Power call shot down
AN EXPLOSIVE theory about why it is taking so long to switch on power to new homes has been quickly shot down by Ergon Energy.
Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch thinks the unions are to blame.
Developers and homebuyers have reported receiving warnings from Ergon it could take months to get electricity at new builds in Cairns.
Mr Entsch said he believed the staffing woes were due to workers taking leave to hand out how-to-vote cards across Cape York and Torres Strait.
“They’re getting chartered there by the ETU,” he said.
“There’s this core group of employees who are totally committed to the union.
“If they have all this spare time, they should spend it hooking up a few houses.”
An Ergon spokeswoman rejected the idea that staff taking leave for the election had affected service delivery.
There was good news for residents awaiting power in two estates after the Cairns Post raised their plight to Ergon.
“The next stages of Bluewater Estate will be energised this week and another stage of Smithfield Village is scheduled to be connected next week,” the spokeswoman said.
“These connection timeframes are in fact earlier than initially planned as we have been working with developers on the best possible outcome for their projects and for their customers looking to move into new homes,” she said.
However, there are still plenty of issues. The Tolga Hotel has just undergone a major refurbishment, but the hotel cannot use its new cool room or fire up the pizza oven until Ergon upgrades the pole fuses.
It is understood pub management has been told it will need to wait until September for the upgrade to happen.
ETU Far North organiser Rob Hill denied the union was paying any Ergon staff to take time off, saying the claim reeked of desperation.