CCATF Chairman, Geoff Lister, says as expected the construction sector has struggled through the first few months of 2012. However, this extract from the CCATF’s 2011 Annual Report is a brief reminder of why we should continue to look to the future to help our industry on the road to recovery.
By November 2011, youth unemployment had reached 1.04 million, the highest level since comparable records began. The Government must raise the prospects of our young people.
For a start, public funding should be redirected to the housing sectors.
New house building projects and repair and maintenance programmes are labour intensive. They create jobs quickly and help increase the supply of homes this country so desperately needs. Announcements about new infrastructure projects scheduled to start in 2013 and beyond are not unwelcome, but they will not deliver the growth or the apprenticeship opportunities we need now.
‘TRAINING CONSCIOUS’ CONTRACTORS
Even if the Government can be persuaded to intervene further to encourage more growth in the construction industry, a question remains as to who will provide the training, and not just for trade apprentices. Technicians, surveyors, managers and graduate trainees are all increasingly important too. Now is the time to stand up and be counted and for clients in every walk of life to insist that they only employ contractors who also champion this ethos and culture. I call on all the sectors of our industry to do a great deal more work with their client base to encourage the use of ‘training conscious’ contractors and helping them to understand the benefits as well as the costs involved.
I would encourage everyone to take a look at the full version of our 2011 Annual Report online
here, or you can request a hard copy by contacting Beatrice Orchard on 020 7092 3876 or at
beatriceorchard@fmb.org.uk.
