Workforce Central Dunedin operations manager Raymond Clark says more needs to be done to maximise the potential economic benefit of the new Dunedin hospital project to the city. PHOTO: GERARD O’BRIEN Wider economic benefits from the new Dunedin hospital risk being squandered without more government support, a project insider warns. Workforce Central Dunedin operations manager Raymond Clark said construction of the inpatient building could provide Dunedin companies with the skills to tackle bigger projects and drive regional growth. But he believed this potential was at risk of being squandered without the government doing its part to support the local workforce. ‘‘There’s a hell of a lot of opportunities still available at our level and we need to maximise that. ‘‘They’ve put money into the actual build, the bricks and mortar, but they haven’t put money into the public value that can be extracted from that bricks and mortar.’’ Workforce Central Dunedin is a job and skills hub established in 2020 to co-ordinate the supply of contractors for the outpatient and inpatient buildings, with a focus on local and entry-level labour. Mr Clark said CPB Contractors, the Australian construction giant leading the build, was ‘‘light years ahead of any other contractor in New Zealand’’ when it came to utilising the local workforce. It had reassigned staff supplied by Workforce Central Dunedin from the outpatient over to the inpatient building, instead of leaving them unemployed once their contract finished. He estimated up to 30% of the project’s entire workforce could be comprised of locals. However, the majority of local businesses were too small to deal with the size, scale and commercial complexity of the work the project had to offer — as opposed to Foleys, which the Otago Daily Times revealed yesterday was awarded more than $50 million in work on the hospital. ‘‘Of all the things that you can build, between sky towers and bridges or big buildings, a hospital is the most complicated. ‘‘We desperately need local businesses to become involved so that we can build that expertise. ‘‘We can use this . . .as a learning opportunity for local businesses to participate and to grow.’’ With government support, such as a capability development fund or small training fund, there could be more local employment and an uplifting of skills. That would make Dunedin workers more capable of securing future work and growing profits, contributing to regional growth, he said. The best-case scenario would be at least 100-150 local contractors working onsite at an entry level, along with 10-15 new apprentices who had started because of the hospital. While Mr Clark said CPD Contractors was doing everything it could, maximising the opportunity could not happen solely from the bottom up. It needed to happen at a government level too. He believed the hospital was being viewed by the government as a big cost and a place where money must be saved, not recognised as ‘‘an opportunity for a legacy of positive benefits and a positive impact for Dunedin’’. ‘‘We need [Finance] Minister [Nicola] Willis to say ‘I demand that the new Dunedin hospital has really strong economic benefits for Dunedin’, but I haven’t heard her say that,’’ Mr Clark said. ‘‘We want to turn over every stone to make sure that everything that can be done to have a positive impact on Dunedin is done. ‘‘But we need government help for that. ‘‘We need the government to say ‘yes, that’s what we want and we’re going to stand behind it’.’’ Workforce Central Dunedin was initially funded by the Ministry of Social Development and Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment for four years, later extended to five and a-half years, and had so far delivered a return on investment, he said. Because construction of the hospital was delayed so much, their funding would run out before work had properly started. If they were not funded further by June next year, they would be finished. ‘‘Then nothing will happen, CPB will be on their own and contractors will be on their own trying to get things done.’’ Health Minister Simeon Brown said the government was committed to delivering a world-class hospital Dunedin and the surrounding Otago and Southland regions deserved. ‘‘As construction activity ramps up, the project is not only delivering a modern, fit-for-purpose hospital but also creating jobs, supporting local businesses and providing a significant boost to the regional economy. ‘‘It’s encouraging to see several Dunedin-based companies already working alongside lead contractor CPB Contractors. ‘‘Around 40 workers are currently on site each day, with that number expected to increase to 80 in the coming weeks as construction progresses and the transformation becomes increasingly visible.’’ At peak construction, the project would support more than 900 full-time-equivalent jobs and inject about $100m into the local economy annually, ‘‘ensuring the benefits of this investment are felt well beyond the hospital itself’’, Mr Brown said.
