Derek Simpson, joint leader of Unite, together with a delegation of Unite members working in engineering and construction delivered a petition to Number 10 yesterday, calling on Gordon Brown to insist that employers give UK workers fair access to work on UK engineering and construction projects.

Following the delivery of the petition, construction workers met with MPs and Peers in the Houses of Parliament to put forward their case for fairness not favours.

The petition signed by thousands of engineering and construction workers, many of whom are currently unemployed, also called for overseas workers to be paid in line with agreed UK rates. Unite believes that the best way to achieve this is to ensure that UK workers and their unions work side by side with overseas workers.

Mr Simpson said: "Construction workers are delivering a message directly to number 10. They are not asking for any favours, just fairness. Companies applying for contracts on public infrastructure projects must commit to fair access for UK Labour. The government is beginning to grasp the seriousness of the present situation but we now need to see the follow through. The government must ensure that construction companies sign up to Corporate Social Responsibility agreements, which commit to fair access for UK Labour.

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"No European worker should be barred from applying for a British job and absolutely no British worker should be barred from applying for a British job."

Coordinated protests also took place today outside the Staythorpe power station in Nottinghamshire and the Isle of Grain power station in Kent. Hundreds of skilled but unemployed construction workers are being refused work at the power stations.

Alstom, the main contractor at both power stations, is using two subcontractors at each of the sites, both of whom are refusing to consider local labour.

Alstom has been contracted by RWE to build the Staythorpe power station, a gas fired power station near Newark. Two companies, Montpressa and FMM, have been subcontracted to carry out construction work on the site. These two non-UK contracting companies say they have no intention of employing any local labour to undertake the work. Unite estimates that 600 jobs will be needed to build the power station's turbine and boiler and another 250 to build the pipe connecting the two. None of these jobs will go to UK workers.

At the Isle of Grain, two sub-contractors, Remak and ZRE have also refused to consider applications for work from UK-based labour. Unite estimates that the two sub-contractors will require 450 workers over the lifetime of the project. Alstom has been contracted by E.on to build the power station.

(CD/JM)