THE plumbers’ union claims 20 workers on the Royal Hobart Hospital have been “sacked without notice” as part of a contractual dispute on the trouble-plagued project.
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Lead contractor Fairbrother John Holland has started an investigation into the matter.
RHH project director Ben Moloney said the plumbing subcontractor AMS Hydraulics “withdrew its labour” from the site on Friday.
“The RHH Redevelopment project expects that the subcontract agreement will be administered fairly by both parties and that all Australian and Tasmanian laws continue to be adhered to throughout these commercial negotiations,” he said.
“This is a matter which requires urgent resolution by Fairbrother John Holland.”
The Communications Electrical and Plumbing Union claimed the plumbers were being used as “pawns”.
Union state secretary Michael Anderson said it was further setback for workers on the site.
“It’s a disgrace that these workers have been sacked; they have done nothing wrong and don’t deserve to be used as leverage to sort out a contractual dispute,” he said.
“The project is already miles behind, and this isn’t going to help that situation as a legal resolution could take weeks.”
In September, up to 120 plasterers stopped work on the site after claiming they were not paid for up to eight weeks of work. Unions also estimated Chinese and Taiwanese workers were owed $1 million in wages.