Hi Wal
Another well thought out newsletter and one which should give the PGDB food for thought.  I see recent news regarding DBH - no wonder they aren't keeping an eye on the PGDB - sounds like they too have a culture of bullying - so they probably don't see any problem with the way the PGDB deals with practitioners!

If we'd got a report card like that at school I'm pretty sure we wouldn't have been sitting down for a week.   When will the PGDB start working WITH the industry to get things right instead of imposing things on us that don't work, or cause undue costs and stress with no real outcome?  My hope is always that it will be soon, but history tells me never.  I believe you are right in your move towards a petition to Parliament calling for a Commission of Inquiry.  Let us know when the forms can be downloaded so we can start collecting signatures - then let us know where to send the forms once they are full.

Keep up the fight!

Robbo - MP management/board will never agree with the Federation's stance on upskilling - for some strange reason they think everyone who doesn't agree with them is against upskilling, when this is obviously not the case. There is upskilling to learn and increase knowledge and then there is upskilling that is a requirement in order for licenses to be issued.  The upskilling that is taking place now is more or less suppliers capturing the practitioner to market their product.  They have jumped on board the points thing so that they know that they will have large audiences of tradespeople who will have no choice but to sit through a sales pitch.  While some of these sales pitches are interesting, they should not now, nor ever, be considered to be of such value that a person's licence depends on it.  The recent Plumbing Innovation Road show and the current PDA shows all heralded the much wanted "points" and then proceeded to make a mockery of the whole bloody thing.  Tradespeople were getting suppliers to tick answers, and these were then being sent to the Board as proof that said plumber/gasfitter/drainlayer was "upskilled" and so would be a much better practitioners in terms of protecting the health and safety of the public.  This is a joke, and a joke supported by those that we give large sums of money to each month in the form of purchasing.  Besides hitting the PGDB up about this, we must as practitioners and business owners go to our suppliers and ask them where they stand on this issue.  Most are keeping a watching brief, but some of them must have lobbied the Minister.  MP wrote to many of them asking for their support to lobby the Minister.  Ask them outright and there are only a couple who will honestly own up to writing to the Minister, but surely Williamson wouldn't have been swayed by only two suppliers?  Surely not??  So, who are the others who are too cowardly to say, too cowardly because they fear that practitioners may decide to purchase from those who are not backing us into a corner.  Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the fact we have suppliers willing to run training - anything to get a better product at the end - BUT NOT as a requirement of our licence.  This is not their place and they should stick to what they know best and that is selling product and not entering the fray into what comes between a practitioner and their ability to continue to work in this trade.

Hi Robbo and every other interested reader out there. 

The Federation has been a bit busy fighting the battle to really worry about the numbers but as you asked and are a great supporter of the industry I got into gear this morning and had a bit of a count up.

The Federation has 718 members as of 5.00am today, give or take a couple and we have only been operating for 9 months.


Have a good weekend

Wal

Yes you're right Robbo there are employers in the Federation and also Master Plumber members as well. It's nice if the employees step forward and contact us so we avoid making false claims about numbers. It's also good for some of these you guys to get a bit of Independence and take responsibility for their own futures.

We know a lot of members also have their own distribution lists so eventually we hope to get all those people and include them into the fold of the Federation.

People need to realise change is not beyond us.

Wal