Electricians working on the national smart meter rollout told MWM in June that low rates were putting lives at risk. Now, they report things are getting worse. Zach Szumer with the story.
The nation’s accelerated smart meter rollout could turn tragic or face a shortage of workers, with a fresh round of rate cuts further worsening conditions in the sector, electricians have told MWM.
The government wants every house in Australia to be fitted with a smart meter by 2030 and, with less than 50 per cent of homes in states like NSW, SA and QLD having the new meters, new rules have been introduced to speed up the rollout.
Already, homeowners in much of Australia can no longer refuse to have a smart meter installed, and a new round of additional rules will kick in on December 1
By that date, over 170 meter installers will also have to find a new source of income as the company they work under has lost its contract with Intellihub – a metering company co-owned by massive private equity firms Brookfield and Pacific Equity Partners.
One Service Stream contractor, Richard, told MWM the company “didn’t think it was ethical to lower rates any further than what they were based on the work that we do and that cost them the contract”.
Some said the news came as a shock, as they had been told in August 2023 that Service Stream had secured a four-year agreement with Intellihub.
MWM has seen a copy of a 1 August 2023 email confirming the announcement.
The big squeeze
As we reported, low pay rates were “driving technicians to rush work under unsafe conditions that could lead to serious injury or death,” as one put it.
Many believe Intellihub’s latest round of rate cuts will make things worse.
One Service Stream contractor, Francis*, told MWM: “Intellihub’s just squeezing the companies below them like Service Stream and then Service Stream squeezes us as the techs.”
However, he doesn’t have much hope that change will come from above. “I don’t think anything’s going to happen unless something tragic happens,
like someone dies or some damage to property occurs …
“In terms of people cutting corners, because rates have dropped quite a lot, quite substantially, some techs have said to me things like, ‘Oh, I just skip the testing altogether if I have to, if I’m running too far behind’”.
“I’m sure not every technician is doing that, but at the end of the day, if you rush people enough and they’re going backwards and they’re losing money because they’re not completing enough jobs because the jobs aren’t paid well enough, then of course people are going to skip steps”.
Another Service Stream contractor, Alexander*, said “deaths from electrical shock, houses burning down for electrical faults” were possible if things continued as they are.
Several electricians said the new rates – which flatten out the extra pay they previously received for ‘additional services’ – gave them far less incentive to repair electrical faults they discovered during installations.
Accelerated rollout speed bumps?
Both Francis and Alexander said the accelerated smart meter rollout could suffer from an exodus of qualified technicians.
“With rates where they are today, with the changes, I don’t see why anyone would want to stay in the industry,” Francis said.
Alexander said,
it’s very hard to see businesses being profitable on the rates that are being offered.
“But I feel that some people, unfortunately, might be forced into having to take those options, and I feel that that’s kind of what Intellihub are hoping.”
“I feel it’s been a very selective and devious decision to employ these new standards, if you will, so close to Christmas, when everybody’s really relying on getting those funds in at that time of year”.
Roger*, who works for a company that will continue to work with Intellihub, agreed, saying: “I reckon a lot of people will quit”.
Based on the new Intellihub contractor rate card he’d been given, his income would decrease by around 30 per cent, he said.
“I won’t return to metering based on these numbers; it’s too unsafe and underpaid.”
He said the situation was redolent of the federal government’s pink batts scheme, the Rudd-Labor government’s rollout of home insulation that led to multiple deaths and hundreds of house fires.
Who’s watching the market?
Several months ago, after hearing electricians’ concerns about Intellihub’s growing dominance of the metering industry, MWM sought data on the company’s market share from the three bodies that oversee Australia’s energy markets.
All three – the Australian Energy Market Commission, Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) and Australian Energy Regulator (AER) – said they didn’t have this information.
Intellihub was also contacted – and asked about its market share, as well as a response to electricians’ complaints – but has yet to provide an answer.
Several years ago, an Intellihub representative provided the ACCC with an estimate that, as of 31 December 2022, the company had a roughly 20-30% share of smart meters deployed to energy retailers across the National Energy Market.
*All names have been changed at the request of those interviewed.
Zacharias Szumer is a freelance writer from Melbourne. In addition to Michael West Media, he has written for The Monthly, Overland, Jacobin, The Quietus, The South China Morning Post and other outlets.
He was also responsible for our War Power Reforms series.