INDUSTRY NEWS 9
£250k payout for workers
Over 150 construction workers at three high profile projects across London have collectively secured an estimated £250,000 worth of holiday pay, after a Unite-backed campaign forced their employer to pay up. Working for Byrnes Bros at construction
projects including Westfield in White City, The International Quarter in Stratford and 100 Bishopsgate, the construction workers have secured payments of between £400 and £1,000 each, with further back payments to follow after the workers joined forces to demand their full holiday entitlement. Workers were getting holiday pay
based on 39 hours a week, but in reality they often worked around 55 hours because they were compelled to work overtime on Saturdays. When the workers first approached
Byrnes Bros management they were “ignored”, said Unite, until construction workers at different sites joined forces and commenced a campaign which culminated in a collective grievance. Management then tried to deal with the grievance on an individual basis, but
workers insisted on a collective remedy to the underpayments. Eventually, because of union pressure, according to Unite, “management conceded and Byrne Bros are now in the process of paying every worker what they are owed, including back pay”. Unite said it hoped that the pay-out
could “lead the way for similar claims across the construction industry”.
Housebuilders are innovating, say Lloyds Bank
Housebuilders are investing in modern methods of construction and skills to address a number of industry challenges, as the sector looks to deliver growth and new homes for the future, according to new research from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking. The third annual Lloyds Bank
housebuilding report, which surveys housebuilders and their supply chain, analyses the state of the industry today and the challenges it faces in the future.
Firms reported that they are investing in new building techniques, including modular housing (68 per cent) and panellised systems (56 per cent). Housebuilders’ motivations to adopt these methods included “proved efficiency, ease of build, better construction standards, and in some areas, increased margins”. As a result, firms’ investment in new building techniques has increased year on year from 20 per cent of current annual turnover to 24 per cent over five years. Innovation is also supporting the delivery of sustainable homes, with 82 per cent of firms saying they are more focused on this issue than ever before. Meanwhile, an ongoing shortage of skilled workers continues to affect the sector, with a third (31 per cent) of firms saying there is a skills shortage at a national level, and 29 per cent locally. The report also found that the UK’s exit from the EU was exacerbating the skills shortage, with half (50 per cent) stating that it was making recruitment harder for specific roles, while a quarter (26 per cent) said that access to EU labour is a key challenge for their business.
The report did however find that the issue was being addressed, with 69 per cent of respondents investing in staff training, and 51 per cent setting up apprenticeship programmes.
WWW.HBDONLINE.CO.UK
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
