JULY 2023

Wed 16 August | 9.30am – 1.30pm | NECA Centre of Excellence,

122 Hume Hwy, Chullora NSW

With new legislation, you now have the power to challenge unfair terms and contracts in the construction industry. To assist electrical contractors, NECA is holding two-part Commercial Contracts Workshop on Wednesday 16 August, where NECA Legal expert Frank Brown, will guide you through the critical topics of Contract Administration and Payment Recovery including:

• Managing time and delays

· Managing additional costs and work

• Managing payment
• Security of Payment
• Court processes

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

Registration url: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/657211656757

NECA Member 5-part Webinar Series| Reviewing your Employer Obligations

Did you know that there have been 7 changes to Industrial Relations laws since December 2022? Do not risk non-compliance that could severely impact your business financially.

NECA is holding a 5-part legal webinar series discussing crucial topics including the National Employment Standards, the Electrical Award, How to Contract with Employees, Employer Long Service Leave and Superannuation Obligations, Penalties and Compliance and The Benefits of Enterprise Bargaining.

NECA Tasmania electrical contractors can earn up to 5 CPD points by registering for and attending all five webinars. Each webinar is valued at 1 CPD point.

Register to our webinars below and gain the knowledge and resources to avoid costly penalties!

WEBINAR DETAILS

What’s most important to Australian cablers? As some of you may already know we recently did a small survey of registered cablers to find out what they’re most concerned about and what they’d like to know more about. It proved very interesting. We asked 2 big questions. First we asked Cablers to rate 10 topics they’d be interested in learning more about, ranging from the AS/CA S009 Standard to things like Deploying Wireless Properly, Infrastructure for the Internet of Things, Risk Mitigation (or “Covering Your Butt”) & HDBaseT amongst others. The graph below outlines just how interested Cablers were in each topic but the AS/CA S009 Standard stood out. Which is why it will be the first of our series of free Webinars for Cablers we’ll run this year and we’re calling this one “The Importance of Applying S009 and adhering to its Guidelines” set for August 8. The other big question we asked was what topics you, the Cabler, are most concerned about. A lot, it seems, from the responses we got and its clear there’s some frustration in the industry these days. One of the biggest was the quality of cabling work being done by so-called “cowboys” as well as electricians. Obviously some people are working out there without a cabler registration and it is up to all of us to report such instances to your customer and completing the TCA 1 or making sure the information required by the TCA-1 form is included in your invoice. Another major bug bear is the NBN it seems and there were requests to do a Webinar on it too. One issue that seems to irk many of you is around the NBN equipment you need to alter & the accompanying document from the NBN. By the way it is worth having a copy and reading it. (Just search for Authority to Alter nbn and you will find it). The lack of auditing undertaken by the ACMA was also raised a bit. This is a standing agenda item for all registrars and the International Copper Association Australia, but it’s has been a hard nut to crack. What we need is more complaints from the public, so if you see bad work, tell your customers to report it to the ACMA. Digital media on coax also featured, particularly installing cabling to AS/NZS 14763 part 2 of a customer’s premises and overlaying remote power. This then overlaps PoE which brings in heat rise in cable and the derating of cabling system under remote power. There were other issues you raised-fibre was also important-but now we’ve started talking they can all be handled in our series of Webinars. We hope to see you online soon on our zoom. For now, click here and register for our first webinar The Importance of Applying S009 and adhering to its Guidelines on the 8th of August at 7am and register. Once you have registered we shall send you a link to the webinar.

Register here

Scam alert – end of financial year tax scams

Be on the alert for scammers during tax time.

The end of financial year traditionally means tax time. It is also a busy time for scammers.

The ACMA is warning consumers to be on the lookout for tax themed scam emails, SMS and calls over the coming months. Scammers are likely to take advantage of Australians who are submitting tax returns or waiting for the outcome of an assessment.

Common tax scams include robo-calls or calls from people pretending to be from the Australian Tax Office (ATO) or another government department. These calls require urgent payment of a tax debt, or request personal information in order to process a tax refund.

Consumers may also be targeted via email or SMS claiming to be from MyGov, including links to follow to provide financial information to receive fake refunds.

If you receive one of these calls or messages:

• do not rely on the contact information provided by callers or in emails and SMS.
• do notprovide your personal information or make payments to callers over the phone.
• do not click on any links in emails or SMS. These may be phishing scams designed to steal your personal or financial details.

The ATO will never threaten you with arrest, demand immediate payment of a tax debt or fine, or cancel or suspend your Tax File Number. If you are unsure whether a call or message is genuine, you can contact the ATO to check on 1800 008 540.

Scammers target everyone. We encourage Australians to discuss how to
identify scams with friends and family. Learn more about how to protect
yourself and those close to you on the ACMA website and make a report to Scamwatch .

If you’re concerned that your identity has been compromised or you’ve been a victim of a scam, contact your bank immediately and call IDCARE on 1800 595 160.

Cabling advice forms

If you work as a cabler, you must understand how and when to complete the telecommunications cabling advice forms. You must also know what to do with them when they are complete.

This is a requirement of the Cabling Provider Rules .

On this page

• TCA1 form
• TCA2 form

TCA1 form

You must sign this form every timeyou finish a job for a customer. It tells your customer what work you have done and confirms that you have followed the standards.

Download TCA1 form

How to complete TCA1

Complete all sections of the form.

1. Print clearly.
2. Describe the type and location of the work; for example, room, floor, section, department, building.
3. Give the customer a copy of the signed form.
4. If you have an employer, give them a copy of the signed form.
5. Keep a copy for at least 12 months. You will need to provide these copies to inspectors or auditors from the ACMA if they ask you. If you have an employer, you can ask them to keep your TCA1 forms on your behalf but you are still responsible for them.

You do not need to complete a TCA1 form in these two situations:

1. Your invoice or business documentation contains all TCA1 form information.

To avoid extra paperwork, you may choose to:

• add the signed TCA1 declaration section to the electronic version of your invoice
• use a rubber stamp on a printed invoice to add the signed declaration section

This information must be available to ACMA inspectors or auditors if they ask for it.

2. You have completed a small cabling job.

‘Small’ cabling job means:

• replacing sockets, detectors (for fire and security alarms)
• replacing other minor cabling equipment for maintenance purposes
• running, transposing and removing jumpers on distribution frames
• marking, replacing and upgrading cabling records
• all testing and transmission measurement activities

Even when a TCA1 form is not required, the cabler needs to be registered to undertake small jobs. The Wiring Rules and all other cabling provider rules still apply.

TCA2 form

This form does not replace form TCA1, it is an optional addition.

Download TCA2 form

Use the TCA2 form if you notice any non-compliant cable installations. Complete the form and give it to the customer or the building manager, even if this is:

• a pre-existing issue
• outside the contracted scope of work

You can issue this form:

• before you begin any work, with a quotation
• after you complete the cabling job, if something needs attention

How to complete TCA2

1. Show which issues you have noticed (column 1).
2. Decide how urgently the customer should address the issue (column 2).
3. Print clearly in black ink.
4. Give the customer the completed form. You are not required to keep a copy.