The New South Wales government has announced new social distancing rules for construction sites to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

There has been a lot of discussion on how restrictions affect tradies considering they sometimes work in close proximity to one another and can have many workers on one site.

NSW Planning Minister Rob Stokes said construction sites can now be open every day, including public holidays.

“This means the builders, the tradies and their employees will be able to work on construction sites seven days a week, during their ordinary hours of operation,” Mr Stokes said in a press conference.

“This will help keep our workforce safe by extending hours over which these sites can operate, meaning that social distancing by these workers will be easier to achieve.

“It will also boost productivity in a crucial part of our economy that provides employment, either directly or indirectly, for about a quarter of our workforce in here New South Wales.

This will allow site managers to space staff out across the week and ensure projects will still get completed.