The NSW government is asking all builders to tender for projects on a five-day and six-day working week schedule as it seeks to expand the use of shorter working weeks for building staff, which it says improves work-life balance and adds little to project costs.
Research that the agency will publish on Monday, based on work done by Roberts Co at its Concord and Liverpool hospital projects, found nearly four-fifths of workers said their work-life balance was better and three-quarters preferred a week that cut out Saturdays in favour of longer days on site from Monday to Friday.The Australian Financial ReviewIt’s a working model that represents a big change for commercial construction.
“Workers were telling us they were doing their own cost-benefit analysis of not working on a Saturday. There was in some cases a reduction in pay but also a reduction in travel time.”The research was not exhaustive – COVID-19 interruptions on site reduced the ability to collect quantifiable data about costs and benefits of the shorter week. Much of the industry remains cautious.
Ms Wark said it was “potentially easier for government clients – and particularly for a health-related agency as hers – to implement this model than private-sector clients.
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