the building code’s abolition to reinstate clauses that require employers to convert casuals to permanent employment.

Employment Minister Tony Burke. Picture: AAP

The Electrical Trades Union will seek to use the building code’s abolition to reinstate clauses that require employers to convert casuals to permanent employment, limit the use of labour hire and increase the employment of apprentices.

ETU national secretary Michael Wright said the union would push to resurrect enterprise agreement clauses banned under the Coalition’s building code, including provisions that required employers to convert casuals to permanency after a certain number of weeks.

He said the previous industry standard was conversion after six weeks but the union had yet to determine what time frame would be sought in bargaining.

“Casual employment works sometimes, but there’s nothing casual about the rosters they were working. It was the same week after week,” he said.

“It just meant that they didn’t get the annual leave, they didn’t get the security of employment, they didn’t get their unfair dismissal rights.

“They also just didn’t have the same investment in the job so there’s less incentive to train, there’s less incentive to take pride in your work. That’s what these reforms to the building code let us go and start fixing with bargaining.”

The ETU will also push to insert “same job, same pay” clauses into new agreements to remove the financial incentive to “mass engage labour hire instead of hiring your own workforce”.

It will seek to reinstate clauses that see employers commit to engaging one apprentice per number of tradespeople.

The Coalition on Monday promised to restore the Australian Building and Construction Commission if it wins the next election, ensuring the future of the industry watchdog will remain politically contested.

Opposition workplace relations spokeswoman Michaelia Cash said “chaos” would engulf the building industry if Labor went ahead with its promise to scrap the specialist regulator.

She said the ABCC was needed to ensure there was safety and efficiency in the sector, which contributes 8 per cent of gross domestic product and employs more than 1.1 million people.

“Under the Coalition we restored the building regulator back in 2016, and what you have seen then is a decrease in working days lost and a decrease in the lawlessness that under Labor was wrecking the construction industry in Australia,” Senator Cash said.

“You look at even former prime ministers Rudd and Gillard, they recognised after commissioning the report into the construction sector … even they recognised that because of the nature of the unlawful behaviour in the construction sector that a specialist watchdog was required.”

The push to abolish the body is likely to receive the support of the parliament, with the Greens and ACT senator David Pocock signalling they would back it.

Greens leader Adam Bandt said the ABCC was an “affront to the rule of law”.

“You should not have fewer rights at work just because you happen to work in a dangerous industry like construction,” Mr Bandt said.

“That is the situation at the moment.”

Senator Pocock said the government had a mandate to abolish the ABCC but there needed to be a “discussion for what the plan is once it is gone”.

“It’s crucial we have a system that is fit-for-purpose and ensures we have safe, productive construction sites going forward,” he said.

“It is good to see some ­additional information being ­provided by the minister regarding arrangements for the Fair Work Ombudsman to take over existing cases, and the Federal Safety Commissioner, and I hope they will be adequately resourced.”

Additional reporting: Jess Malcolm