VIC CONSTRUCTION SECTOR HIT HARD BY LOCKDOWNS, RESTRICTIONS AND MANDATES

VIC CONSTRUCTION SECTOR HIT HARD BY LOCKDOWNS, RESTRICTIONS AND MANDATES

Victoria’s construction industry has faced numerous challenges and changes in the later half of 2021, with workplace restrictions, vaccine mandates, site shutdowns and violent protests taking its toll on the essential sector.

In August, the Victorian Government announced a lockdown extension and tougher restrictions for Melbourne’s sixth lockdown, including additional restrictions for the construction industry as the COVID-19 Delta variant cases rose.

The new restrictions stated that large-scale construction sites would be limited to 25 per cent for site capacity or five workers per site, whichever is greater, with small-scale construction sites allowed five workers per site.

Following on from the August restrictions, the Victorian Government launched a COVID compliance blitz in September to target the spread of the virus in the construction sector and ensure that sites could remain open. This included mandates on vaccines – including the requirement for workers to show evidence to their employer of having had one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine before they return to site on 5 October.

Construction sites were identified as a major source of transmission, and the four-week blitz saw a ‘zero tolerance’ approach, applying fines and prohibition notices in response to any serious non-compliance.

The restrictions and vaccine mandates introduced by the Victorian Government were met with backlash from a small percentage of the wider construction industry, with more than 500 protesters gathering outside the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) office on Monday 20 September. Bottles and crates were thrown at officials, prompting police to use rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the crowd.

A two-week shutdown was announced just hours after the protests and came into effect from 11.59pm that same day.

Protests continued for several days, beginning in Melbourne’s city centre and spreading to other Melbourne landmarks throughout the week, including the city’s war memorial and the West Gate Bridge.

Victorian Premier, Daniel Andrews, said at the time, “There is no excuse for the terrible behaviour we have seen in our city over the last two days. We know vaccinations are our only ticket out of this pandemic. There is no other way.”

In early October, the Victorian construction sector reopened, following the release of the State Government’s Construction Sector Roadmap, which detailed the steps to reopening the industry in line with public health recommendations.

The shutdown eased at 11:59pm on 4 October, with new restrictions detailing that in order to work onsite, all workers must carry an Authorised Worker Permit and must have had at least one vaccine dose.

Additionally, every construction site in Victoria would be required to have a designated fully trained COVID Marshal to ensure compliance with the Chief Health Officer‘s directions.

Subject to continued high levels of compliance by the industry, workforce caps will progressively increase. Once the 70 per cent double dose milestone has been reached, largescale construction can return to 100 per cent of its workforce.

Caps will be removed when Victoria reaches its 80 per cent target, and in addition, all onsite workers must be fully vaccinated by 13 November.