Olympic sites reject casual working, union assured

UCATT wrote to the ODA after reading comments from the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, the trade association for employment agencies, that there was a need for a “flexible workforce” on the Olympic Games sites

The chair of REC’s construction division, Simon Noakes, said recently: “With landmark projects such as the Olympic games, there are currently over 5,000 construction operatives working in Stratford alone. Projects of this stature make the need for a flexible workforce greater than ever.”

The ODA was swift to confirm toUCATT that it was sticking to its current strict rules that workers must be directly employed rather than self-employed and paid in line with the appropriate industrial agreement. The rules have ensured that workers on the project have not been exploited and receive normal employment rights, such as holiday pay, UCATT says.

UCATT says that the direct employment rules have contributed to the low accident rate on the Olympic Park and have been a major factor in helping to ensure that the project is on course to finish on time and on budget.

TheODA told UCATT that it would continue to run its “audit programme”, to ensure that workers are directly employed and “where an audit identifies non compliance the employer concerned is required to take corrective action within a defined period of time.” The ODA also confirmed that there are “very high levels of direct employment” on the Olympic sites.

UCATT general secretary Alan Ritchie said: “It is very important that the ODA have rebuffed any suggestion that casualised employment practices will be allowed on the Olympics in the final months of the project. The directly employment rules have ensured that workers have not been exploited, accident levels are low and the project will be completed on time. It is highly regrettable that REC have sought to diminish these achievements.”

Mr Ritchie, added: “Rather than talking about flexibility, it is important that the government and the major construction contractors learn lessons from the Olympic Park project. By treating workers properly and not denying them standard employment rights, construction projects can be delivered, fairly, safely, on time and on budget.”

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