Campaigners in solidarity with scaffolders in Scunthorpe held a protest outside the offices of Actavo in Chepstow yesterday, pictured above, alongside other actions held in Ireland, Scotland and England.
In total, four protests were held outside the company’s offices to demand that they pay their scaffolders in Scunthorpe the agreed national rate of pay.
If Actavo refuses to pay the agreed rate, scaffolders employed by Actavo at British Steel in Scunthorpe will begin continuous strike action from tomorrow, Wednesday 26th January.
Their union, Unite, says that the workers are being paid up to 15 per cent below the agreed rate for the job under the National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry (NAECI).
Unite yesterday called on both British Steel and Actavo to enter into tripartite negotiations with them, to resolve a dispute which has been running since 2019.
One activist who addressed the Chepstow protest yesterday accused British steel of breaking picket lines that scaffolders have got on site. Others applauded the scaffolders and offered their solidarity. The protest was organised by Unite Wales and supported by Cardiff Trades Council, the National Shop Stewards Network and others.
Unite general secretary, Sharon Graham, said that supporters across the UK and Ireland were sending a clear message.
“Pay the Scunthorpe scaffolders the rate for the job,” she said. “British Steel and Actavo need to understand that Unite is standing firm. We will fight tooth and nail to stop the race to the bottom. British Steel and Actavo can’t go on ignoring the issue forever.”
14,000 supporters have already signed Unite’s petition calling on Actavo CEO Brian Kelly to respect national agreements and pay his company’s scaffolders the agreed rate for the job.
The workers are in a long running dispute with their employer Actavo. But Unite says that the client, British Steel, must also take responsibility. Problems began in 2019, as a result of the scaffolders not being paid in line with the National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry.
They say the rates for the workforce are currently between 10-15% below what they should be, depending on specific roles. The workers maintain 500 scaffolding structures at the British Steel site in Scunthorpe.
Cover image courtesy of Unite Wales
