WALGA

Chief Health Officer Clarification on the Building and Construction Industry Worker (Restrictions on Access) Directions No.2

WALGA is aware that there are different interpretations of the Building and Construction Industry Worker (Restrictions on Access) Directions (No 2) in the Local Government sector and more broadly in the building and construction sector.

The advice WALGA has consistently received from the Office of the Chief Health Officer is that the Directions do not cover Local Government workers undertaking civil works (e.g. road works, work on pavements/footpaths, irrigation work, parks and gardens or landscaping work, etc.) as this type of work does not require a building permit under regulation 41 of the Building Regulations 2012 (WA) or a demolition permit under regulation 42 of the Building Regulations 2012 (WA) (see paragraph 13 of the Directions).

The Office of the Chief Health Officer has confirmed the above advice remains unchanged and is correct. The definition of ‘building and construction site’ in paragraph 13 of the Directions means that civil works as defined within the Construction Contracts Act 2002 (WA) and Occupational Safety and Health Regulations 1996 (WA), are exempt, as civil works are undertaken without a building permit or demolition permit.

Local Governments can be confident that if they comply with all of the terms of the Directions in a manner which is consistent with this advice, they will not be in breach of the Directions or at risk of receiving a penalty under the Directions.

The Directions can be found here

WALGA Office Holiday Closure

Please note the WALGA office will be closed from Saturday, 25 December and re-open on Tuesday, 4 January 2022.

Previous editions of COVID-19 Updates can be found on the WALGA website here.

Employee Relations subscribers may also access COVID-19 related information from FAQs and template resources in the subscriber section of the WALGA website here, noting users need to be logged in to view these resources.

Questions about the Directions may be sent to COVID-19 response team.