Unintended Consequences Contractor Arrangements. The LHLA intends to protect workers from being exploited by Labour Hire Providers and hosts. Under the Act an LHP provides labour to perform work in and as part of a business or undertaking of the host. Work specifically includes (but is not limited to) cleaning, meat work and horticulture. Owner Drivers (as defined under the Owner Driver Forestry Contractors Act 2005), and outworkers are excluded. In trying to close loop holes the Act provides that where a provider engages a contractor and supplies them to another business and manages the contract performance (when how the work is done) it will be considered labour hire, finally who directs the worker (provider vs host) is not relevant. However, confusion is already creeping in in respect of who is a provider of labour (and therefore must be licensed) vs an independent contractor supplying workers to undertake particular work. My view – when a person provides a worker for a specific, specialist task and manages the contract performance it is not labour hire. When a person provides a worker for specialist work but does not manage the contract performance it is labour hire. Whether the work is ongoing is not relevant.
