Tens of thousands of tradies might have been issued contractor licences without a criminal history check being conducted by Building Commission NSW.

It means contractors such as plumbers, electricians and carpenters who failed to disclose their criminal convictions to the regulator may have been granted licences allowing them to attend private homes and businesses.

Building Commission NSW, which issues 100,000 contractor licences a year, can refuse applicants who have a criminal record.

However, since its formation in December 2023, the new government agency has been unable to secure a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with NSW Police.

An MOU allows for the formal sharing of information, including the ability to run criminal history checks.

The ABC has spoken to eight current and former building commission staff, who are unable to speak publicly.

One said "people regularly get licences when they have significant criminal histories…it's a huge loophole".

Others were concerned building commission staff were being put in danger due to the agency's failure to secure an MOU.

Building commission staff 'flying blind'

In December, several building commission investigators, accompanied by NSW Police officers, executed a search warrant on a south-western Sydney business.

It formed part of a broader probe into hundreds of licence applicants who had bought fake qualifications from organised crime groups impersonating legitimate organisations.

One source claimed the "person of interest" named in the search warrant had a criminal history, but the investigator was only told he had "traffic fines".

Another source said police did provide some level of intel, but it came via NSW Fair Trading.

The "POI [person of interest] leapt on the back" of a police officer and assaulted him, one source recalled. Two investigators had to physically intervene to pull the man off the senior constable.

The individual was charged and released on conditional bail, with the matter to return to court later this year.

Other staff at the building commission described feeling like they were "flying blind" and unable to rely on the agency's intelligence unit.

The unit is also unable to access NSW Police's internal police system checks (COPS), to see if an individual is known to police, known to carry weapons or subject to bail or bond conditions.

Initially, Building Commission NSW was given a six-month 'grace period', where it was permitted to use NSW Fair Trading resources until it could establish its own information sharing arrangements.

The transition period expired in July, according to staff, however the MOU was never arranged.

Former NSW building commissioner David Chandler, who departed in August, said he would turn up to sites without knowing the history of the builder and had a "signal" he would give staff to leave if it "turned ugly".

Mr Chandler said there were legislative and administrative hurdles securing the MOU, but he believed it boiled down to a "resourcing issue".

The spokesperson for Building Commission NSW said it was in the "process" of entering an MOU with NSW Police.

"At this point in time Building Commission NSW does not have direct access to COPS or criminal history checks, and instead investigators obtain this information on case-by-case basis."

The spokesperson said the agency took a "risk-based approach to assessing licences, including undertaking a number of third-party checks as well as requesting certain applicants provide a National Police Certificate".

Anger around badges, ID cards

Another bureaucratic bungle infuriating workers is the delay providing badges and ID cards.

Investigators and inspectors are legally required to identify themselves on site if asked.

One employee told the ABC they had been "crossing their fingers" hoping no-one demanded to see their badges.

Another said they were permitted to use NSW Fair Trading badges until July last year, then had to rely on their uniforms which had a department logo.

On March 7, the building commission held an "official ceremony" to celebrate 157 staff receiving their "first ever Building Commission NSW branded badges".

The badges had taken 16 months to be delivered.

"They kept telling us it was to do with the branding, that's why we couldn't get them. That was consistently the excuse," one former employee said.

Branding 'a bloody nightmare'

Mr Chandler said it took "ages to clarify who was coming across [from Fair Trading], who was to get badged … collect all badges, sign them all in, issue a new set".

"You can't believe the problem with branding. Branding was a bloody nightmare," he said.

Debate raged over whether the regulator would be called the "NSW Building Commission" or the "Building Commission NSW", he said.

Staff were also unable to print stationery because there was disagreement on what the graphics should look like and if they fit the department's graphics standard.

"They are still issuing correspondence on Fair Trading letterhead. I don't think the BC has its own email address yet," he said.

NSW's new Building Commissioner James Sherrard declined to be interviewed.