There is a claim today that new construction safety laws could actually endanger workers.

The head of the Queensland Council of Unions (QCU) says lives would be at risk under proposed changes to the state’s OHS laws. The rule changes being considered mean that unions wishing to inspect safety breaches would have to wait 24 hours to access construction sites.

Queensland’s Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie says the changes are meant to make sure that all safety issues are dealt with by the government’s safety regulator to “stop unions hijacking work sites.”

But a union boss says it will just allow substandard sites to be patched-up for inspections. 

John Battams, chief of the QCU says employers will have time to cover up dangerous practices in that 24 hour buffer period. Mr Battams says that "twenty-four hours notice gives a dodgy employer time to hide what would be otherwise obvious dangerous situations."

CFMEU secretary Michael Ravbar agrees. He says a majority of builders aim for safety over profits, but there are a few “cowboys and rednecks” that do not. Mr Ravbar says the proposed changes will cause safety to drop, increasing fatalities along with accidents.