Page 5474 - Week 15 - Tuesday, 8 December 2009
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Work Choices. The bilateral agreements signed under the stimulus package demand something rather more Australian—targets in relation to employment of apprentices and Indigenous people.
The Construction Industry Training Council is facilitating and validating industry take-up of apprentices, trainees, cadets and Indigenous employees. This mechanism has been developed in consultation with, and has the support of, peak industry bodies and training authorities. All nation building contracts in the ACT with a value over $100,000 require the employment of one apprentice for every four qualified tradespersons. Credit is given in tender evaluations to those subcontractors who intend to employ apprentices on projects.
The task force has also worked with the Construction Industry Training Council and Indigenous Success Australia to develop Indigenous employment training opportunities on the nation building projects. CITC and ISA identify potential candidates and provide pre-employment training to make them site ready. By working with group training providers, ISA is creating lasting employment extending beyond the life of these nation-building projects.
These elements of the stimulus package—the focus on social housing, the concentration on education infrastructure and the long-term training outcomes—are not just icing on the cake; they are essential ingredients. So too is the focus on sustainability. Every dwelling constructed under stage 2 of the social housing component of the nation building plan will have a six-star energy efficiency rating. While the commonwealth only demanded these standards for stage 2 dwellings, the ACT government decided that houses being constructed under stage 1 would also meet the six-star rating, and that many would incorporate principles of universal design as well.
The drive for sustainable development is not confined to housing. School projects are required, wherever possible, to incorporate sustainable building principles and the work itself is designed to maximise future energy efficiency through inclusions such as insulation, energy efficient solar hot water, energy efficient lighting, energy efficient glazing, heating and cooling, and water tanks. The ACT government takes this matter so seriously that the Department of Education and Training has allocated additional capital works funds to the BER program funds, just to ensure that ESD initiatives are included in the projects.
Under the training and infrastructure for tomorrow element of the commonwealth package, the ACT has received over $6 million to establish a sustainable skills training hub for hands-on green skills training in emerging sustainable technologies for both the residential and commercial construction sectors. This leading-edge facility will position the ACT well in developing an all-new skills base as part of Labor’s transition to a clean economy. And we should not forget that the commonwealth is funding households directly under the energy efficient homes package as well. More than 200 homes in the ACT received assistance under phase 1 of the homeowner insulation program element and 25 homes under phase 1 of the low emission assistance plan for renters. Under phase 2 of the scheme, which began on 1 July, 1,425 ACT households have made claims.
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