The Scottish Affairs Select Committee, which is investigating blacklisting in construction, asked Ucatt for details after general secretary Steve Murphy raised concerns about the project when he gave evidence to the committee last month.
Alder Hey is a publicly funded construction project and is currently the largest site in Liverpool. Ucatt has tried and failed to get union recognition on the project.
Ucatt says that it began discussions about representation on the project with the client before Laing O鈥橰ourke was awarded the contract. Once Laing O鈥橰ourke was appointed, these discussions effectively ended, the union says.
Ucatt claims that it has been barred from normal access to the site and the workforce, and has only had limited access to the workers at their induction. Laing O鈥橰ourke has blocked all discussions about worker representatives, including union safety representatives, Ucatt claims.
Ucatt believes that the lack of safety representatives is a factor in a spate of accidents on the site. It says that in the past fortnight there have been five accidents on the site resulting in injuries to workers. These include broken limbs and a worker who suffered a crushed pelvis.
Ucatt鈥檚 evidence sets out how, despite there being a local labour agreement for the site, existing members of the Laing O鈥橰ourke workforce who live locally have not been able to transfer to the Alder Hey site. Instead they remain on projects hundreds of miles away from their homes. Ucatt believes that this is because they are known to be union members.
Ucatt also reports that large numbers of the current 300-strong workforce are being employed via payroll companies and are therefore officially self-employed. This means that they do not receive holiday pay, sick pay, pension contributions and can be dismissed without warning.
Ucatt also highlights reports that many of Laing O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 permanent workforce on the site are being offered redundancy. Despite this being a four year project, many of them are accepting this offer. The union suggests that this is another sign of a deteriorating working environment on the project.
Ucatt has enlisted the support of local MP Stephen Twigg and Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson in its campaign to get union representation on the site. They have written a joint letter to Laing O鈥橰ourke voicing their concerns.
Ucatt regional secretary Andy Fisher said: 鈥淭his is clearly a very unhappy site which has now got serious safety issues. From day one Ucatt has been keen to work with Laing O鈥橰ourke to ensure that workers are properly represented and are safe at work. We remain committed to achieving this aim and are mystified at Laing O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 refusal to engage with ourselves.鈥�
Laing O'Rourke responded: 鈥淟aing O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 overriding priority is the safety and welfare of our workforce. We are committed to challenging and changing the construction industry and have invested heavily in Mission Zero, our behaviourally based safety approach which aims to eradicate all injuries in the Laing O鈥橰ourke workplace by 2020.
鈥淕iven this ambition it is with regret that we confirm that recently there have been three reportable incidents on the Alder Hey in the Park project in which three employees sustained injuries, none of which were life-threatening. Those affected are receiving the necessary support and medical care to treat their injuries. These incidents are being thoroughly investigated and whilst these investigations continue we cannot comment further.
鈥淭he points that Ucatt raise in regard to site access is a completely separate issue to these incidents and we are in continuing dialogue with them to address their concerns regarding positive engagement.鈥�
Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk
