Construction union UCATT have reacted with disgust to the announcement that the retirement age is set to be increased to 66 by 2016 with the expectation it will soon be increased to 70.

The one-size fits all policy ignores the fact that the life expectancy of male manual workers is increasing more slowly than any other group. The majority of construction workers are forced to retire before the age of 65 as they are no longer able to perform their jobs due to ill health or injury.

The announcement amounts to a cruel punishment for construction workers as it will mean that many will die before reaching retirement age. Even if they do live until retirement age they are unlikely to enjoy their later years in good health.

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Alan Ritchie, General Secretary of UCATT, said: "This announcement reveals the true face of the ConDem Government, they simply don’t understand and don’t care about the challenges faced by working people. By increasing the retirement age the ConDems are effectively forcing many construction workers to work until they drop. These are the policies of the 19th century not the 21st century."

Construction workers are particularly vulnerable to premature death, not only does heavy manual labour take a long term toll on the body, but construction workers are now the group most at risk of developing asbestos related diseases such as the incurable lung cancer mesothelioma. Given the long latency period of these diseases, they often manifest themselves when workers near retirement or soon after they retire.

Mr Ritchie, added: "Rather than forcing workers to work for longer, the Government should be focussing their energies on ensuring that workers are better placed to save for their retirement. In construction, few workers have a pension and those that do are highly unlikely to have saved sufficient money to guard against poverty in old age."

(CD)