In March it was revealed following an investigation by the Information Commissioner, that a company called the Consulting Association was operating a construction blacklist. The Consulting Association held information on over 3,000 construction workers. Over 40 major construction companies paid to access the blacklist.
Much of the information on the database contained details of whether workers were members of trade unions and if they had raised health and safety concerns on previous sites. Whistleblowers who reported dangerous sites became vulnerable to being denied future work.
Documents seen by UCATT reveal that in 2008 Skanska spent £28,122.60 on blacklist checks with the Consulting Association plus an annual subscription of £3,000. Each check cost £2.20, meaning that the company made 12,783 (35 a day) checks last year.
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Alan Ritchie, General Secretary of UCATT, who was on the Consulting Association's blacklist, said: "The level of blacklisting that appears to have been undertaken by Skanska is staggering."
UCATT has also learnt that the blacklisting only took place in one of Skanska's divisions, Construction Public. This indicates that the blacklisting took place only on Skanska's public sector projects, many of them funded by the Private Finance Initiative.
Earlier this month Mr Ritchie held a top-level meeting with senior Skanska senior executives. The Skanska executives reasserted that all blacklisting on their sites had ceased and that an internal investigation had been launched into identifying who had authorised the blacklisting.
Mr Ritchie added: "The people responsible should be brought to book. It is right that Skanska are putting their house in order. However, to fully restore the companies image and to reassure its workforce the findings of the companies investigation should be made public."
Skanska employs only a tiny number of construction workers directly.
Mr Ritchie further added: "UCATT are urging all construction workers who are concerned that they may have been denied work through being blacklisted to contact the Information Commissioner."
Ian Kerr who ran the Consulting Association is due to go on trial tomorrow. If as expected he lodges a guilty plea he will be tried in a Magistrates Court where the maximum fine is just £5,000. Mr Kerr’s blacklisting business was raking in over £100,000 per annum.
Last week the Government announced that it would bring in regulations to finally outlaw blacklisting this autumn.
(GK/JM)
