The Block contestants Ricky and Haydn were forced to fire their builder during Wednesday night’s episode in one of the renovation show’s most shocking scenes to date.
The Melbourne mates were left red-faced after foreman Dan inspected their property and told them their builder’s waterproofing work did not meet building standards.
After being told it would need to be redone, the furious Yellow Team then confronted their manual labourer, Miller, and bluntly told him his services were no longer required.
‘The way the last week or two has panned out has been a f***ing disaster. That wall situation is a disgrace, it is not on,’ Ricky and Haydn told him.
‘I don’t know how we recover from here, Miller. How do we recover?’ they asked him, before the builder attempted to blame another subcontractor for not consulting with him.
This led to Ricky and Haydn firing Miller from the project in a tense on-air confrontation.
‘You’ve broken the trust twice in a few days, so it’s done. It’s done. I don’t think I can recover from here,’ Ricky told the tradesman.
‘There was a lack of ownership that really needed to be taken. At a time when major building errors and decisions were made, it would’ve been really nice to hear some ownership,’ Ricky later told the cameras.
The Block contestants Ricky and Haydn were forced to fire their builder during Wednesday night’s shock episode, after they had enough of his sub-standard work. Both pictured
The Melbourne best mates were left red-faced after foreman Dan inspected their property and told them their builder’s waterproofing work did not meet building standards and would have to be redone
Unfortunately, the setback meant they will be unable to present a completed room to the judges this week, hurting their chances of eventually winning the show.
Many viewers quickly took to social media to voice their support towards the boys and applaud them for making the tough decision to fire Miller.
‘We feel sorry for you both’ one person wrote and a second added: ‘Omg poor Ricky! I feel so sorry for him and Haydn.’
‘Ricky and Haydn are great blokes,’ a third person chipped in.
It comes after a show insider revealed it was the most ‘hectic’ year for hiring and firing and hinted at tension behind the scenes between the cast and their tradies.
As well as Ricky and Haydn, Daily Mail Australia previously confirmed that Jesse and Paige, and Courtney and Grant also all kick off their tradies.
A long-standing producer confirmed that the show’s tradesmen were forced to deal with ‘poor communication and some childish behaviour’ across the board.
‘The tradies this year will tell you that House One (Paige and Jesse), House Two (Courtney and Grant) and House Three (Ricky and Haydn) were the most difficult to work with,’ they claimed.
The furious Yellow Team then confronted their builder, Miller (right), and bluntly told him his services were no longer required
Many viewers quickly took to social media to voice their support towards the boys and applaud them for making the tough decision to fire Miller
‘There were ongoing issues throughout those builds in Phillip Island. With tradesmen pointing out “poor communication and some childish behaviour”.’
‘The builders were treated quite poorly and you could tell it affected the mood on set,’ they added.
One tradie claimed the workmen mostly walked away ‘disappointed’ with their experiences on the show and shed light into exactly how much they are paid.
It was claimed they have a set wage which is agreed on at the start of every season, with experienced builders earning $75 per hour this year while apprentices worked for as low as $25 per hour.
Builders are believed to pay for their own travel and accommodation to be on the show, with some reporting that it actually costs them money to be there.
They can work six days a week and be on task for 12-hour days, with ‘tools down’ usually falling at 6pm, with some earlier finishes at 4pm due to council restrictions.
It was also claimed that builders are not allowed to be tagged in social media posts, meaning their businesses are getting ‘less exposure than in previous seasons’.
