App’s ‘cowboy tradies’
of potentially harmful asbestos-removal jobs being posted on the platform.
In response, AirTasker has now included its own asbestosremoval badge to denote those who are actually certified to handle such tasks.
Qualified tradies are supposed to display their requisite licence number for the industry they work in and AirTasker gives special badges to qualified workers who use its platform to give them an advantage when bidding for jobs.
“Our Asbestos Removal Badge is now available for Taskers. It’s a great way to show off your professional qualifications when making offers on asbestos-removal tasks,” the company’s website says.
Users usually have to pay a small fee to acquire the badge, but for a limited time the asbestos-removal badge is free. Once the user’s credentials have been verified by the relevant state registry, it will appear on their profile.
However, the platform simply functions as a meeting place and the reality is there is nothing stopping unqualified workers from bidding for jobs and undercutting those who have paid for the necessary training and certification.
On April 1, AirTasker took further steps to improve user safety by launching its Personal Accident Cover that “acts as a safety net to provide protection for Taskers in the event of an accident sustained while performing a task and is no additional cost for Taskers”, the company’s founder and CEO, Tim Fung, told news.com.au.
As regulators and workers grapple with the changing job market and the rise of the gig economy, AirTasker has worked with stakeholders to define the rules.
In a February submission to the parliamentary inquiry into the Future of Work and Workers, the company said: “We acknowledge that like all forms of work, AirTasker can and must continue to improve.”