n By Keith Hatch
Earlier this year activists from Unite and the Battersea and Wandsworth Trades Union Council (BWTUC) gathered at Battersea Power Station to celebrate the important role that unions have played in keeping the construction site safe.
The quality and sheer scale of the project is obvious when seeing the riverside development. Converting the former power station into a massive housing scheme with a destination shopping centre has involved an army of well-paid workers over 12 years.
This work was carried out without one single serious accident – something sadly rare in a dangerous industry with enormous and deadly hazards to be dealt with daily.
Activists from Unite’s London Building Workers’ Branch, Unite Community South West London and BWTUC gathered with flags and banners to highlight the union’s role in the Battersea Power Station construction project from 2013 to 2025, where thousands of Unite members worked to refurbish and redevelop the huge site.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said, “The amazing safety record at Battersea Power Station, in a sector which is the most dangerous in the UK, is testament to the dedication and vision of Unite’s shop stewards, safety reps and members.
“This development stands out as an example of what can be achieved when workers have a voice. Unite will continue campaigning to ensure developers and construction firms follow the exemplary standards set at Battersea Power Station.”
Unite regional officer Declan Murphy was the Unite senior shop steward on the site at the time.
Declan said, “It was an enormous privilege to work as one of the senior shop stewards on this massive, and daunting, project alongside thousands of my fellow union members who redeveloped this huge derelict site and refurbished this landmark building.
“The level of skills, qualifications and experience required to undertake the sheer scale of this project safely cannot be underestimated. What visitors can see when they visit the world-famous
landmark, including the new NEON entertainment and cultural exhibition space, is what can be achieved by developers, construction firms and union organised construction workers working together with dignity and respect.”
Working with Battersea Power Station Development Company, Unite ensured that health and safety reps played a crucial role onsite to ensure workers were not put in danger.
Unite also negotiated that the real living wage, set by the Living Wage Foundation, be the minimum rate of pay on the development and was involved in projects delivering increased local employment and access to apprenticeships.
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London would be a better city if other… construction firms followed the example of Battersea Power Station.
....What’s not to love about the immense role of Unite at Battersea Power Station site?
Declan Murphy, Unite regional officer
Declan said, “Over 12 years, Unite delivered well-paid jobs and good conditions and a safe workplace for 4,000 union construction workers.
“I want to acknowledge the importance of the positive day-to-day working relationship with the developer who insisted on the same values from all their construction firms. Unite wants to ensure this relationship continues to complete the remaining phases of the project.”
To understand the complexity of the construction project that repurposed Battersea Power Station as a destination, it is important to understand the history of the building that has dominated the riverside skyline for so many years.
31 unite buildingWORKER Autumn 2025
Battersea Power Station is on the south bank of the Thames at Nine Elms, an area that has been undergoing massive regeneration over recent years with many large scale housing projects and new transport infrastructure being built.
Though not apparent from outside, the building contains two power stations that were built in two stages in a single building. Battersea A Power Station was built in the 1930s and Battersea B Power Station in the 1950s.
The power station was decommissioned between 1975 and 1983 and remained empty until 2014.
Battersea Power Station is Grade II listed, which is defined as ‘particularly important buildings of more than special interest’.
It is one of the world’s largest brick buildings, and full of original art deco designs and fixtures. All of this added to the challenges facing the project to renovate the building after it stood unused for more than 30 years.
The building is locally iconic, and features on the logo and banners of the BWTUC, which this March celebrated its 130th anniversary.
Attending the celebration was BWTUC secretary Spencer Barnshaw, who said “Trades union members are very proud of the immense and hugely positive role that Unite construction members played in the redevelopment of this huge derelict site and the refurbishment of this world-famous landmark.”
Spencer also pointed out that, as well as the thousands of well-paid union members being treated respectfully by developers and employers, the project resulted in on site apprenticeships for around “more than 178 local school leavers”, who are now fully qualified in construction trades.
As Declan adds, “London would be a better city if other developers and construction firms followed the example of Battersea Power Station developers.
“What’s not to love about the immense role of Unite at Battersea Power Station site?” he asks.
Mark Thomas
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