New Australian Construction White Card Course Assessment Requirements Announced
Jan 20, 2017
Bureaucratic and demeaning changes have quietly been made to the assessment requirements of Australia's mandatory White Card course by government appointed bodies, resulting in significantly reduced student access to this important safety course.
Brisbane, Australia - January 20, 2017 /PressCable/ —
Recently the requirements for a mandatory safety course in the Australian Construction Industry were quietly changed with little announcement, and with concerning access issues for thousands of Australians. The course is known as the White Card and to hold this Card is mandatory for anyone entering or working on a construction site – it is not possible to work on a construction site without having one of these, or a previous equivalent.
The primary changes affect the assessment component of the course, which will now require the Registered Training Organisation (RTO – private training organisations who administer the course) to get all trainees to “demonstrate competence” in fitting basic “Personal Protective Equipment” (PPE). This includes the student showing the trainer that he or she can:
– Put on a hard hat – Fit a pair of safety goggles – Put on a Visy jacket, and – Put on ear muffs
To say this is a bureaucratic, ridiculous and demeaning waste of time and resources is an understatement!
But what are the implications of this change? It is estimated that over 90% of all White Card courses in Australia are currently done online, since the introduction and nationalisation of the White Card course in 2009. This has meant that:
– The course is cheaper than previously – The course is much more convenient than having to attend a classroom – The course is much more accessible for rural and remote students who otherwise might have to travel extensively to find a classroom based course.
– The changes to the assessment process now requiring all RTO’s to have on hand relevant PPE so that students can demonstrate their “competence” will undoubtedly make it much more impractical to deliver the course online.
Whilst officials state that the new course requirements “do not preclude” online training, and do allow for “live video recording of the student fitting PPE”, clearly this ridiculous requirement is going to make the online process much harder to for online RTO’s deliver and many will not be able to, or will not bother, and thus this represents a step back into the 90’s for the Australian construction training industry, as well as a kick in the face for those not living near a classroom based training facility – especially of course, disadvantaging the countries’ rural and remote residents.
Peter Cutforth, Director of online training RTO Urban E-Learning Pty Ltd said: “The process through which the previous “Industry Skills Council” and its 2016 replacement “Service Skills Organisation” arrived at these new requirements over several years has been fraught with poor process, flawed consultation, seeming conflicts of interest, and lack of transparency.”
Cutforth understands that Safe Work Australia do not support the changes and he called for “an immediate review into the situation by the relevant Federal Ministers”.
He said: “It’s hard not to suspect that the interests of the powerful construction Trade Unions are at play here, as they have traditionally offered expensive Face-to-face White Card courses, particularly in NSW, and thus this change will likely bolster the revenues into this old school modality of training.”
Cutforth called for “construction company leaders to lobby for the antiquated changes to be reversed before they need to take affect in early December 2017”.
