Skanska the latest to announce one-off cost of living payment

Skanska has become the latest big construction firm to announce one-off cost of living payments. Staff at the Swedish giant’s UK arm are to be given £750 in November.

Around 1,300 members of Skanska’s UK team will benefit from the payout to help them with soaring energfy bills this winter. The firm is spending nearly £1m.

Skanska UK president and chief executive Gregor Craig said: “We recognise the challenges many households are facing due to the rising cost of living.” He added that the support was “a real reflection of our values and purpose”.

The decision follows similar moves across the industry, with Sisk giving £900 to its 620 UK staff and €1,000 to its 830 staff working in Ireland at a cost to the firm of £1.3m. Galliford Try has spent £1.35m to give 1,800 of its 3,300 employees one-off payments of £750.

Keltbray has also handed more than 1,100 of its near 1,700 staff a £1,000 payment this autumn, while Barratt said it was giving all staff below senior management level a £1,000 payment and Poplar Harca, which according to its 2021 annual report had 331 staff, is giving all its staff a £1,500 one-off payment.

The news of Skanska’s cost of living support comes as the firm announces the appointment of Network Rail finance director Meliha Duymaz as its new chief financial officer.

Duymaz was responsible for Network Rail’s eastern region, running from London to Scotland, its largest regional business with 10,000 employees. 

Prior to this, Duymaz served as managing director for the Anglia route, leading teams responsible for infrastructure management and service delivery for some of the most intensely operated rail routes into London.

She also spent six years working in senior finance roles in IT services giant Serco.

Craig said he was delighted to welcome Duymaz to Skanska UK, adding that she would bring “a broad experience across a variety of sectors”.