The Queensland Government has announced it is seeking industry feedback on guidelines for the building and construction code of practice in a bid to prevent unnecessary time delays and cost blow-outs on major infrastructure projects.

Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie said the decision to seek input came after ABS statistics for the 2012 September quarter shows that Queensland industrial action accounted for 46 per cent of lost working days in the country.

“To have almost half of all action coming from Queensland is extremely worrying but when you look at incidents like last year’s Children’s Hospital dispute, it is not surprising,” Mr Bleijie said.

“That dispute alone accounted for an estimated 15,000 work days lost between August and October last year and cost the State Government an estimated $7.4 million.

“The building and construction industry is one of the four pillars of the Queensland economy and it is vital this industry is operating productively and efficiently.”

Mr Bleijie said the abolition of the Australian Building Construction Commission had led to an increase in disputes and the Government needed to act to fill the void.

“The new guidelines will let the Queensland Government enforce stricter controls over industrial relations practices on construction sites and prevent costly and long-running disputes,” Mr Bleijie said.

“We will also establish a Building and Construction Compliance Branch, which will be responsible for industry education about the guidelines and assess tenders for compliance with the code.