Ryan FowlerFollowing a persistent two-year campaign, Unite has secured a trade union access agreement with Balfour Beatty, Vinca, SYSTRA (BBVS) joint venture for the HS2 Old Oak Common construction site. Signed today, Tuesday, 23 April, the agreement ensures that Unite representatives can attend project inductions and access worker rest areas during breaks to address any employment or safety issues that may arise.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham celebrated the agreement, saying, “This agreement is the culmination of two years of relentless campaigning by Unite to gain formal access to the Old Oak Common site. Construction workers can now speak directly to Unite about all employment and safety concerns.”
With this agreement, Unite now has site access arrangements with four out of the five joint ventures working on HS2: BBVS, Align, EKFB, and Mace/Dragados. Skanska, Costain, Strabag (SCS), in charge of the London tunnels, remains the sole venture without a union access agreement.
Unite regional officer Declan Murphy commented, “Agreeing trade union site access should be a matter of course for all construction contractors… Unite will now be turning its complete attention to securing a site access agreement for SCS workers.”