Contact Info:
Name: Peter
Organization: Urban E-Learning
Address: PO Box 575 SPRING HILL, Brisbane, 4000 Australia
For more information, please visit https://www.urbanelearning.com/rto-courses/whitecard-online/
Source: MarketersMedia
Release ID: 163139
More News
Retailers urge end to tax exemptions for online purchases
MANILA, Philippines — The government should scrap the tax-free threshold for international online purchases instead of revising levies on luxury goods, the head of the national retailers group said on Wednesday, warning that the current e-commerce regime creates an uncompetitive environment for local businesses. Bobby Claudio, chairman of the Philippine Retailers Association, said removing tax
Manila Water South Luzon steps up El Niño preparations
MANILA, Philippines — As the state weather agency Pagasa has declared the presence of a “very strong” El Niño in the tropical Pacific, Manila Water Non-East Zone operating units Tanauan Water and Laguna Aquatech are intensifying water security measures across the South Luzon corridor to help ensure reliable water service and strengthen water security for the
San Juan City completes 4th wave of rice distribution to seniors
MANILA, Philippines —The San Juan City government has completed the fourth wave of its rice distribution program for senior citizens, covering all 21 barangays of the city. Funded through the Local Government Support Fund (LGSF), the program benefited 8,828 senior citizens, each receiving 10 kilograms of rice in every distribution round. The four waves were
Group slams ‘double standards’ in prisons amid Romualdez aide issue
MANILA, Philippines—Kapatid, a support group for political prisoners, called out the “double standards” in the country’s prison system after it was learned that former Speaker Martin Romualdez has a personal aide while in detention. “The flood-control scandal has exposed the staggering scale of corruption and abuse of public trust. It also underscores another longstanding injustice:
2 Manila cops dismissed over viral traffic incident — Napolcom
MANILA, Philippines — Two Manila cops involved in a viral traffic incident along Taft Avenue were dismissed from service, the National Police Commission (Napolcom) said Wednesday. According to commission in a statement, the Napolcom en banc unanimously voted to dismiss Patrolmen Algrene Ar-ar Mirano Alcause and Jerome Caballa Toledo of the Manila Police District (MPD)
DepEd raises tuition subsidies for beneficiaries of aid program
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) on Wednesday said beneficiaries of its Educational Service Contracting (ESC) program are expected to receive bigger tuition subsidies for the school year 2027-2028 following the approval of rate adjustment. The program, implemented under DepEd’s Expanded Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education, provides tuition subsidies
Witness admits questioning GenCorp payments to VP Duterte
MANILA, Philippines – GenCorp Industries Inc. Corporate Counsel Suzette Balucanag-Punay admitted on Wednesday questioning the company’s payments to Vice President Sara Duterte worth P2 million from 2022 to 2025. Earlier, Balucanag-Punay herself testified that GenCorp had been disbursing money to the vice president as “returns” from a “loose investment” to Davao Bounty Times Food Corp.
Suspected cyanide worth P1.74M seized in Sarangani; 2 arrested
KORONADAL CITY — Police arrested two men and seized 1.45 tons of suspected sodium cyanide worth an estimated P1.74 million after intercepting a truck carrying the chemicals in Maasim, Sarangani province, before dawn Wednesday. The Maasim Maritime Law Enforcement Team (MLET), in coordination with the Maasim Municipal Police Station and Regional Maritime Unit 12 (RMU12),
VP Duterte’s camp calls off presentation of 15 bank execs as witnesses
[Updated Nov. 22, 2026, 9:45 p.m.] MANILA, Philippines — The camp of Vice President Sara Duterte called off the presentation of 15 other bank officials to testify as its witnesses before the Senate Impeachment Court, defense team spokesperson Michael Poa said on Wednesday. Poa said the Duterte camp will only present on Thursday Atty. Paul Roderick
DPWH told to address Samal Island-Davao City Connector project issues
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Wednesday ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to address funding and implementation concerns surrounding the Samal Island-Davao City Connector (SIDC) project, according to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO). During the 12th Economy and Development Council Meeting in Malacañang, Marcos spearheaded the review of projects
BIR extends NCR tax filing deadline due to Asean Summit
MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has extended to Nov. 19 the deadline for filing tax returns and paying taxes originally due on Nov. 16 to 18, for taxpayers under the covered revenue district offices (RDOs) and large taxpayer divisions in the National Capital Region (NCR). The advisory, signed by BIR Commissioner
Zubiri backs call for return of Naia turboprop flights to boost tourism
MANILA, Philippines — Senate majority leader Juan Miguel Zubiri on Wednesday is supporting calls to lift the ban on turboprop aircraft at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) as he warned that forcing the transfer of flights to other regional airports would make domestic travel more expensive for ordinary Filipinos. READ: DOT seeks return of
YOUR NEWS, OUR NETWORK.
Do you have Great News you want to tell the world?
Be it updates about your business or your community, you can make sure that it’s heard by submitting your story to our network reaching hundreds of news sites across 6 verticals.