Member News
In an industry where deaths are already at an unacceptable level, it is vital that site safety should be paramount
Jim Sheridan
Labour MP Jim Sheridan writes for ePolitix.com on the issues raised in his Westminster Hall debate on the role of gangmasters in the construction industry.
I will always be proud of the Gangmasters Act which I introduced as a private members' bill and which for the past five years has been protecting workers in the agricultural sector from unscrupulous employers.
However, it has since emerged from anecdotal evidence that having been blocked from standing on the back of the tattie howkers and cockle pickers to make money, these reprehensible individuals have moved into the construction industry.
This is worrying on a number of levels. First and foremost is the fact the workers, predominately migrant workers, are continuing to be exploited by individuals and organisations with no concern for their welfare.
There also has to be concern over the safety of employing migrant labour with little or no understanding of the English language. This has serious ramifications when it comes to safety notices and instructions on how to use specialised equipment, and migrant workers are placing themselves and others at risk and this is leading to increased workplace injuries.
In an industry where deaths are already at an unacceptable level, it is vital that site safety should be paramount. However, some of the cases I have heard of indicate that the gangmasters pay only cursory attention to the safety of their workers and their pursuit of profits at all costs override considerations of any duty-of-care to their employees.
I believe that given the effectiveness of the legislation in tackling gangmasters in the agricultural sector, it makes sense to extend the legislation to drive out those employers who undermine the good, law-abiding tax-paying employers.
We cannot leave any industry for these people to operate in, where they get rich through the mistreatment of others.
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd