Construction Industry Blacklist Shame.

Balfour Beatty, Skanska, Sir Robert McAlpine, Kier and Lang are just some of the major UK construction companies who have been subscribing to a blacklist that left people without work for years, destroyed lives and families and consigned children to hunger and poverty.

The victims of the blacklist were union members, union representatives, shop stewards, workers who highlighted health and safety concerns on sites, as well as people who were considered political agitators and even some animal rights activists.

A secret blacklist that is, according to some construction workers, still in operation today has denied people work for years and driven many out of the industry and yet nobody has been brought to justice. A covert, unlawful and confidential blacklist, that was paid for by construction firms and was in operation on major infrastructure projects such as the Olympic site, the Dome, and The Jubilee Line, which were all funded with public money.

The files were managed and maintained by a small firm in Droitwich in the West Midlands called The Consulting Association run by Jim and Mary Kerr. Jim Kerr, who is now dead, is the only person who has suffered any sanction, under the Data Protection Act, for the existence of the list. He was fined £5000, including legal fees, a fine which was paid by Sir Robert McAlpine Construction, who suggested that he take the blame, to keep McAlpine’s name out of the courts and media.

Over 3000 workers were put on the list, without being told, and many of the details were inaccurate and unverified. Often a worker would be added to the list for simply challenging his foreman or line manager, often malicious and often resulting in their contracts being cancelled. Workers who were, or who had been, involved in Industrial Tribunals or who raised health and safety issues were added to the database. Often details such as vehicle registration plates and relationships were held on the files.

Construction firms were invited to join by an existing member. An annual subscription fee was paid and £2.00 was paid for each name checked against the list. Each company would have a contact, usually a senior executive within human resources, who would feed information about a worker in and that information would be shared across the industry.

Unions may have also provided names for the list and also had several opportunities to investigate the blacklist but failed at every opportunity, even though the union, Unite, still believes that a blacklist may still be in operation.

It has been four years since the blacklists was uncovered, and still no construction company, nobody from the companies, who fed the names through, or none of the company executives, have had to face any form of punishment. Nobody on the blacklist has received any compensation for their lives being destroyed and the current government refuses to take on the construction companies concerned, many of whom may well be donors to the Tory party.

This is an example of corporate greed and political cowardice, where corporations and politicians are happy to ruin livelihoods for profit and personal gain. It is shameful that no justice has been seen to be administered. If corporations are allowed to flaunt the law with impunity then why should other citizens act in a law abiding and responsible way. 

It is yet another example from businesses and politicians of “do as I say, not as I do”.If governments and corporations rip up the social contract then why should any of us play by the rules.

G8 Summit.

The G8 summit is nothing more than 'bread and circus's' with added water cannons and a massive police presence. Anybody expecting to read, anytime soon, the headline ' Google and Amazon promise to pay full tax liability after G8 Summit", are dreaming or mad.

"The majority of benefit fraud is committed through need. All tax evasion and avoidance is committed through greed."  (anon)