White Card Sydney
Sydney, Australia's largest city, has long been known to be a housing and infrastructure hotspot. It is one of the most expensive cities in the world in terms of housing, with houses easily pushing a millions upwards.This attracts not only new development for more dense housing such a high rises and town-houses, but also fixer-uppers.
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| Typical Sydney fixer upper |
With the construction sector being that busy, demand for labourers and other tradies on construction sites is high. Wages are also fairly good for tradies and unskilled labour, making it an attractive option for many in Sydney. Before you can set foot on construction sites, you'll however need to complete what is known as a general construction induction course. Completing this training will see you obtain a NSW White Card, which is a license issued by SafeWork NSW that allows you to enter construction sites. This license's main purpose is to cover workers in case of injuries (wages & medical expenses).
Applying for construction work in Sydney
Be aware that failing to comply with SafeWork's requirements will see you and the employer issued hefty fines. As such, employers typically only hire employees that already have their White Cards. It is generally recommended that people complete their Sydney White Card courses prior to job-hunting, as it is a big factor.Familiarise yourself with State specific White Card rules
Although being nationally recognised, the White Cards are issued differently and have State specific subtleties attached to them. In NSW, White Cards don't have expiry dates, however failing to work on construction sites for 2 years after being issued the card will see it being voided by SafeWork NSW. I helped write a comprehensive Sydney White Card guide if you are serious about getting your White Card in Sydney.
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| NSW White Card required in Sydney |
How to pick a Sydney White Card training provider
Common question, and the answer is fairly simple. When completing a White Card course, you really want 3 things:
- not paying more than necessary
- learning how to stay safe and out of trouble
- and ultimately walking away with your Statement of Attainment while your White Card is being processed and posted by SafeWork NSW (you can use your Statement of Attainment to access construction sites in the meantime).
Given the goals set out above, let's tackle those bad boys.
Not overpaying for a Sydney White Card
This one sounds simple, but there is more than just the cost of the course at play. Make sure that you add the cost of public transportation and parking. The course can take up to 8h, god help anyone needing to park in the CBD for that long.
With the above out of the way, the course costs $120 on average in Sydney according to MySkills.gov.au.
Learning how to stay safe and out of trouble
This one is admittedly the hardest to quantify. Your best bet is to look up online reviews. Simply google "company name reviews" and have a read. Which leads us to the very last point.
Walking away with your Statement of Attainment while your White Card is being processed
Still have the review page open? Great. Order by worst reviews first and see what people are complaining about. Broken air conditioning? Inconvenient for sure, but hey at least you walked away being certified. Issues with getting the Statement or White Card? Now that's a show-stopper.
Other Locations
The White Card course has location specific rules and it is best to follow a local guide when deciding to undertake training:
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