Unite prepare for construction strike ballot

Britain's biggest union Unite is preparing to ballot up to 20,000 of its engineering and construction members over official strike action in the light of the failure of union and employers to reach a deal to renew the National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry (NAECI), covering workers building and maintaining Britain's power stations and petrochemical sites, which has operated since 1981.

In an official statement, Unite said that construction employers, represented by the Engineering Construction Industry Association, had not met its demands.

The decision was taken to support a national ballot for industrial action at a meeting of national shop stewards in Manchester today (Friday).