NORTH WALES WORKERS ‘BETRAYED’ BY COUNCILS SAY UNIONS

NORTH WALES WORKERS ‘BETRAYED’ BY COUNCILS SAY UNIONS

THE PARC ADFER DEESIDE AREA WORKFORCE HAS BEEN SADLY LET DOWN BY A UNION-HATING COMPANY AND AN UNCARING, INCOMPETENT LOCAL AUTHORITY CONGLOMERATE SAYS GMB

GMB and Unite have accused a conglomerate of North Wales councils of ‘betraying’ the local workforce.

The North Wales Residual Waste Treatment Partnership [1] consists of five local authorities responsible for building a new 800million waste facility in Parc Adfer Deeside.

The partnership has contracted French company CNIM to undertake the project.

CNIM, has a history of poor relationships with trade unions in the UK, and has refused to allow unions access to the site.

CNIM and its supply chain has failed to engage local workers on the project and some of the work is expected to be given to overseas contractors.

The company is also refusing to abide by the National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry (NAECI), which means that the workers employed on the site are not receiving the correct pay and conditions for the work they are conducting.

If workers are brought in from overseas then legally the company only has to pay the national minimum wage which is a 63.5 per cent cut in wages compared to the NAECI agreement.

The unions have written to the local authorities involved in the project about their concerns but have not received a response.

The two unions will now be stepping up the pressure on CNIM and the local councils to ensure that workers are paid the appropriate rates for the work undertaken and also skilled local workers are fully given opportunities to work on the project.

PHIL WHITEHURST, GMB NATIONAL OFFICER FOR CONSTRUCTION, SAID:

“From past experience, CNIM do not seem to want to engage with trade unions

“We are seen as a necessary evil who they won’t embrace in a harmonious partnership.

“The Parc Adfer Deeside area workforce has been sadly let down by a union-hating company and an uncaring, incompetent local authority conglomerate who are just interested in saving money and not the wider local economy.”

BERNARD MCAULAY, UNITE NATIONAL OFFICER FOR CONSTRUCTION, SAID:

“Our joint talks with CNIM failed to achieve a way forward but we are not going to stand idly by and allow workers to be mistreated and exploited.

“Trade unions feel the North Wales councils have betrayed the local community – and spend more time on box-ticking exercises rather than promoting job opportunities in the surrounding communities.

“It is essential that local people realise what is being done in their name and clearly say that what is happening on Deeside is not acceptable. It is totally immoral that these practices are being conducted on a public sector contract.

“There have already been local protests about the way this project is being conducted and without an agreement similar disruptive activity could re-occur.”