UPDATES
Planning reforms Work continues on the rollout of the new Planning and Design Code, which will be fully operational from July next year. The Code will replace all 68 councils’ development plans with a single set of planning rules. This will enable consistency when assessing projects across the state. Consultation on Phase One of the Code (the outback) has recently ended and as part of Minister Knoll’s Liaison Group Master Builders SA will provide regular feedback to the Marshall Government on Phase Two (the regions, mid-2019) and Phase Three (the entire state, late June 2019). The Code is expected to be fully-operational by July 2020. After more than 140 submissions, a State Parliamentary inquiry has recommended a heritage overhaul, including streamlining the listing process and an audit of current heritage places. An encouraging sign has been the State Planning Commission’s confirming that “contributory items” status, which is currently afforded to about 12,000 buildings or sites will no longer exist under the new Code.
ABCC retained CEO Ian Markos had a lengthy piece on the importance of maintaining the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) in the May edition of The Spectator. Since the ABCC was re-established in December 2016, the CFMEU and their officials have racked up more than $8 million in fines. In April, Commissioner Stephen McBurney said the agency had 38 cases before the courts, including 14 where the union had been found liable but a penalty was yet to be handed down. Unfortunately, despite all the evidence for the ABCC to be retained – the regular heavy fines and the complete lack of remorse shown by convicted officials – Bill Shorten promised to abolish it. The CFMEU flexed plenty of muscle and donated more than $4.2 million to the Labor Party since Shorten was elected. If a Shorten Government had abolished the ABCC, our industry would have been exposed to an unacceptable level of risk. Prior to the elections Master Builders SA had discussions with the Marshall Government about potentially establishing a South Australian based industry watchdog and Code to protect the rule of law on construction sites. However with the ABCC now secure for another three years a local body will no longer be required.
INSIGHT
The top issues facing small building and construction businesses Key reasons for this include an overall increase in turnover over the six months to December 2018, increased staff hiring and improved cash flow. Businesses with more than 20 employees were more positive when looking back on the last six months. For the following six months (to June 2019), almost half (46 per cent) of the businesses said they expect business conditions to improve with only 6 per cent expecting conditions to deteriorate over this period. Around two-thirds (63 per cent) of businesses expect to hire more staff and nearly half (44 per cent) of businesses expect turnover to increase.
To provide more tailored support to small businesses in the built environment, Cbus has developed a Small Business Insights Report. The Cbus Small Business Insights Report is based on a survey of Cbus employers conducted in December 2018, incorporating the voice of more than 900 Australian small businesses working in the building and construction industry.
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Initial insights have identified small building and construction businesses appear to be doing well, despite headwinds in the residential construction sector, with many businesses providing positive feedback. Around 40 per cent of businesses reported that their circumstances had improved in the six months to December 2018 and only 13 per cent reported deteriorating conditions.
Despite the positive outlook, small businesses face some pressing business issues, including finding new work and skilled staff. Other significant issues included managing cash flow, managing administration and paper work, as well as collecting accounts receivable. View the full report at www.cbussuper.com.au/ smallbusinessreport to see how your business compares to other small businesses and find valuable insights for your business.
For more information call 1300 361 784 or visit www.cbussuper.com.au for a copy.
SA BUILDER WINTER 2019
