The staff was summoned to the meeting for lunch with no idea that they would leave the room without work.
All staff members of a Gold Coast company were summoned to a boardroom meeting for lunch on Thursday. When they left the room, everyone was unemployed.
All 15 were fired just after the company, Pivotal Homes, became Australia’s last victim in the troubled construction sector.
Managing director Michael Irwin publicly announced a few hours after the organization went into liquidation, citing rising labor and construction costs as the reason why it was impossible to continue.
Staff were not warned that business was going badly, nor were they warned to start looking for work.
Tom Egan, head of sales for Pivotal Homes, said he and a dozen other staff members were “devastated” by the sudden collapse of the company.
“Nobody knew,” Mr. Egan, who has worked in the construction industry for 25 years, told news.com.au.
“At 1:30 p.m. [on Thursday] everyone was called to the boardroom. The liquidator warned that we were fired.
“It simply came to our notice then [who had been working for] up to 10 years. ”
Mr. Egan said he only informed the general manager, Mr. Irwin, who otherwise oversaw all operations and saw no sign that the company was in its final steps.
Mr Egan stressed that no one knew he would arrive, and explained: “All the bills were paid, nothing was ever paid, there was no warning sign.”
Staff will not receive any compensation.
Instead, the liquidators will pay them all the permission fees they have accrued, and that’s it.
The commercial director, who worked at Pivotal Homes for just over three years, said he planned to take a break from the industry for a while.
News.com.au has contacted Pivotal Homes for comments.
Dozens of angry customers have contacted Mr Egan to ask for answers, even though he no longer works for the company.
He said anyone left out of the sinking pocket should contact the liquidators, Chris Cook and James Robba of Worrell’s.
Affected homeowners can also claim home warranty insurance, which is administered by the Queensland government through the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC).
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The mother of two, Ashley Wu, 38, suspected Pivotal Homes staff had no idea of her impending doom due to her interactions with them before the company collapsed.
The Brisbane resident was trying to build a house after buying an empty lot in Ipswich last year, but was plagued by price issues and delays.
She is worried about what will happen to her $ 18,000 deposit now that the company has gone bankrupt.
Earlier this year, Pivotal Homes asked Ms. Wu if she would pay an additional $ 34,000 for her $ 363,500 construction.
Ms. Wu consulted with her lawyer, who legally said that she should not pay them any extra because the contract was fixed.
But understanding the stress of the construction industry, Ms. Wu negotiated with the company and ended up agreeing to pay an additional $ 24,000.
On Wednesday, they finally reached an agreement, which is why the landowner was confused to learn that just a day later the company had gone bankrupt.
Staff also asked Ms. Wu to sign the drawing contracts that could be sent to the town hall less than 24 hours before the company became official.
“The staff didn’t seem to be aware,” he said.
The construction sector has been hit hard by this year’s collapses.
Two major Australian construction companies, including Gold Coast-based Condev and industry giant Probuild, have already gone into liquidation this year.
Smaller operators such as Hotondo Homes Hobart and Perth Home Innovation Builders and New Sensation Homes, as well as Sydney-based Next, have also collapsed, leaving homeowners with pockets and unfinished homes.
An industry reporter told news.com.au earlier this year that half of Australia’s construction companies are on the verge of collapse due to commercial insolvency, and could be affected by thousands of houses of people in the coming months.
alex.turner-cohen@news.com.au