Civil contractors cover such a wide range of compliance areas, and have such strict obligations, it's difficult to be across it all. The spectrum is so broad it becomes even more difficult when both regulators and customers are changing the goal posts so frequently.

All businesses know prevention is better than a cure - but it’s got to be at the right price. CCF NSW ensures employers have info about our industry at their finger-tips through our e-news, publications and long list of events, seminars and training sessions.

Events

However, not everyone in your firm can always be released to go all our events…revenue doesn’t come in when machines and projects sit idle. So, whilst our meetings allow us to dig into issues and interact, we also supply weekly  information e-releases that employers can use to stay in touch with changes to law, regulator notices, customer announcements, and hot industry issues. 

PS: Let us know who to send them to in your team, and we will send the emails directly to whomever you want in your business.

For More Information on our Events   

News & Information

Sometimes, it’s nice to sit down and read something you can thumb through and draw on. Our bi-annual “Bulletin” hardcopy magazine is widely regarded as one of the best such publications of any industry body in NSW.  Each Member gets at least one copy, and you get more the larger the business.

To read more see our News page.

Our role as an Industrial Relations advocate is central to our being, and we continue to strongly support employers with Federal & State Industrial Awards. We have on staff the resources to support you with:

• Hearings at Fair Work Australia and the NSW Industrial Relations Commission
• NSW IR Guidelines for Code of Practice for Procurement: Building and Construction
• Enterprise Agreements
• Employment Contracts
• Terms and Conditions (Entitlements of Employment)
• Dismissals, Redundancies, and Performance Management
• Industrial Action
• Workers Compensation matters

Much of our time doing this sort of work for Contractor Members or can be free...find out more about Free Support Hours

From our Industrial Relations origins, our Compliance Support Unit has expanded to include the provision of advice and support in:

• Work, Health and Safety Laws
• Environmental Compliance
• Quality management systems
• NSW WHS Edition 6 Checklist compliance assessment
• Integrated Management Systems
• Auditing and Review
• Dealing with Regulatory Agencies
• Compliance Products
• Drug and Alcohol management, including testing
• Fatigue Management
• Chain of Responsibility
• Plant Operator Competency assessment 

Much of our time doing this sort of work for Contractor Members can be free ...find out more about Free Support Hours

CCF NSW offers its Members a certification system that is less complex and less costly than Australian Standards but which complies with NSW law.

In many cases it is a benefit of CCF NSW Annual Membership.

Find out more about Business Certification

 

Workers’ Compensation is the largest single insurance most civil contractors pay in NSW.

Members regularly report they have problems with premium amounts, fraudulent claims, and poor claim management by insurance companies and service providers.

CCF NSW is prohibited from providing some services in this area – they must be delivered by specialist Government approved providers. However, employers need help.

So, in 2006, we sought out a number of preferred specialist service providers to deliver support for our Members – that way these providers get to know our industry and our Members:

• Work Options has been with CCF NSW since the beginning in 2006…providing employers assistance with system compliance, worker injury management and, that most frustrating of issues, insurer management!
  
  CCF NSW has contracted Work Options to provide the “Injury Assist” Program to Members, which includes audits and a helpline for CCF NSW Members – 1300 550 770.
  
  If you are a small to medium sized business without (real) experts in house and one of your workers has an injury at work, don’t let someone else control what happens – check out the Injury Assistance Flyer or call the hotline and get some advice!  www.workoptions.com.au.
  
  
  
• Employers Mutual Ltd (EML) has been with CCF NSW since 2010. EML is a NSW workers compensation claim manager. They are experts in their field and truly 'get' our industry. Their service and support is second to none and CCF NSW encourages employers to actively engage with EML.
  
  As EML is a Mutual, they will return 1% of premium paid back to the employer in the form of WHS initiatives. No other NSW insurer can do that.
  
  CCF NSW’s recommendation is solely based on performance…that’s why we select and retain EML as our recommended claim manager. However, it is comforting to know that EML support our industry and, whilst they are not obliged to do so, are a Silver Sponsor of CCF NSW.
  
  In order to provide our Members with the best of support, EML provide an account manager for CCF NSW. If you have questions about workers compensation, please contact CCF NSW immediately.
  
  See the website for more information  www.employersmutual.com.au

Regrettably, this is an issue becoming ever more common in society, and so an ever looming risk to employers. 

CCF NSW identified in 2009 this as a major issue for our Members. Due to its complexity, and lack of prescriptive WHS law, we determined that the setting of a “Position Statement” on how firms could manage D&A in their businesses would be beneficial. It was also determined at that time that the ever changing legal nature of this work meant it needed a specialist service provider to be advising and supporting employers. We turned to our injury management provider ‘Work Options’ to tailor their national D&A service to one specifically for the civil infrastructure industry.

 To read more…view the CCF NSW D&A Position Statement and our Drugs and Alcohol flyer

Making sure you have someone who is physically capable of doing the job you ask of them is an important employer responsibility. Hiring (or retaining) someone who physically cannot do the work is simply exposing your business to workers compensation claims, and serious employment disputes.

