About Us

History

BERT Training Queensland (BTQ) is the trading name for the Queensland Construction Training Fund (QCTF).  The fund was established late in 1991 to make use of the interest earned on funds invested in the Building Employees Redundancy Trust (BERT) Fund.  Since its inception, the QCTF was wholly owned and managed by Construction Training Queensland (CTQ).  The sole source of funding for the QCTF during this time has been the BERT and its associated trust funds.  This arrangement has resulted in over $15 million being made available for training outcomes for the Queensland construction industry.

In July 2009, the QCTF became self managed and commenced training as BERT Training Queensland (BTQ).  The purpose of the name change is to provide greater recognition to BERT which remains the major funding partner of BTQ.  Despite the close relationship between BERT and BTQ, they are separately owned and operated entities.

The BERT fund provides annual funding support to BTQ to finance training initiatives within the Queensland Construction industry.  The BTQ commitment to training includes the 50% shareholding in the Construction Training Centre (CTC) located at Salisbury in Brisbane.  The establishment of the CTC in 1994 resulted from a visionary alliance between several industry leaders focused on the need for the industry to take responsibility for its training needs.  In partnership with the Queensland Government, BERT Training Queensland has helped foster the growth of the Construction Training Centre to become the leading privately managed training facility in the Queensland construction industry.

Prior to the commencement of the Building Construction Industry Training Fund (BCITF) in 1999, BTQ was the sole (non government) funding source for training in the Queensland construction industry.  Despite the advent of the BCITF and the significant funding it provides to industry, BTQ has continued to provide targeted funding assistance to individual workers, employers and industry organisations. 

Governance

BERT Training Queensland is governed by an independent board of directors who monitor the expenditure of funding grants and provide the fund with a strategic focus for the allocation of targeted funding for various training programs.

Objects of the Fund

The principle object of BTQ is to provide the Queensland Construction industry with a source of funds to train construction workers. 

The objects of the Fund are to generally foster and promote the acquisition and enhancement of skills, training and education (both theoretical and practical) of workers in the Construction Industry in Queensland.

Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Fund aims to:

1. foster, promote, advance and assist the acquisition and enhancement of the knowledge, skills, education and training (both theoretical and practical) of workers employed in the Construction Industry in Queensland and to otherwise foster, promote, encourage, advance and assist tripartite organisations involved in such training and educational activities.
2. Encourage and promote the enhancement and creation of training and skills by the provision of any one of the following:
   1. training schemes;
   2. assistance programs;
   3. advice;
   4. assistance in the establishment of facilities for training in the Construction Industry and for the gaining of practical experience and associated skills and other educational activities;
   5. demonstrations to students, trainees, apprentices and others employed or otherwise engaged in the Construction Industry of skills, trades, work and job methods and techniques of the Construction Industry;
   6. publication and distribution of books, pamphlets or brochures calculated to promote education and interest in all facets of the Construction Industry, and to arrange for lectures and discussion;
   7. provide grants for scholarships or other forms of financial assistance to selected students and workers to pursue their studies and training in any appropriate field or trade within the Construction Industry;
   8. otherwise make provisions for the training of persons employed or engaged in, or to be employed or to be engaged, in the Construction Industry
3. generally advance and promote the acquisition of knowledge of skills, trades, work and job methods