Hull power plant dispute set for nationwide escalation

Hundreds of workers have been laid off at the site in Saltend, near Hull, sparking unofficial industrial action which has brought work to a standstill.

The protest continued on Tuesday when electricians and scaffolders are believed to have refused to cross picket lines at the new plant, being built by Vivergo for BP.

It is believed that union shop stewards from across the engineering construction industry will meet next week to discuss organising a national day of protest unless the row is resolved.

The action would involve thousands of workers from power station and oil refinery sites across the country and would be the worst outbreak of industrial unrest since a row over foreign labour at the Lindsay oil refinery in North Lincolnshire two years ago.

Another row was brewing on Tuesday over the employment of welders on the Drax and Ferrybridge power stations in Yorkshire after the GMB union claimed that overseas workers might be recruited despite hundreds of unemployed UK staff who would be suitable for the work.

Regional officer Jimmy Skivington said: “We are concerned that, despite several meetings with us about their legal responsibilities, Doosan Babcock still intends to fill some of their jobs for welders on these two sites with non-EU labour.

“This is despite this category of welders having been removed from the most recent official skills shortage list for the UK. They have advised us that they have already identified a workforce from a non-EU country and plan to offer them over 100 jobs.”

The union will meet the company later this week to try to resolve the issue.