Is There a Second Wave of the Illegal Employment Blacklist?

Those who know, have a duty to report it…and if we coordinate our actions we can end blacklisting for good.

In the construction sector and according to reliable union sources, the employment blacklist is back on track – more difficult to detect than before. Revenge sackings are said to be taking place under cover of the coronavirus pandemic. It seems to be a case of déjà vu for the now-illegal Blacklist.

The aim of this webpage is – with the assistance of whistleblowers – to help ensure that the employment blacklist is banished for good: and to get fair play back into the workplace. Not just for the UK’s construction sector but for all sectors of the economy.

Last time around, it was proven that the big companies ran the whole show. Small companies kowtowed to the forty-four named blacklisting companies. And it was the paymasters who decided who worked on ‘their’ projects. Otherwise, those same firms would be starved of new work and subsequently forced out of business.

As those blacklisted workers will tell you – the writer included – this immoral practice can be carried out in a number of ways, such as:

• Being banned from working in the UK.
• Being denied work locally and forced to work away from one’s family.
• Only allowed short term contracts on projects that are in difficulty.
• If a blacklisted person does find work they’re likely to be sacked for trivial reasons: eg. edging over the car park speed limit. Most probably they’ll have to endure a hostile environment created by their supervisor’s persistent harassment and bullying.
• And, of course, by attacking members of one’s family – any target is a good one!

The effects on families is devastating, poverty causes stress and prolonged stress causes illnesses – both physical and mental. Family break-ups are common, and children become stigmatised by not being able to afford the things that other kids have. Like new clothes, iPhones, school trips etc. One blacklisted worker told me that it broke his heart when his 11-year old daughter asked, ‘when she could come off free-school meals?’ …….And the Establishment wonder why there’s so much anger out there (?).

Without the grit and determination of all contributors to the groundbreaking book ‘Blacklisted’; the good work of the ICO and BSG, it couldn’t have been proved that the Blacklist existed. And Ian Kerr (director of The Consulting Association) would have continued to make his living by destroying the lives of others. Dozens of whom had committed suicide.

I can strongly empathise with company directors who – given Hobson’s choice of survival of their company versus sacking an individual – it’s a no-brainer for the company, but still morally bankrupt.

If these same directors want to get these gorillas off their backs (so to speak) they can complain to the Competition and Markets’ Authority (CMA). They should then employ whom they choose – on a person’s job attributes – as they do in fully civilised countries! Sackings for raising site or safety concerns is outrageous.

Now, twelve years since the unholy Blacklist was found, workers and their families – once again – need the assistance of fair-minded people to earn a living.

So, good people, I’m asking you to take part in this information-gathering exercise and choose one or more from the three authorities listed below. Tell them (in confidence) what you know. Please quote this reference: TUJ-01

NSPCC – Email: help@nspcc.org.uk Tel: 0808 800 5000 – To get the kids off free-school meals and to rid these poor innocents of this cruel burden.

Competition & Markets Authority – www.gov.uk/cma – Tel: 020 3738 6000. For a level (labour market) playing field. And to report this anti-competitive behaviour.

Information Commissioner’s Office – Tel: 0303 123 1113 – For honesty, fair play and transparency concerning HR files.

Or alternatively, just let your local MP know. He/she will be able to report back to the UK’s watchdogs and parliament.

Unions: Managers, supervisors and HR personnel will know more than most about the Blacklist. All unions should provide a hotline for whistleblowers. I have asked my union to do this. However, I was refused, point blank. They also (disingenuously, in my opinion) asked me to prove that I am blacklisted: they said they may be able to help if I can prove the existence of a new Blacklist. Consequently, this has led to the creation of this webpage.

For UK workers: The road to a public inquiry (justice) is a long and winding one. There’ll be roadblocks and diversions along the way but we’ll get there.

For companies: This info-gathering exercise is an opportunity to self-cleanse and reset relations between managers and workers – hopefully, for decades to come.

Currently, companies have carte blanche on workers’ rights. There is no real deterrent to stop the blacklisters – hence, no change in their behaviour. And so, the lawmakers will have to be further pressured into changing our employment laws.

I trust that the worst offenders will be named and shamed by our watchdogs? It’s the only medicine that can cure this century-old disease – which was created in the now-defunct Economic League’s boardroom.

To summarise: Report the illegal blacklisters. Tell your colleagues and friends about them – even your mum and dad – but most of all TellUncleJohn.net. Help to stop a second wave of this family-destroying virus.

How Is This Webpage Supposed to Work?

• Whistleblowers from all sectors of the UK’s economy report what they know to the NSPCC, CMA, ICO watchdogs – or their local MP – stating reference TUJ-01.
• Interested parties – like the Blacklist Support Group (BSG) – can, via Freedom of Information requests, obtain information from the same public bodies. Thereby, helping everyone’s cause – companies and workers, alike.
• Hopefully, the good people of the UK will help to expose the latest (contemporary) system of blacklisting. Workers’ families and companies can then prosper. Simple.

Giz A Job:

Dear Reader, I’m a senior/principal electrical design engineer who has lots of experience working in several industries: chemical, petrochemical, oil/gas, utilities and water. I’ve also worked in building services: hospitals, schools, hotels etc.

Since my successful employment tribunal in 2005, I have struggled to find work. I only seem to work on short-term contracts. Invariably, those projects are struggling with design issues and / or time pressure.

Guess what? ….I’m currently out of work – again: that’s despite a bulging order book consisting of twelve new projects amounting to about 5-years’ new work. For me, this latest sacking was the final straw.

Agents often tell me that I’m their best candidate but they can’t get me an interview. They ask: ‘What’s going on?’ This webpage should help us find the answer.

My 16-years’ experience of being blacklisted tells me that union sources are spot on with their assumption… the Blacklist is back in play!

Please find my CV c/w references here.

Alan Heaton, Widnes, Cheshire  04/08/2020

Update: After 11-months, 55 job applications and not one offer of an interview, I have finally found work. It’s a 12-month contract in the nuclear industry. Hope everything turns out ok. I’ll let you know – watch this space.

23/03/2021