‘Black Friday’ for builders

THOUSANDS of construction workers are approaching the industry holiday not knowing if they will have a job to return to after the two-week break, a building trade union has claimed.

The construction industry holiday begins on Friday and many have dubbed it ‘Black Friday’ in response to claims the housing market is on the verge of collapse.

However, the Construction Industry Federation is claiming the industry is in good shape and accused doubters of scare-mongering.

Builders’ and Allied Trades Union deputy general secretary Denis Farrell said: “Unfortunately when it comes to the holiday time, builders and building companies can often make a very easy decision to let people go without necessarily using the terms of redundancy or giving notice but just saying there is no work after the holiday period.”

However, the industry federation said Mr Farrell was trying to mislead workers about their rights and legal safeguards and also accused him of over-hyping the downturn in construction.

Meanwhile, a Cork builder has been named as the Portwest Mr Construction 2007. Tiernan Hanlon beat other finalists to win the competition, decided by votes from Today FM listeners and an audience.