Construction leaders urge PM to keep sites open
Leaders from the industry have urged the Prime Minister to keep construction sites open or risk thousands of job losses
The Construction Leadership Council sent a letter yesterday to the Prime Minister urging him to support the construction sector. They say the constriction industry is a critical part of a functioning UK economy which employs around 3.3 million people 40% of which are self-employed. An imposed “lockdown’ as seen in other countries would trigger many thousands of job losses and closure of many firms. Leaders have asked the PM to keep construction sites open for as long as responsibly justified during the Coronavirus outbreak. The Council has also urged the Government to consider a cash bridge deferring VAT and PAYE payments to ease the burden on business and keep cash moving as long as possible. And to instruct all public sector construction clients to continue to pay their contractors and supply chain.
“As an industry, we are particularly vulnerable to fluctuations in workload that might result from an enforced shut down of sites and projects. This is due to the number of self-employed workers (approaching 40% of people working in construction), the vulnerable cash position of over 210,000 SME businesses and the operational requirements of delivering large and complex construction and infrastructure projects,” Andy Mitchell Co-Chair of the Construction Leadership Council said in the letter.
“Should the coronavirus cause a ‘shut down’ of the construction sector, we will face unprecedented challenges that we know from previous downturns will cause many companies and individuals to face significant financial repercussions. Many construction companies will not have enough cash available to continue to pay suppliers and wages, even if there is a relatively limited period of economic inactivity.”
“Our requirement is that we are able to keep our construction sites operational during this time, in order to avoid many thousands of job losses, the closure of thousands of businesses and delays and cost increases on crucial programmes and projects.
“If construction activity comes to halt, given the scale of employment provided by our sector, there would be an immediate need for the Government to provide emergency financing to keep the construction industry operational and prevent irreversible damage to the economic security of millions of people. To minimise the requirement for any Government support, it is critical that our supply chain is able to stay in place and keep working as long as is possible – and that will in turn maintain readiness and help to drive recovery efforts.”
Read the letter to the PM here. CITB close all Construction Colleges
The CITB has closed down all its National Construction Colleges with immediate effect in a coronavirus precaution
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has announced its National Construction Colleges (NCCs) in Norfolk, Kent, the Midlands and Inchinnan will close on Friday 20 March, with training cancelled with immediate effect to enable arrangements for learners to return home. CITB has said its current and advance-booked courses during the closure can be rescheduled or refunded. CITB will be contacting all affected learners and employers to make arrangements. As with other colleges across the country, the NCCs will remain closed until further notice. The training board has also cancelled all its upcoming Employer Roadshows.Tax helpline set up to support businesses and self-employed
A new HMRC helpline has been launched to help businesses and the self-employed concerned about paying their tax due to Coronavirus (COVID-19).
The helpline allows any business or self-employed individual who is concerned about paying their tax due to coronavirus to get practical help and advice. HMRC say up to 2,000 experienced call handlers are available to support businesses and individuals when needed. Callers if managing to get through to the helpline will be able to discuss agreeing on an instalment arrangement and suspending debt collection proceedings. Callers will also be able to discuss cancelling penalties and interest where they have administrative difficulties contacting or paying HMRC immediately. The helpline number is 0800 0159 559 Opening hours are Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm, and Saturday 8am to 4pm. The helpline will not be available on Bank Holidays, HMRC has said.Scaffolding trade body issues advice on Coronavirus
NASC’s boss has issued scaffolding-related advice on the anticipated impact of the Coronavirus to businesses
The National Access and Scaffolding Confederation’s managing director Robin James has issued advice and resources on dealing with the forthcoming impact of Coronavirus on the industry. James stated “These are very challenging times” in an email addressed to its members. “The situation and corresponding guidance from the Government and other parties is changing day by day.” Within the mass email, the industry trade body has gathered a list of links to help scaffold businesses through the pandemic. NASC’s Contracts Committee also and supplied a small question and answer section on dealing with scaffold inspections and if/when sites are shutdown. The email contained the following:Links
- For a legal guide to coronavirus and construction contracts click here.
- For government advice for employers and businesses click here.
- For government support for employers click here.
- For government advice for employees click here.
- For NHS advice relating to personal health click here.
