Skills

The government is considering how it can encourage contractors to increase direct employment and cut reliance on self-employed workers. Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy deputy director of construction Fergus Harradence said the government will draw on past experience to promote more direct employment. “We are currently looking at…

Construction employers are confused by the new points-based immigration system and are concerned the costs involved will affect the industry’s ability to deliver on government targets in 2021, according to a survey by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). A new migration report, published today, includes a poll that found…

A decision on whether the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) will hold a vote this year on its levy collection will be made within weeks, the organisation has said. The last scheduled poll on whether the industry backs its collection of the levy for the next three years was delayed…

Highways England has said it will create 22,000 jobs during construction of its proposed Lower Thames Crossing scheme. The £6.8bn new tunnel from Essex to Kent will contain 23km of new road. It was originally due to be completed in 2027 or 2028 but, in October last year, Highways England…

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) only delivered on three of its 12 key performance indicators in 2019/20. The organisation’s delayed annual report and accounts for the last financial year include results of an employer and stakeholder survey, which informs the performance indicators set by its board. These included a…

Difficulties sourcing labour – following a drop in the number of EU-born workers in the UK – are likely to push up rates by at least 10 per cent, recruiters have warned. A decline in the number of EU-born workers in the UK construction industry, combined with a surge in…

Balfour Beatty, Laing O’Rourke and Wates are among contractors to sign up to a scheme that will look to help increase employment opportunities for young black men. The year-long programme led by consultancy The Equal Group, with backing from the Greater London Authority (GLA), will feature workshops, one-to-one sessions, supply…

The number of European Union-born workers in the UK construction industry dropped by more than a quarter in 12 months. In the third quarter of 2020, there were 127,000 EU-born workers in the industry, down from 176,000 recorded in the same period in 2019. The 28 per cent drop was…

New immigration rules will be “extremely challenging for construction”, Build UK has warned. The trade association said it is making “strong representations” to the Home Office about the issues contractors are facing with the new points-based immigration system that will affect the employment of migrant workers from 1 January. The…

The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) wants all construction industry skills cards to use smart technology by 31 March 2022. In an update to its industry-card-schemes recommendation, the CLC said that by spring next year all card schemes “must use smart technology which has the capability to electronically check agreed information…