President & CEO’s Message

President’s Message

This year is the anniversary of our founding in 1901 as The Perth and District Master Plumbers Association.

Although we have changed our name a few times since then, we can claim the remarkable achievement of one hundred and twenty years continuous operation as an organisation for employers in Western Australia’s plumbing and gasfitting industry. We are still going strong despite all the changes that have occurred in the industry and society generally.

To my mind, such endurance in the face of ever-changing circumstances must have required certain strengths including a high degree of resilience and adaptability. I’m thinking, for example, of the way we responded last year and helped members during the sudden disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic. I believe there are two main reasons why we have these strengths.

The first is the dedication of generations of volunteers who have served on the Executive Committee. It is impossible to calculate how much time they have collectively devoted, but let’s assume an average of 10 committee members, attending meetings for an average of four hours a month for 12 months. For 120 years! Then, we need to add in all the additional time consumed by activities between meetings.

These people have given us tens of thousands of unpaid hours while freely contributing their knowledge and experience. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude.

The other reason is that the underlying importance of our profession has never changed. As we often say, licensed plumbing contractors are at the front line of public health. That statement is as true now as it was in 1901. It will still be true in another one hundred and twenty years.

While we celebrate our anniversary, we should remember the foresight of those who founded the Association and the efforts of all who have succeeded them. We must also stand tall and be proud to be licensed plumbing contractors whose work is important.

Matt Johnson

President

CEO’s Message

From time to time, a licensed plumbing contractor will challenge me or another member of the office staff to explain the benefits of belonging to the Association. The person asking the question may be someone thinking about joining or an existing member questioning the value they get from their membership. For us, the answer always seems obvious and straightforward. Expressed in the simplest terms, the benefits of membership far outweigh the cost of the annual tax-deductible membership fee. If we need to provide detail, we can talk about specifics such as news and information, industrial relations advice, technical advice, business resources, discounts on goods and services, and social events. This year we are adding new benefits such as insurance and continual professional development to the list There is another valuable benefit too, which I call the ‘value of belonging’. It arises from the fact that industry associations like The Master Plumbers and Gasfitters Association of WA exist to connect people to help them achieve common goals and support each other. That type of connection is something every licensed plumbing contractor and gasfitter needs but is unlikely to find elsewhere. This matters because our industry consists mostly of small to medium-sized businesses, many of which are family-owned and operated. They are vulnerable to external forces such as the ever-increasing risks and costs of compliance with laws and regulations, the practices of prime contractors on construction projects and competition from cheap unlicensed operators. They may struggle to stay on top of information relevant to the industry. As individual businesses, they have little or no bargaining power with the cost of services like insurance or legal advice. In this sense, the ‘value of belonging’ is strength. There is strength in numbers, strength in having a common voice and strength in being united as members of a recognised organisation. If the need for this strength is important now, it will be critical in the future. This is because increasing concerns about environment and sustainability, plus the pandemic-induced focus on public health, will cause governments and the public to pay more attention to everything related to water and sanitation. While this means the role of licensed plumbing contractors will win more appreciation than it does now, it also means that areas such as technology, training and compliance will become more complex. The ‘value of belonging’ will count even more than it does now.

Murray Thomas Chief Executive Officer