Government Resist Gangmaster Law In Construction

The government has insisted it has no plans to allow the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) to regulate the construction industry despite a Labour Party commitment to examine the issue following the party's National Policy Forum in Warwick last weekend.

A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (DBERR) said: “There are no plans at the moment to review the GLA. We don't think extending its remit to the construction industry is the best way forward.

The GLA regulates workers in the traditionally low-paid sectors of agriculture, horticulture, shellfish gathering, food processing and packaging and Trade unions have called for its remit to be extended to the UK construction industry, but lobby group the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) opposes any extension of the GLA's current powers.

Anne Fairweather, head of public policy at the REC, said: “There are issues that need to be addressed, but we don't think the GLA has proved it can drive out rogue traders, and until it does its powers should not be extended to the construction industry.” She added: “The GLA currently covers the supply of largely unskilled workers into lower-paid jobs in agriculture and food processing. This is a huge contrast to the construction industry where agencies can place professionals for hundreds of pounds a day.”