Major businesses 'supplied names' to register of banned workers
Concerns about blacklisting in the construction industry, and HR’s role in it, were reignited this week when the BBC’s Panorama programme claimed major construction companies had regularly supplied names for a secret register of employees.
Previous information about the secretive firm behind the list, The Consulting Association (TCA), suggested that the illegal database of more than 3,000 names had been run and accessed by a few rogue individuals.
However, Mary Kerr, who was employed by the TCA - which was run by her husband Ian Kerr - claimed that large construction companies had supplied many of the names and personal details that were ultimately used to exclude candidates from major construction sites across the UK.
She also alleged that HR directors and managers from construction companies routinely called the TCA office to use the list to screen job candidates for a whole range of jobs on their work sites, not just building professionals.
The programme interviewed people who claimed they had been victimised for raising health and safety concerns or for being members of a union and placed on the list maliciously. The workers said they had been excluded from sites for years, including many large publically funded projects such as Crossrail and the Olympic Park.
Panorama’s expose follows an ongoing inquiry by the Scottish Affairs Select Committee into the list that labelled workers as ‘trouble-makers’.
At the time members of the committee said they were “appalled” that established firms had funded a “systematic blacklist”, and they also criticised employers for not taking full responsibility.
Responding to questions raised by Panorama, a CIPD spokesperson said: “The institute is conducting a small number of investigations, under its Code of Professional Conduct, into members alleged to have used TCA services.”
The CIPD was unable to discuss the matter further as its own investigations are ongoing. But membership could be revoked if evidence is found that people have broken the rules of the code of conduct.
However, the institute also told People Management that, separate to the Code of Conduct investigations, “chief executive Peter Cheese is pressing for a wider debate on the topic, which would extend beyond the construction industry”. This will examine what is and isn’t legitimate when vetting employees. The CIPD is understood to be talking to a range of stakeholders in the debate, including HR and other industry representatives, with the objective of producing guidance relevant to today’s world of social networks and digital tools.
The extent of illegal blacklisting among construction companies was first revealed in March 2009, with more than 40 employers implicated.
Between them the firms had paid nearly £480,000 for information about job applicants from The Consulting Association from April 2006 to February 2009.
This group included well-known companies such as Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd and Skanska.