Bid to protect workers in construction jobs - 08-05-2008 - 11:18

The Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) should be reformed, the Trade Union Congress' commission on vulnerable employment has suggested.

Changes need to be made to ensure those in construction jobs are protected by ensuring they have legal status as an employee with a "proper contract of employment", E-Gov Monitor reports.

An end to "bogus workers self-employed workers", which is resulting in employers paying no national insurance contributions and workers suffering from few statutory rights and missing out on workplace benefits, has also been urged by the commission.

Brendan Barber, the general secretary of the TUC, said its commissioners were shocked by how vulnerable some workers are in today's workplace.

He continued: "Their treatment is a national scandal, and we need urgent action.

"The abuse of employment status, such as we see in the Construction Industry Scheme, is a root cause of much of the exploitation that disfigures UK workplaces."

It comes at a time when the availability of construction work is at its lowest level for nearly a decade.

The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply revealed workloads fell across commercial and public construction and civil engineering.

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