West Dunbartonshire Council is to take action against industrial firms which create and share a blacklist of worker's names.

It has been reported that some trade union and health and safety activists have been kept denied work after their names appeared on a blacklist.

In West Dunbartonshire, around eight individuals were on blacklists and subsequently denied work by major construction firms. Those affected were singled out for their trade union activity, such as the legitimate reporting of breaches of health and safety standards.

Councillor Gail Casey called for the Council to support trade unions against such operations and received unanimous support.

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She also called for the Council to: 

* exclude companies who continue to use blacklists from approved supplier lists, whenever legally possible

* where permitted by legislation, ensure that companies on future approved lists demonstrate they have processes in place to encourage the reporting of workplace concerns - particularly in relation to health and safety

* write to the Scottish Government urging the inclusion of clauses in future Scottish bills covering public procurement to prevent blacklisting companies from securing public sector contracts

Ms Casey said: "It is absolutely disgraceful that individuals who raised honest concerns about bad practice in the construction industry were then added to a 'blacklist', and had their careers destroyed. They were trying to protect fellow workers and for that they were barred from working in their profession across all of the UK.

"The motion agreed by Council backs the national campaign to outlaw the practice of blacklisting trade union members. It also calls for legislative change to ensure that public procurement rules prevent any company involved in blacklisting benefitting from future public contracts in Scotland."

(JP/CD)