After less than a week on The Block, new contestants Maddy and Charlotte have been left without a builder after theirs dramatically quit.
Originally hired by Jesse and Paige, who departed the show last week due to mental health concerns, Zak had been overseeing the operations at House 1 for more than a month.
But when the Sydney-based sisters took over the project, things quickly turned sour.
After a week of escalating tensions, the Phillip Island local went to the girls to air his grievances in Tuesday night’s episode, claiming that he felt disrespected by Team Pink when they repeatedly sought to have conversations with his junior workers on the job site instead of him.
While Charlotte did apologise for her accidental oversight, she did make a point of telling Zak that he was intimidating and therefore unapproachable, which was why she had a hard time discussing the build with him.
With Zak storming off and telling the cameras that he was “pretty over it”, Charlotte left for the surf club where she was comforted with a big hug from Scotty Cam, who also offered to chat with Zak on behalf of her and Maddy.
But remembering how Zak had reacted badly the last time they had asked for help managing their builder, a brave Charlotte assures Scotty they can handle the situation themselves.
The next morning, Zak returns to The Block, where he has a hard time acknowledging how he has made the girls feel.
“I’m sorry that you can’t handle the way that I talk,” he tells the girls.
“This team dynamic isn’t going to work,” he adds as he storms off, bringing his workers with him.
A sad Charlotte then tells the cameras she is sad things have ended so badly.
“I think being kind goes a long way. We’re not asking for the world, we’re just asking to be respected,” she laments.
Fans of the reality renovation series were quick to air their grievances after the episode aired, many sharing messages of support for the girls, who are the youngest team to ever compete in all 20 seasons of The Block.
“There is no need to be rude. He had no compassion or empathy for the girls arriving so late [in the competition],” one viewer emphatically penned.
“Glad to see him go, he just refused to acknowledge his attitude is aggressive and intimidating,” said another.
“He is a rude bully and has done himself no favours with that attitude,” wrote a third with others writing that his reputation was “toast.”
While Zak himself has remained quiet online amidst the controversy, his supporters have chimed in on fan forums in his defence.
“Zak worked at my place for months on end! He had absolutely no issue with a female giving instructions, he was professional, polite and his work is outstanding!” said one supporter.
Others wrote that while he may have been a “good builder” he had a “bad attitude.”
