Clamp-down on unqualified workers

Brickwork contractor Landmark Brickwork is docking £10 a day from workers that don't hold CSCS skills cards, in what it claims is a move encourage non-card-holding workers to join the CSCS scheme.

Landmark Brickwork managing director Billy Sutcliffe told Contract Journal (CJ) that although 95% of his brickies were carded, this was a last-ditch attempt to get the remainder on the scheme before housebuilders begin to turn unqualified workers from site. 'The £10 per day deduction is insignificant, because in two weeks time they're going to be out of work,' he said.

But UCATT London regionl secretary Jerry Swain slated the move, telling CJ: 'It is completely out of order and purely designed to increase their profit. It's not as if they are offering an extra £10 to people who have CSCS cards.'

In related news, electrical contractors working on the London Underground will now face spot-checks to see if they are qualified to carry out the work, reported CJ. The move comes after the Unite union claimed that electrical work was being done by general civils firms.

Last week, bosses of failed Tube PPP operator Metronet met with officials from Unite's electrical section and agreed that more checks were needed. 'Any contractors contractor employed by Metronet has to ensure that its staff and subcontractors possess sufficient qualifications, skills and experience to fulfill their duties,' said a Metronet spokesman. 'We are also considering using JIB-registered electrical contractors.'