Some firms send prospective employees to a GP to complete a questionnaire and have a simple health check. This gives little independent comfort (and may indeed give false comfort), because it does not assess the employee against the particular job you have.

The CCF NSW has recognised this as a major employment risk, and turned to our injury management specialist, Work Options, to develop a solution for the civil industry. They have developed a bank of physical job descriptions for the civil industry that can be tailored to suit your roles. These can then be used to assess prospective employees (or existing ones) to see if they can REALLY do the job you want them to do. The assessments, conducted by Work Options, test the person under the workloads that the person would actually be doing.

 

If you have an accident or a critical incident, CCF NSW can be there to help. We can support you with:

• Triage response… what do you do right now?!
• Incident investigation
• Employee Counselling services (including whole EAP programs)
• Regulator (SafeWork and EPA) liaison
• Union liaison
• Media advice

If you have an issue call us on (02) 9009 4000(02) 9009 4000, email ccfnsw@ccfnsw.com or Contact Us

Bad things happen sometimes. Stress can build up and get to anyone. If you think someone in your business might need help talking about something, don’t leave it until its too late. The guilt will be unimaginable.

CCF NSW have set up, with the help of expert workplace health & support firm Work Options. They have psychologists and counsellors available to respond with help to a workplace incident, family problems, drugs or alcohol and business stress issues.

They can provide a ‘there as needed’ service, or an intervention. It’s a case by case situation.

If you would to enquire before something happens, then call us on (02) 9009 4000(02) 9009 4000 or  contact us  however, if urgent help is needed, don’t delay - call the CCF NSW Member helpline on 1300 550 770.

CCF has legal standing as an Industrial Organisation to represent employers in industrial disputes and negotiations with unions and in employment disputes with employees.

We also have a role in assisting Members in disputes with customers, and even other contractors and suppliers. Be it a payment or some other issue, our role is to achieve a positive outcome without destroying relationships.

It happens – a lot. You are not unique, and CCF NSW is able to help.

We can do this by explaining the options, putting you in contact with someone who can quickly help, or by actually providing non-legal representation. We have authority under the NSW SOPA Compliance and Enforcement Guidelines to do so.

For a confidential discussion, please contact us on(02) 9009 4000(02) 9009 4000 or email ccfnsw@ccfnsw.com and refer to “SOPA Service”

Whilst CCF can undertake and provide IR support, there are many areas such as contract law, payment claims etc that sometimes require specialist advice. This is why we have developed a proven ‘panel’ of legal experts familiar with our industry. 

All the panel members provide an initial discussion free of charge as a CCF NSW Member benefit.

Civil in NSW is booming. But, with this boom comes critical stress...

CCF NSW has an important role in assisting employers gain access to quality training.  We now exclusively recommend TAFE NSW as our civil construction RTO.

For information on apprenticeships and traineeships available to you, please contact CCF NSW.

The NSW Government’s Aboriginal Procurement Policy (APP) and the Aboriginal Participation in Construction Policy (APIC) have merged into a new policy, which commenced 1 January 2021.  

CCF NSW assists employers in the industry manage these new obligations.

For more detailed information see Aboriginal Participation

CCFs civil contracting industry specific compliance systems and pro-forma materials are specifically designed for our industry, for the industry, to take some of the leg work out of an employer’s life in reinventing the wheel.

CCF has a number of very good firms who have had a long history of providing employers with reliable and innovative insurance and finance products. If you need assistance, please call us and we can discuss your needs.

If you have an issue call us on (02) 9009 4000(02) 9009 4000, email ccfnsw@ccfnsw.com or Contact Us

CCF NSW Contractor Members receive an allocation of “Free Support Hours” each year of their Membership.

These hours are may be used seek assistance and support from our Compliance Support Unit on subjects including Workplace Health and Safety, Environmental, workers compensation or quality management system, Industrial Relations and employee performance/hire/fire issues.

If unused in a given year, these FSH do not just expire, but rather are rolled over to the following year.

If you need more Industrial Relations support than your FSH allocation from our in-house solicitor, that will be provided FREE.

The number of hours provided for each year is explained in the following table:

Level 1 Membership	2 free hours
Level 2 Membership	3 free hours
Level 3 Membership	4 free hours
Level 4 Membership	5 free hours
Level 5 Membership	6 free hours
Level 6 Membership	6 free hours

 

CCF NSW Contractor Members receive (within practical limits) unlimited free advice on Industrial Relations and employment law matters. 

Whether you are having employment law issues, employee pay, union, award, EBA, right of entry or termination issues, we can and will support you. 

This is a highly regulated and complex area of law, and many employment law and Industrial Relations problems can be inadvertently triggered with nonetheless potentially severe consequences for the employer. 

CCF NSW Members are strongly encouraged to use this free service and seek assistance with employment law and Industrial Relations as and when required.