- For Build UK’s statement on the impact on the construction industry click here.
Q&A
What should I do if my scaffolding inspector has been forced into self-isolating? As the scaffolding company has been employed to undertake the scaffolding inspections and not the individual the main contractor may request another inspector from the scaffolding company to attend. In many ways this is a similar situation to annual leave cover or ‘normal’ sick leave. Worst case scenario, employ a third party to cover the period whilst your scaffolding inspector is unable to attend. What happens if the site is shut down? Do we still need to carry out weekly inspections? No 7-day inspections will be required as the site is closed and no one will be accessing the scaffolding. An inspection will be required the day the scaffolding is required to come back into use. In many ways, this is similar to the Christmas period. Please continue to monitor Government announcements and liaise with the main contractor on site regarding this. What happens if we’re advised not to attend sites? If the Government or indeed the main contractor advises you not to attend site this will apply to all trades and individuals so the same scenario as a site shut down where an inspection will not be required until the site is re-opened and the scaffolding is required to be put back in use will apply. The industry trade body has advised that the above is strictly NASC advice. And asks to seek relevant professional guidance wherever and whenever applicable to ensure you are as best placed as possible to manage whatever the specific implications of the spread of coronavirus are to your business and employees.Australia kicks off scaffold safety campaign
Construction workers in Australia are being warned of the dangers of tampering with scaffolding.
SafeWork NSW is launching Scaff Safe 2020 a new scaffold safety campaign aimed at tackling unsafe scaffolding in New South Wales. The campaign comes after a spate of recent incidents and scaffold collapses in the country. The most recent incident saw 30 school children injured after a temporary scaffold structure collapsed at a Sydney school. While last year an 18-year-old apprentice lost his life in a major scaffold collapse also in the capital. Scaff Safe 2020 will see inspectors visit hundreds of construction sites across the southeastern state talking to employers and workers and checking compliance. SafeWork NSW has the power to issue on-the-spot fines for dodgy scaffolds, $750 for construction workers and $3,600 for businesses. In 2019, inspectors issued more than 1,300 notices related to scaffolds across the state, including 131 on-the-spot fines totaling $432,720.The Minister for Better Regulation and Innovation, Kevin Anderson said: “far too often we see different trades remove a small part of the scaffold to make it easier to do their work, without understanding what they are doing to the integrity of the structure, and that’s how accidents can happen.”
“Our message for principal contractors is to make sure there is adequate supervision, consultation and communication on site. By doing so they can easily address the risks associated with scaffolds and we can avoid unnecessary accidents or injury.”
Anderson added: “The NSW Government does not tolerate worker’s lives being placed at risk which is why field operations like Scaff Safe 2.0 are so important.”Industry experts warn of imminent construction site closures
Build UK and the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) have said the UK construction industry is set to become ‘dramatically and severely affected’ from Coronavirus.
In a joint statement released today, the two organizations warned the situation had ‘accelerated’ over the weekend. They warned that construction sites across the country will have to close if the UK government chooses to put the country into ‘lockdown’ and takes measures to restrict the movement of UK citizens. Build UK said, the impact on construction’s supply chain, consisting of multiple layers of businesses, many of them small businesses with a significant amount of self-employed workers will be “catastrophic and unavoidable”. Industry chiefs at Build UK and the CECA have set out a range of measures to prepare for the impact of coronavirus on construction:- Provide information on force majeure and other contractual clauses for the whole supply chain.
- Call on the public sector to provide clarity on each of its construction contracts, in particular the contractual position regarding delays as a result of the coronavirus covid-19.
- Talk to private sector clients urging them to take a similar stance.
- Work with CITB to maintain continuity for all apprentices.
- Identify safety-critical work on the infrastructure network that is essential and must be continued and confirm arrangements and prompt payment for the work.
- Confirm support available to employers to retain essential skills.
- Set up clear communication channels to all suppliers on their contracts and projects and provide regular updates.
- Ensure payments to their supply chains are up to date.
- Clarify the position over suspension of any works.
- Identify if any activities can continue remotely or be brought forward.
- Ensure projects are ready to recommence work as soon as possible.
- Increasing welfare and hygiene facilities.
- Liaising with clients on contingency arrangements.
- Reviewing contractual arrangements to understand options now and in the future.
