Posted to The Age (4/6/2015) on 4/6/2015 at 3:18 PM
Commenting on "Stop builders turning dream homes into nightmares"
http://www.theage.com.au/comment/stop-builders-turning-dream-homes-into-nightmares-20150603-ghfkht.html
I am no friend of any unscrupulous operator or organisation. It is time for consumers to take legal action against the authority cum consumer protection regulator, the industry bodies that hinder good practices, and the shonky tradespeople or builders. They all owe the consumers a duty of care. As a person of zero tolerance, I would like to see the people concerned to be put out of "business" or behind bars.
Australia is no longer the "lucky" and innocent country like it used to be. Many tradespeople or professionals do not do their jobs with pride, but instead pray on honest ordinary consumers.
The present and past few governments have been encouraging young people to pursue academic rather than trade qualification. With ageing population, there are not enough young skilled tradespeople, at least 100,000 of them short, to fill the gap of the retired ones.
Shortage of skilled tradespeople also creates a pool of unqualified migrants working in the construction industry, normally not on the large building project. They do not have the protection of work over, and work safety is generally a non-issue.
Many tradespeople purchase goods from large hardware stores with cash, so that they can avoid detection of earning an income. Furthermore, by doing so, there is no paper trail to prove the existence of such business or materials being used. In general, these tradespeople offer the clients a lower price without charging GST, and if they do, the GST is just another 10% that lines their pockets.
Commenting on "Stop builders turning dream homes into nightmares"
http://www.theage.com.au/comment/stop-builders-turning-dream-homes-into-nightmares-20150603-ghfkht.html
Australia is no longer the "lucky" and innocent country like it used to be. Many tradespeople or professionals do not do their jobs with pride, but instead pray on honest ordinary consumers.
The present and past few governments have been encouraging young people to pursue academic rather than trade qualification. With ageing population, there are not enough young skilled tradespeople, at least 100,000 of them short, to fill the gap of the retired ones.
Shortage of skilled tradespeople also creates a pool of unqualified migrants working in the construction industry, normally not on the large building project. They do not have the protection of work over, and work safety is generally a non-issue.
Many tradespeople purchase goods from large hardware stores with cash, so that they can avoid detection of earning an income. Furthermore, by doing so, there is no paper trail to prove the existence of such business or materials being used. In general, these tradespeople offer the clients a lower price without charging GST, and if they do, the GST is just another 10% that lines their pockets.
