NSW could extend construction work hours on weekends

Tradies have long been confined to strict working hours on-site but the NSW Premier has hinted workers may no longer have to down tools on one specific day.

Premier Dominic Perrottet has indicated he is open to tradies heading to work sites on Sundays, saying “we need to get the state moving” post-Covid.

The Premier backed his planning Minister Anthony Roberts, who told a Property Council meeting on Wednesday that one way to deal with labour shortages, supply chain pressures and rising construction costs was to lift caps on Sunday construction.

“One way to alleviate these impacts is to facilitate extended construction hours,” Mr Roberts told the lunch.

Mr Perrottet confirmed on Thursday the government was looking at allowing wholesale construction work on Sundays after successfully allowing it last year.

“In terms of working on Sundays, we did that during the pandemic. We’re looking at that again (and we’ll deal with it) in a balanced and an appropriate way,” he said.

Construction work could be allowed on Sundays. Picture: Bianca De Marchi

“We obviously want to bring the community with us on that but I want people in work. I want people in jobs.”

He added that allowing work on Sundays “provides opportunities, particularly in circumstances where that other days may be washed out”, while saying lifting the Sunday work ban could help hit NSW’s housing targets of building 50,000 new homes a year.

“We can’t have an Australia where we can’t house our children. We need to build homes. We need to get the state moving,” he said.

Construction work is currently permitted from Monday to Saturday, while Sunday work is only permitted in specific instances.

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Originally published as NSW could extend construction work hours on weekends