- Liaising with funders and banks to secure sufficient credit.
- Contacting HMRC on 0800 0159 559 to discuss arrangements for delaying payment of taxes.
- Setting up project-specific communication networks with their supply chains.
- Reviewing safety-critical elements of their projects.
- Reviewing programmes.
- Ensuring remote access is in place.
- Offering those with the ability to work from home to do so.
- Protecting business-critical functions such as payroll and accounts departments.
- Splitting teams to avoid everyone becoming ill at the same time.
- Reducing contact between leadership teams.
- Cancelling or moving meetings and overseas travel to conference calls or online meetings.
International Scaffolding Championships postponed
The second annual International Scaffolding Championships has been postponed due to the fear of the global Coronavirus crisis.
The event which was originally scheduled to be held on the 24th April in Vilnius, Lithuania it will now take place at a later date. Event organisers the Baltic Scaffolding Association (BSA) took the decision to postpone the championship over the growing concern of the COVID-19 virus. Registration was open to any teams with six persons to compete who have skills and knowledge of the Layher Allround System. Last year saw nine teams of scaffolders from some of the largest contractors in Europe compete in the competition. Teams had to safely erect and dismantle designed freestanding scaffolds against the clock.CITB launches new campaign to help get more young people on the tools
With 168,500 construction job opportunities being created by 2023, CITB has launched a new campaign to help change young people’s minds about construction.
The industry needs to change the hearts and minds of under-25s to address the skills shortage, as 71% of them are currently turned off by construction jobs according to CITB research. So, Future Made is a new campaign to change their perceptions of construction – but if you’re reading this, you likely won’t see Future Made. Instead, social media influencers will be posting content on their platforms to show young audiences their adventures in trying out bricklaying, roofing, painting and decorating and more as part of the campaign. Day-in-the-life videos of inspirational young bricklayers, carpenters, painters and decorators will also be promoted to young people on their favourite social media. Anjali Pindoria, 24, is a project surveyor with Avi Contracts and has submitted one such clip to the campaign. She said: “I absolutely love coming on site. Not only do I learn new carpentry and joinery elements but I also get to learn about construction in general, you get to see the different parts of the logistics and you just get to be inquisitive about what is going on on site.” Billie-Jo Judd is a 22-year-old plasterer who also has made a Future Made video. She said: “It’s always something new, I just love it, it’s amazing, it’s probably the most therapeutic job in the whole world. The reaction from the customers is probably the best feeling ever.” Watch Anjali and Billie-Jo, as well as Mimi-Isabella Nwosu, Verse Abudar, Lauren Holland and more on the Future Made content hub. During a small-scale test phase last autumn posts received over 88,000 views in one month, with over 16,000 engagements. Content showing the positive experiences in the industry of their peers will attract young people, before being directed to detailed information on applying for apprenticeships and to local training providers on Go Construct.Supported by industry
Future Made is backed by the CITB Nation Councils for England, Scotland and Wales, made up of representatives from construction companies of a range of sizes and trades. Diane Bourne, managing director with Eric Wright Civil Engineering, said: “Through my member seat on the CITB Nations Council for England, I am delighted to be involved in this campaign. My career has enabled me to support my passion for the profession of civil engineering together with a desire to help and nurture talented young individuals of the future and Future Made is both timely and necessary. “The Eric Wright Learning Foundation, partnered with Preston’s College, is also a great example, delivering vocational training for 14+ year olds to support and guide them in choosing a career within the wider construction and civil engineering industry. We also have a great career ambassador programme within Eric Wright Group and I am looking forward to sharing my own passion with other members of the CITB Nations Council to encourage other young people into our industry.” Perception changing takes time, so the Future Made campaign will take place throughout the next three years with annual results evaluated through surveys of young people’s attitudes to the industry.Careers strategy
Future Made is just one component of CITB’s construction careers strategy, which also includes:- Giving young people the right information and routes to join the industry through Go Construct
- Supporting the national SkillBuild competition to inspire potential entrants
- Research to inform a better provision of work experience, nationally
- Grants to support construction employers of all sizes to take on apprentices
- Recruitment from under-represented groups through initiatives such as Pathways into Construction
Budget 2020: Chancellor Backs Businesses
