黑洞社区

The future of the compensation scheme for blacklisted workers has been cast in doubt, after one of the unions involved in setting it up claimed talks were 鈥渙n the brink of breaking down鈥�.

A spokesperson for union the GMB told 黑洞社区 representatives of blacklisted workers and contractors walked away from a 鈥渃oncluding meeting鈥� between the parties last month 鈥渨ithout reaching agreement鈥�.

However, the Construction Workers Compensation Scheme denied the talks had broken down.

The primary area of disagreement is over the level of compensation contractors are willing to make available to workers who were blacklisted, with the GMB claiming firms have made between 拢15m and 拢20m available, which they said was 鈥済rossly inadequate to deal with the devastating damage inflicted on people in their working lives and the colossal invasion of their privacy.鈥�

Blacklisting came to light in 2009 when the Information Commissioners Office seized a database of over 3,000 construction workers used by 44 companies to vet recruits.

Last October eight firms - Balfour Beatty, Carillion, Costain, Kier, Laing O鈥橰ourke, Sir Robert McAlpine, Skanska UK and Vinci - set up the Construction Workers Compensation Scheme in a bid to resolve the dispute.

A spokesperson for the Construction Workers Compensation Scheme said: 鈥淲e don鈥檛 agree that talks between the compensation scheme and unions have broken down, talks are ongoing.

鈥淲e have already made significant concessions, including on compensation levels. We are disappointed that the GMB is representing the situation in this light.鈥