43K JOBS FACE AXE
Building giant begs over bailout
ONE of Britain’s biggest construction firms begged the Government for a cash bailout to save 43,000 jobs last night.
Carillion, a major contractor in charge of projects such as HS2, schools, hospitals and National Grid infrastructure, has been left with debts of £1.5billion following an accounting scandal.
It also has a pension black hole of £587million that puts the retirement funds of 28,500 at risk.
The firm is frantically trying to raise cash and its retirement fund trustees met Whitehall chiefs and the pensions watchdog yesterday. Talks are set to revolve around how it will keep funding the scheme and meet the promises made to workers.
Talks
Senior ministers, including Business Secretary Greg Clark, have held crisis talks amid growing fears it may collapse.
The company, which employs 43,000 people worldwide, also manages and maintains Army and hospital buildings, roads and swathes of Britain’s internet infrastructure.
Last July it revealed ballooning debts amid delays in collecting cash from clients, problems on contracts and a downturn in ® business. The Unite union’s assistant secretary, Gail Cartmail, said: “If taxpayers’ money is used to fund corporate mismanagement then the Government should be looking to ensure that public sector contracts are brought back in-house at the earliest possible opportunity.
“If the Government is forced to institute a rescue package they need also to ensure the supply chain is fully protected, as many of these workers lack even the protection of basic employment rights.”
Carillion would not comment last night.