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Olympic firms fail to hire in Stratford
Matthew Beard, Sports News Correspondent2 Feb 2009
FIRMS working on the London Olympics have privately admitted that they will not be able to meet their pre-recession pledge to employ local workers.
Major contractors on the £9.3billion project have been under pressure to recruit from the Stratford area. But sources have told the Standard that the sudden downturn has meant construction firms have sent existing workers to the 2012 site rather than lay them off.
One contractor, defying a gagging order on their dealings with the Olympic Delivery Authority, said: "We had intended to hire locally but the recession has meant so many building projects have been halted since we made these pledges that we are sending our existing staff to the Olympic site.
"Our intentions were good but the reality has proved different."
Last week an employee at a Stratford job centre said there had been no advertised vacancies to work on the £500million Olympic stadium, which employs about 500 people.
The ODA, which is responsible for recruitment, has stressed its commitment to employing workers from the five host Olympic boroughs although it has not set a quota.
Figures obtained by the Standard under the Freedom of Information Act showed that 29 per cent of the 3,046 workers on the Olympic Park in December were foreign, with 14 per cent of the overall total from non-EU countries.
Labour MP for Dagenham, John Cruddas, has warned that the Olympics could be a target for protests if it did not boost the number of local workers. He said: "If the Government is planning big infrastructure projects to keep the economy moving - including the Olympics - this needs to be resolved now, because it is in the construction and engineering sectors where these issues are most acute.
Reader views (10)
Arriving here with a CSCS card.One wonders where or how did he get this.
butchers hooks and straight banannas spring to mind.
- Patrick, penge london., 01/06/2009 13:37
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Here is another thing I would like to bring peoples attention to.Let us ask how mr.e european can saunter off the plane monday,and by tuesday or wednsday he is working at stratford olympic with his CSCS card.When I got my one I was photograped,checked,and rechecked over a year before I got it.yet here is a man from a country which dont have any similar related trade certification.
- Patrick, penge london, 01/06/2009 13:17
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what the goverment `especialy` and the greedy captains of industry dont realise is that these cheap semiskilled east european are not invested in the country. Ie not having mortages,dont spend the money they earn in pub, cafe, taxi,even the poor old barber doesnt see a penny'
So who will pay for this?
well the council tax payer will,when they have left and gone home. As for the likes of me I will have my property repossed because I am not wellcome at stratford
- Patrick, penge london, 01/06/2009 12:46
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It's Jon, not John Cruddas.
- submariner, Ilford, 04/02/2009 11:49
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I think that we should look after our own FIRST. Why do we feel we have to employ EU and Non-EU workers - TRAIN the British people - give them proper schooling and patrionism so that we can get the GREAT back into Britain.
- LInda, Hampshire, 04/02/2009 09:22
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Why is the proportion of workers from non-EU countries so high at 14%?
I don't have a problem with the contractors using their existing workforce instead of recruiting locally. The construction industry is in a mess.
I don't even have a problem with the number of Eu workers. The construction industry has had to rely on these for a number of years as we did not have sufficient trained craftsmen over here.
But 14% being non-EU beggars belief.
- Andrew W1, London, 02/02/2009 18:09
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Given how bad our economy is it sounds like these construction firms are actually being sensible and using their available workforce rather than laying them off. Can you imagine the outcry if they had laid off people on other projects but then took on a load of workers for the 2012 sites just because "they are local"?
Talk about damned if you do and damned if you don't.
- Lone Gunman, anywhere but here, 02/02/2009 16:07
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It is not just the Construction Industry, the number of foreign workers especially non EU onces are quite high in IT and retail sector. In the retail sector, students who have studied in the UK are given the right to work to gain experience, however, they join a shop (retail sector) to earn a living rather than gain experience in their field of work. Visa to foreign workers should restrict them to work only in their own field rather than given open ended work permits
- Chetan Agrawal, London, 02/02/2009 15:35
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Winning the bid to host the olympics was a disaster of catastrophic proportions, and those who lied and cheated in their attempts to win the bid must be removed from office. It was clear to everyone that Britain could never deliver within budget and unfortunately Londoners will be paying for this fiasco for generations.
- R.F., Yorks, UK, 02/02/2009 13:38
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I feel another Lordly appointment by old Gord coming on. His League of Gentlemen, unable to do anything about our european friends will now adopt a micro employment strategy. Local Jobs for Local People. Thus offending us Northerners, the Scots,The Welsh, the Irish, oh, and the rest of Europe.
Is there anyone in this government who has any understanding of employment law as accepted by them under EU regulations, or are they more interested in sondbites, just so they appeal to their electorate, sidestepping all the problems that they have agreed to?
- Alan, carlisle uk, 02/02/2009 11:07
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