Construction workers, who face up to 30 per cent pay cuts because rogue employers are tearing up long held national agreements, will be demonstrating outside the Newcastle University building site on Wednesday, 21 September.

About 100 workers, members of the country's largest trade union, Unite, will be staging their protest at Newcastle University building site, Percy Street, Newcastle between 6.30am and 8am.

The focus of their anger are plans by Balfour Beatty and another seven breakaway construction companies, which are imposing semi-skilled grades into the mechanical and electrical sector.

Unite regional officer, Bill Green said: "Our members in the Newcastle are furious about this attack by these so-called reputable companies aimed at reducing our members’ income by up to a third.

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"The companies are trying to bulldoze their plans through by ripping long-standing national agreements without any negotiation.

"These rogue employers should pull back from the brink as their brutal onslaught on workers' skills, pay, and terms and conditions is causing widespread anger among workers."

Workers in five of the eight breakaway companies have been written to by their managers with a stark choice - sign new contracts on much inferior pay, and terms and conditions or face the sack on 7 December.

The employers want to withdraw from five long-held agreements and replace them with a new agreement which will allow employers to introduce semi-skilled grades and dictate rather than negotiate on pay, holiday entitlement, overtime, and what constitutes away work.

But five of the eight have upped the stakes. Balfour Beatty, Crown House Technologies, Spie Matthew Hall, Shepherd Engineering Services and NG Bailey have issued Unite with legal notice of their intention to dismiss, with notice, thousands of employees before re-engaging them on new inferior contracts.

(CD/GK)