Sustained demonstrations will continue outside
Staythorpe power station
Unemployed construction workers, being refused work at
Staythorpe power station including workers from Scotland, will
continue protests at the power station today (28th January
2009).
Alstom has been contracted by RWE to build a gas fired power
station near Newark. Two companies, Montpressa and FMM, have been
subcontracted to carry out construction work on the site. These two
non-UK contracting companies say they have no intention of
employing any UK labour to undertake the work. Unite has branded
the decision a national scandal.
Unite estimates that 600 jobs will be needed to build the power
station's turbine and boiler (Montpressa will fit the turbine and
FMM will fit the boiler). A further 250 workers will be required to
build the pipe connecting the two. None of these jobs will go to UK
workers.
Unite, the union organising the demonstrations, has warned that
the protests will spread to other power stations under construction
in the UK. Many employers in the energy sector are refusing to
consider local labour despite the credit crunch, and instead, use
non-UK labour to carry out the work.
FMM told union officials that because they had no direct
employees themselves, they would supply their workers directly from
abroad and would not be giving any consideration to local
construction workers with years of experience of building power
stations throughout the Trent Valley.
Unite joint general secretary, Derek Simpson, said: “Our members
are not asking for special favours - they are demanding fair play.
The UK needs to upgrade and build new power stations and there are
huge opportunities to create thousands of well paid and highly
skilled jobs. It will be a disgrace if UK workers are not even
allowed to apply for jobs to build British power stations. Unite
will not stand by and allow our members to languish on the dole
while there is work in the UK.”
“Alstom has the power to insist that the sub-contractors end
this scandalous situation. UK workers must be given a fair chance
to get a cut of the action to build a new generation of UK power
stations.”
The government has invested billions of pounds into the economy
to support jobs during this recession. This strategy depends on
employers playing their part. Apart from the Olympics, engineering
construction is the only sector of the construction industry with a
visible workload going forward. Staythorpe, although the most
prominent, is not the only site where employers are refusing to
employ local workers.
Alstom has been contracted by Eon to build a gas-fired power
station near Grain in Kent. Unite sought assurances that Alstom
would provide a level playing field for UK workers during the
process for sub-contracting. The union pressed Alstom to include a
clause in the tendering process so that any sub contractor would
endeavour to use UK or local labour. Alstom refused and then
appointed a non-UK construction company, Remak, to build the
boiler. The union has been informed that Remak will not use any UK
labour.
ENDS
For more information contact Ciaran Naidoo on 07768 931 315 or
Karen Viquerat on 07768 931 316 to organise interviews outside
Staythorpe on Wednesday morning.
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