Paul Corby, Amicus national construction officer and prime mover in the union’s electrical arm, is to take voluntary redundancy. His counterpart in the mechanical division, Jim Simms, is also leaving Amicus.

Corby’s departure is seen as a blow by many, as he was instrumental in brokering the M&E Major Projects Agreement at Heathrow Terminal 5 and has been the lead negotiator on wages for electricians for many years.

Insiders at Amicus believe both Corby and Simms have been ‘living on borrowed time’ since left-winger Derek Simpson took over as general secretary last year.

Corby and Simms were seen as progressives, more in tune with former Amicus boss Ken Jackson than the current leadership. Their departures are fuelling fears that good relationships garnered with large clients including BAA could now be in jeopardy.

BAA organisational effectiveness director, Shaun Doherty, said: “Corby has been a driving force behind the T5 deal. Historically the m&e workforce has been militant in its industrial relations activity but, through a partnership with Corby, we were able to achieve a deal.”

Amicus has installed Tom Hardacre to take over Corby’s role on the T5 Forum. Decisions are yet to be made as to who will succeed Corby on the ECA/Amicus Joint Industry Board. Corby and Simms also sat on the SummitSkills’ board. Its chair, Simon Bartley, said: “We are waiting for an official union announcement of Paul and Jim’s replacements. We will then discuss their invitation onto SummitSkills’ board at our next meeting.”

Source

Electrical and Mechanical Contractor