Up to 40 jobs set to go at Bam’s construction business as firm begins consultation with staff

Bam has begun a redundancy consultation with 40 staff working at its Northern and London arms of its construction business.

The firm, which employs 2,200 people across its UK construction division, said the consultation started yesterday with the process expected to last up to 30 days in accordance with employment law.

A Bam spokesperson said: “Like all businesses, we need to be flexible and adapt to current market conditions.

“Within the construction sector, the market has been particularly challenging over the past couple of years. As a result of this we have started a consultation process about reducing staff numbers within the Construction segment of Bam UK and Ireland division.

“This is not a decision we have taken lightly but these proposed changes will support us in further embedding our regional and divisional structures which have been implemented over recent years.”

>> See also: Uh-oh. Co-op Live’s woes leave industry with familiar sinking feeling

Last month, Tim Leiweke, chief executive of the Oak View Group (OVG), the American operator behind Bam’s delayed Co-op Live venue, who co-own it with City Football Group, which also owns Manchester City, said the contractor had “lost a lot of money on the job”.

He said the original cost was £365m but admitted: “OVG and City Football Group, including our contractor and what they’ve had to put in in losses, we will spend close to £450m privately. The contractor [Bam] lost a lot of money on this job. This job cost them more than anyone ever expected.”

Bam, which signed up for the job three years ago, built the arena under a fixed-price deal. A few days before the job was due to open, Building revealed 800 were still working on the scheme, with the project running 24 hours a day in order to get it finished.