THE public works department is compiling a transformation charter to boost black economic empowerment in the construction sector , Minister Stella Sigcau has revealed.

The minister said yesterday that the terms of the charter for the sector, which derives billions of rands from government contracts each year, would be discussed with, and not dictated to, the industry.

Sigcau was speaking in Pretoria at the annual stakeholder forum of the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB). The board is a public private partnership aimed at improving the industry .

She said that the first major discussion on the issue of black empowerment in the sector was likely to take place at a sector summit planned for early next year.

The minister singled out large companies as among those where transformation was necessary in terms of management and equity.

However, news of the transformation document came as a surprise to some, including SA's largest construction company, Aveng.

The company's CE, Carl Grim, said there were efforts in the industry to address the issue of black empowerment, but he was unaware of the document being compiled by the public works department.

CIDB chairman and Murray & Roberts head Brian Bruce, who knew about the document, said efforts by government and the private sector would "converge at some point". He said the charter was likely to outline government's strategic view of the changes it would like to see taking place , whereas the industry was looking at practical ways in which to address empowerment.

Bruce also highlighted some of the initial hypotheses contained in a status report on the industry being compiled by the Construction Development Board.

These included the suggestion that the industry had a weak human rights regime. Bruce said that more workers had been killed or maimed in the construction sector than in most other industries. This was one of the reasons for the failure of the sector to attract the requisite human resources.

A shortage of skills in the sector, particularly if the domestic economy picked up its pace, was also a concern highlighted by Sigcau.

Bruce also quoted from the status report that the there was a lack of guarantees offered by the industry on its work. The industry accepted "very little" liability for its work, he said.