28 August 2024
Eight weeks out from the state election, the building and construction industry is turning up the volume on its calls for solutions to fix the housing crisis – and busting some myths in the process.
In May, Master Builders launched its Home Truths 2024 state election campaign, calling on all sides of politics to better support the sector to grow the state for the good of all.
Among the five priorities is the call for the state government to remove the productivity-sapping elements of the government’s Best Practice Industry Conditions (BPICs).
Master Builders CEO Paul Bidwell said this priority had attracted criticism that this would mean construction workers would get paid less, builders would be forced to cut corners, and important safety protections skipped over – but nothing is further from the truth.
“Wages and working conditions are adequately protected by workplace laws and existing enterprise agreements. Safety protections are covered by WHS laws, regulations and are overseen by government regulators,” Mr Bidwell said.
“As the peak body representing construction in Queensland, the safety and wellbeing of workers, and delivering top-notch compliant work for consumers, is at the core of what our members do.
“BPIC adds another layer to the rules and codes we are already following. Its removal will not mean asking anyone to take shortcuts to deliver the housing, schools, hospitals and other key government projects our community needs.
“There is clear evidence that BPIC is driving productivity down and pushing costs up – the opposite of what we need in the middle of a housing crisis.
“Our analysis shows that depending on how the provisions in BPIC are applied, up to 96 working days are lost in a calendar year because of a lack of flexibility in the use of rostered days off (RDOs) and working hours generally.
“If BPIC is exercised to its full extent, the cost to build a two-bedroom apartment blows out by 33 per cent – from $870,000 to $1.16m.
“We’ve heard reports that workers are under the false assumption that Master Builders is pushing for their wages to be cut by 30 per cent. This is absolutely not the case. Our point is, that as a result of BPIC, productivity is reduced by a third, which means the project takes longer and costs more. This has nothing to do with the wages of the subbies and the workers on these building projects.
“Employers and employees should have the choice to offer and take voluntary overtime and weekend work, without union intervention. Individual choice should also be the case for RDOs, instead of the union dictating the same day off for all, closing projects for 26 days every year.
“The current practice of workers performing 3-4 hours of work the morning of a rally then leaving site, as well as rallies scheduled around public holidays and RDOs, is blowing out project schedules.
“Finally, unions shouldn’t unreasonably attempt to limit employers engaging subcontractors.
“The Australian Bureau of Statistics tells us 33,099 new dwellings were approved to be built in Queensland in the 12 months to June – that’s agonisingly short of the 49,000 needed each year to meet our share of the National Housing Accord – again, in a housing crisis.
“Acting on BPIC is just one of the levers that can be pulled right now to make an immediate impact. Scrapping project trust accounts, rolling back costly red tape including changes to the National Construction Code 2022 that don’t show clear benefit, getting the Queensland Building and Construction Commission to work better with and for us, and implementing a mandatory Queensland Housing Code, are also must-haves under our plan for progress.
“With the poll drawing nearer, it’s crucial that all political parties are crystal clear on what needs to happen, now, to address the crisis and help us get on with the job.”
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