The Victorian Government has announced a plan for the COVID-Safe restart of the construction industry on Tuesday 5 October 2021, as well as details for the Business Costs Assistance Program Round Four – Construction.
Changes from Tuesday 5 October 2021:
All Construction Sites
- All workers must have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
- Fully vaccinated means having both vaccinations.
- Excepted person means having a certification from a specified medical practitioner that a person is unable to receive a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine due to a medical contraindication.
- All critical and essential infrastructure sites can reopen and return to 100 per cent of their workforce if crib rooms have best-practice approaches including ventilation and density limits.
- Crib rooms may only be used in line with best practise guidelines.
- Crib room best practice standard includes following the ‘COVID-19 Best practice approaches for safe worker amenities on construction sites’ including density quotient of one per person per four square metres; and additional ventilation so that entire air volume of the room replaced or filtered every 10 to 12 minutes.
- Operators must have worker shift bubbles where practical.
- A small-scale site is capped at five people plus a supervisor.
- COVID Marshals on small scale construction sites may be a site supervisor who performs the role of COVID Marshal for multiple sites at the same time.
- Workers on small scale construction sites may travel between metropolitan Melbourne or an LGA under lockdown restrictions and regional Victoria to work if they are fully vaccinated or an excepted person.
Large-Scale Construction Sites and Critical Infrastructure Projects
- At all critical and essential infrastructure sites, cribs rooms must meet best practice standards or be closed.
- Large-scale sites are capped at:
- 25 per cent of the workforce, or
- 50 per cent, if crib rooms meet best practice standards and all workers are fully vaccinated (or an excepted person).
- Workers on large-scale sites or state-critical infrastructure projects are permitted to travel between metropolitan Melbourne or an LGA under lockdown restrictions and regional Victoria to work on construction sites if they have received at least one vaccination dose, unless they are an excepted person. However, workers who have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine must be tested before crossing the boundary and they must get tested twice a week, with at least 72 hours between each test, until they receive their second dose.
From 70 per cent double dose (estimated 26 October 2021)
- Large scale sites can go to 100 per cent if all workers on the site are fully vaccinated.
From 80 per cent double dose (estimated 5 November 2021)
- Workforce restrictions that limit the number of workers onsite and movement between sites will be removed, if those workers are fully vaccinated.
- Pre-existing requirements such as COVIDSafe Plans will remain in place.
- All construction workers must be fully vaccinated by 13 November.
The Business Costs Assistance Program Round Four – Construction
The Business Costs Assistance Program Round Four – Construction will launch in mid-October. More information on this grant and its opening date will be available on Business Victoria’s website.
The Victorian Government’s Business Costs Assistance Program Round Four – Construction provides one-off payments to eligible employing and non-employing businesses in the construction sector that operate in the following local government areas:
- Metropolitan Melbourne
- The City of Greater Geelong
- Mitchell Shire
- Surf Coast Shire
Business must have incurred direct costs because of the health restrictions in place between 21 September – 4 October.
Payments of up to $8400 will be made available to eligible businesses based on payroll size.
Learn More