More Sydney construction workers given prospect of return to work

Unoccupied construction sites across Greater Sydney, including the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour, will operate at 50 per cent capacity from Wednesday with enhanced COVID safe measures.

More construction sites will resume work with new worksite capacity limits and the introduction of minimum vaccination requirements for workers from the eight affected local government areas (LGAs) including Blacktown, Campbelltown, Canterbury-Bankstown, Cumberland, Fairfield, Georges River, Liverpool and Parramatta.

Construction workers from the affected LGAs will be added to the list of authorised workers allowing them to work on unoccupied construction sites in Greater Sydney if they meet the vaccination conditions.

The executive director of the NSW Master Builders, Brian Seidler estimated around 75,000 of 220,000 frontline construction workers in Sydney reside in the eight locked-out council areas.

To work construction workers from affected LGAs must provide evidence that they have received:

·       two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, or

·       one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine at least three weeks before attending work, or

·       one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and, if less than three weeks since that vaccine was administered, a negative COVID-19 test in the previous 72 hours. 

NSW is currently trialling rapid antigen testing and when approved by NSW Health, that form of testing may be used as an alternative to a negative PCR test.

The Property Council of Australia welcomed the NSW Government’s framework to allow more construction sites across Greater Sydney to re-open as of August 11.

The construction sector had been authorised to restart from late July after a two-week shut down, but it emerged many sites could not resume given the absence of Western Sydney workers.

It was reported Aland warned that more than $950 million of development and 1450 dwellings were in limbo given the targeted restrictions on movement.

Some of the state's most significant projects remained closed or struggling to get an adequate workforce.

The Western Sydney Airport, Paramatta light rail and the fastest-growing commercial centre outside of a capital city in the country can all safely restart works under this plan.

“This gives us a clear platform for how industries safely reopen with a vaccine-led solution," acting NSW executive director of the Property Council of Australia, Lauren Conceicao, said.

Construction workers would be able to leave locked down LGAs for work under this new plan, subject to being vaccinated.

Those with just one vaccine will continue to be subject to regular negative test results. 

"For workers double vaccinated, a vaccination certificate that can be saved on their phone will become their green tick to work,” she said.

Next Sunday construction workers will be able to attend Super Sunday at Sydney Olympic Park vaccination centre for construction vaccination day.

Almost 50 percent of NSW housing is being built in the region.